Later Tour Program at Upjohn  

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At the start of the 1960's the tour program became even more formalized, with smart uniforms being provided for all escorts. Escorts were given a manual that described exactly what their duties were, how to dress and how to behave. Tour participants wlaked through the basement and the first floor of building 41, viewing all the manufacturing and support operations. They ended up in the B41 cafeteria for refreshments. Below are some photos of the escorts between 1962 and 1989 plus the fan-fold postcard that was handed out to visitors.

On 17 August, 1989 a Kalamazoo Gazette article publically announced the end of tours. Donald Parfet, senior corporate vice president for administration, stated “It’s always difficult to end any program, particularly one which has been so popular. However, concerns about security and purity simply make it impractical to continue to provide public tours.” The last tour was on August 31, 1989. It was likely no coincidence that Kellogg in Battle Creek had stopped their public tours the year before.

Early Tour Program

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 





Each tour guide had a 129-page escort manual that contained a great deal of information about Upjohn operations and activities that visitors would see, and the products made by the company. The example below that originally belonged to Pat Bell is now in the collection of Carol Orris. 

Here's another escort manual with a lot of additional materials in a company binder. This belonged to Pat Bell also. I've included a memo in the binder from 1985 listing the top twenty Upjohn products. This binder was saved by John Vanderbilt. 

The shirt below was worn by the tour guides as shown in one of the postcards above. It's definitely eye-catching - most likely from the 1970s. 



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