Texas First Whataburger History

This is the story of how Whataburger started. At 1950, Harmon Dobson and Paul Burton were looking to open a hamburger restaurant. Dobson's goal was to "make a better burger that took two hands to hold and tasted so good that when you took a bite you would say What a burger. In June 1950, Dobson was granted the Whataburger trademark. In August of that year they opened their first location on Ayers Street in Corpus Christi, Texas, across from Del Mar College. The store sold burgers for 25 cents, and also sold drinks and chips.In 1951, Burton and Dobson ended their partnership after arguments concerning Dobson's price rise of the burger from 25 to 30 cents. Burton settled with owning the Whataburger franchises in San Antonio, Texas. Months later, prices for burgers were raised to 35 cents. In 1952, Dobson opened a location in Kingsville, Texas, the first store outside of Corpus Christi. In 1953, Joe Andrews, Sr. became the first non-founder franchise owner with a location in Alice, Texas.

Inspired by his love for flying, Dobson designed the orange and white striped A-frame store in Odessa, Texas, in 1961.In 1962, the company added French fries and hot pies to its menu. In 1963, it expanded to Arizona and totaled 26 stores. In 1965, it estimated selling 15,000 burgers daily in the Texas Coastal Bend area. In 1967, the company commissioned the Flying W company logo, and the company had expanded to 40 restaurants in four states. On April 11, 1967, Dobson and an associate died in an airplane crash and Dobson's widow Grace took control of the business. In 1969, Grace became chairman of the board.In 1971, the company opened its first drive-through store, and in 1972, it opened its 100th store. In 1974, the A-frame design was changed to a Modern A-Frame to accommodate drive-thru and larger dining