What corporate name did McDonald’s adopt in 1960 after expanding beyond its original restaurant system?

McDonald’s adopted the corporate name McDonald’s Corporation in 1960 as the expanding restaurant business moved beyond its original McDonald’s System identity.

Ray Kroc joined the McDonald brothers’ operation as a franchise agent in the 1950s and helped build a much larger network of restaurants. The company’s growth required a corporate structure that could support franchising, standardized operations, national advertising, and the development of a unified public brand.

The 1960 name change is an important step in McDonald’s branding history because it formalized the name that remains associated with the company today. It also came shortly before the business adopted the Golden Arches as its dominant visual identity in the early 1960s.

This fact is sometimes confused with the company’s earlier name, McDonald’s System, Inc., which was used during the period when Kroc was developing the franchise organization. The corporation’s name is separate from the restaurant name used at individual locations and from later regional subsidiaries.