Architect Stanley Meston designed the Golden Arches for McDonald's first major restaurant buildings in the 1950s.
Meston worked with businessman Richard McDonald on the visual design of the new restaurant in San Bernardino, California. The arches were large yellow structures placed at the sides of the building, making the restaurant visible to passing motorists.
The original arches were architectural features rather than a standalone corporate logo. Their bright color and unusual roadside shape gave McDonald's a recognizable identity before the company adopted the familiar overlapping-arches emblem.
A common mix-up is to credit Ray Kroc with designing the arches. Kroc expanded the McDonald's franchise system, but Stanley Meston was the architect associated with the original building design. The arches later became one of the world's most recognizable commercial symbols.