The first McDonald's restaurant was founded by brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald in San Bernardino, California in 1940
. In 1948, they streamlined their operations with the "Speedee Service System," offering 15-cent hamburgers
. Ray Kroc, a milkshake machine salesman, partnered with the brothers in 1954 and opened his first franchise in Des Plaines, Illinois, in 1955
. Kroc bought the McDonald brothers out in 1961 and transformed the company into the global fast food chain it is today
