An elderly Horatio Alger; he used charm, persistence, and a secret recipe to build his fast food empire. And today, thousands of tourists pay homage to Colonel Sanders by visiting the modest restaurant where it all began.

Wanda and Tim Holloway and their grandson stopped in at a certain Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant not just to grab a quick lunch but to consume a unique slice of Southern culture. It’s a full meal of memorabilia from Kentucky’s most famous citizen, an institution that pays homage to a favorite American meal.

That institution is the Sanders Café, the first restaurant operated by Colonel Harlan Sanders decades before he helped create one of the world’s largest fast food empires.

Visitors to the little town of London, Kentucky can step back in time to 1940 when the Colonel first opened this modest restaurant alongside the Sanders Court Motel.

Lawrence Kuhl is a longtime London resident and one of the town’s unofficial historians. He says Colonel Sanders’ marketing genius showed early on, when he recognized that when families traveled, it was usually mom who decided where they’d spend the night.

“The mother would always say, I want the key, I want to look inside those rooms because back in those early days the motels didn’t have a very good reputation. So what Colonel Sanders did, he went ahead and built a model motel room in this restaurant right here,” explains Mr. Kuhl. So by seeing a sample room right inside the restaurant, Mom could then rest assured the Colonel’s motel next door was safe and clean. That’s the kind of selling savvy Sanders showed throughout his life.

His career included everything from railroad fireman to political candidate, steamboat operator to insurance salesman. As the oldest son of a young widow, he was cooking for his family by age seven, and later used those culinary skills to open his first café. What was originally a breakfast place evolved into a restaurant renowned for fried chicken.

But Sanders’ fortunes turned in the early 1950’s when a new interstate bypassed the town. He sold the motel and the restaurant but kept his secret chicken recipe with its trademark “eleven herbs and spices”, traveling across the country, pitching it to restaurant owners. In 1964, at age 74, Sanders sold his 600 franchises and became a millionaire.

Sanders was a pioneer who proved that life doesn’t end in older age. Instead of sitting around after they’ve retired, people with imagination and a strong work ethic can go on to greater things. So next time you’re in London, Kentucky, stop in for a bite “where it all began”.

Additional information:
The Sanders Café and museum is a chance to learn more about a man whose life embodies some of our best values. A courtly white-suited gentleman who combined hard work, perseverance, a sense of fairness and a little Kentucky charm to find success in his golden years. For more information check out www.kfc.com

The Kentucky Tourism web site has lots of ideas for travel in Kentucky, including agri-tourism sites. Go to www.kentuckytourism.com

By the way, “Colonel” was an honorary title bestowed on Harland Sanders by the Kentucky governor in recognition of his contribution to Kentucky cuisine.