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This chain of three outlets, started by Maxon L. Graham and his wife, Adelaide Burt Graham, outside Salt Lake City, UT, in 1925, expanded to Seattle, WA, in 1929, and to Portland, OR, in 1930. Coon Chicken operated only these three stores, closing the business in the late 1950s. It featured racist imagery in its advertising; its main logo was a grinning African-American face dressed as a porter. After starting the Seattle outlet, the Grahams moved to the Seattle area.

The Seattle store consisted of two gable roofed buildings, with the giant grinning logo used as a front door. Other Coon Chicken Inns were planned for Tacoma, WA, and Los Angeles, CA, although they never opened. The Grahams apparently negotiated with the Gilmore Family (owners of the Farmer's Market) to open a location there.

Later in its existence, the Grahams added dance floors to the Seattle and Salt Lake City outlets. The night club portion of the establishment was ironically called the "Cotton Club," after the famous Harlem nightspot. This reference fit the other racist aspects of the venue.

All Coon Chicken Inns closed by 1957; the first to shut down was the Portland store in 1949, then the Seattle one in 1950, followed by the separately-managed Salt Lake City outlet in 1957. (See Lester Silva, http://www.lestersilva.com/collection/chickenpage1.html Accessed 01/16/2008)

PCAD id: 10987