KFC History

Long years back in 1930’s Colonel Harland Sanders got some distinguished Kentucky folks lickin’ their fingers. It’s been in fashion since then!

Colonel Harland Sanders, founder of the original Kentucky Fried Chicken, was born on September 9, 1890.When he was six, his father died and his mother was forced to go to work while young Sanders took care of his three year old sibling. This meant he had to do much of the family cooking. By the time he was seven, Harland Sanders was a master of a range of regional dishes.

After a series of jobs, in the mid 1930s at the age of forty, Colonel Sanders bought a service station, motel and cafe at Corbin, a town in Kentucky about 25 miles from the Tennessee border. It is here that Sanders began experimenting with different seasonings to flavor his chicken which travelers loved and for which he soon became famous. 

During the next nine years he developed his secret recipe of 11 herbs and spices and the basic cooking technique which is still used today. Sander's fame grew. He sold his chicken on the highway! But when the highway was removed, he sold up and traveled the United States by car, cooking chicken for restaurant owners and their employees. If the reaction was favorable Sanders entered into a handshake agreement on a deal which stipulated a payment to him of a nickel for each chicken the restaurant sold. 

By 1964, from that humble beginning, Colonel Harland Sanders had 600 franchise outlets for his chicken across the United States and Canada. Later that year, Colonel Sanders sold his interest in the United States operations for $2 million. The 65-year-old gentleman had started a worldwide empire using his $105 social security cheque. Sadly, Colonel Harland Sanders passed away on December 16th, 1980 aged 90.

His legacy lives on with KFC restaurants all over the world. KFC now stretches worldwide with more than 13,000 restaurants in more than 80 countries and territories around the world serving up the Colonel’s Original Recipe. It is a $13 billion brand based out of Kentucky and is the leading QSR around the world which is based in Louisville, Kentucky. Yum! Brands own 5 brands, out of which KFC is the largest brand within the Yum! Portfolio, founded by Colonel Harland Sanders in the year 1938.

1900-1924

Harland Sanders holds a variety of jobs including: farm hand, streetcar conductor, army private in Cuba, blacksmith's helper, railyard fireman, insurance salesman, tire salesman and service station operator for Standard Oil. 

1930

In the midst of the depression, Harland Sanders opens his first restaurant in the small front room of a gas station in Corbin, Kentucky. Sanders serves as station operator, chief cook and cashier and names the dining area "Sanders Court & Café." 

1936

Kentucky Governor Ruby Laffoon makes Harland Sanders an honorary Kentucky Colonel in recognition of his contributions to the state's cuisine. 

1937

The Sanders Court & Café adds a motel and expands the restaurant to 142 seats. 

1939

The Sanders Court & Café is first listed in Duncan Hines' "Adventures in Good Eating." 

Fire destroys The Sanders Court & Café, but it is rebuilt and reopened. 

The pressure cooker is introduced. Soon thereafter Colonel Sanders begins using it to fry his chicken to give customers fresh chicken, faster. 

1940

Birthdate of the Original Recipe 

1949

Sanders marries Claudia Price. 

1952

The Colonel begins actively franchising his chicken business by traveling from town to town and cooking batches of chicken for restaurant owners and employees. 

The Colonel awards Pete Harman of Salt Lake City with the first KFC franchise. A handshake agreement stipulates a payment of a nickel to Sanders for each chicken sold. 

1955

An interstate highway is built to bypass Corbin, Kentucky. Sanders sells the service station on the same day that he receives his first social security check for $105. After paying debts owed, he is virtually broke. He decides to go on the road to sell his Secret Recipe to restaurants. 

1957

Kentucky Fried Chicken first sold in buckets 

1960

The Colonel's hard work on the road begins to pay off and there are 190 KFC franchisees and 400 franchise units in the U.S. and Canada. 

1964

Kentucky Fried Chicken has more than 600 franchised outlets in the United States, Canada and the first overseas outlet, in England. 

Sanders sells his interest in the U.S. company for $2 million to a group of investors headed by John Y. Brown Jr., future governor of Kentucky. The Colonel remains a public spokesman for the company. 

1965

Colonel Sanders receives the Horatio Alger Award from the American Schools and Colleges Association. 

1966

The Kentucky Fried Chicken Corporation goes public. 

1969

The Kentucky Fried Chicken Corporation is listed on the New York Stock Exchange. 

1971

More than 3,500 franchised and company-owned restaurants are in worldwide operation when Heublein Inc. acquires KFC Corporation. 

1976

An independent survey ranks the Colonel as the world's second most recognizable celebrity. 

1977

Colonel Sanders speaks before a U.S. Congressional Committee on Aging. 

1979

KFC cooks up 2.7 billion pieces of chicken. There are approximately 6,000 KFC restaurants worldwide with sales of more than $2 billion. 

12/16/1980

Colonel Harland Sanders, who came to symbolize quality in the food industry, dies after being stricken with leukemia. Flags on all Kentucky state buildings fly at half-staff for four days. 

1982

Kentucky Fried Chicken becomes a subsidiary of R.J. Reynolds Industries, Inc. (now RJR Nabisco, Inc.) when Heublein, Inc. is acquired by Reynolds. 

1986

PepsiCo, Inc. acquires KFC from RJR Nabisco, Inc. 

1997

PepsiCo, Inc. announces the spin-off of its quick service restaurants - KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut - into Tricon Global Restaurants, Inc. 

2002

Tricon Global Restaurants, Inc., the world's largest restaurant company, changes its corporate name to YUM! Brands, Inc. In addition to KFC, the company owns A&W® All-American Food® Restaurants, Long John Silvers®, Pizza Hut® and Taco Bell® restaurants. 

2006

More than a billion of the Colonel's "finger lickin' good" chicken dinners are served annually in more than 80 countries and territories around the world. 

2007

KFC proudly introduces a new recipe that keeps the Colonel's 11 herbs and spices and finger-lickin' flavor, but contains Zero Grams of Trans Fat per serving thanks to new cooking oil. 

2008

The Colonel has a new look! KFC updates one of the most recognized, respected and beloved brand icons with a new logo. The new logo depicts Colonel Sanders with his signature string tie, but for the first time, replaces his classic white, double-breasted suit with a red apron. The apron symbolizes the home-style culinary heritage of the brand and reminds customers that KFC is always in the kitchen cooking delicious, high-quality, freshly prepared chicken by hand, just the way Colonel Sanders did 50 years ago. 

2009

KFC introduces Kentucky Grilled Chicken™ - a better-for-you option for health conscious consumers who love the flavor of KFC. Kentucky Grilled Chicken has less calories, fat and sodium than KFC’s Original Recipe® chicken, without sacrificing the great taste of KFC. 

Source: http://www.kfc-ng.com/history.html