A lot of what the world knows about Kentucky is tied to this guy.

Here’s a quick history from Forbes magazine:

KFC’s roots trace back 90 years when Harland Sanders, who operated a service station in Corbin, Kentucky, started cooking for hungry travelers who stopped in for gas. In 1936, Kentucky Governor Ruby Laffoon made Sanders an honorary Kentucky Colonel in recognition of his contributions to the State’s cuisine. There are 22,600 KFC outlets in 135 countries around the world. Ninety-nine percent of the units are franchised. KFC’s parent company is YUM! Brands, which also owns Taco Bell and Pizza Hut. Worldwide KFC system sales grew 6% last year.

And take a look at this map of the world. This shows where there are KFC outlets:

The red areas are where they currently are. The black areas are where they used to be, and if you look really closely, the pink area (I only see Cuba) is where they operate on U.S. military bases. I’ve travelled throughout North America, Europe and Asia, and I’ve seen KFCs everywhere I’ve been.

Several years ago, when former Papa John’s founder John Schnatter was busted for being a racist, he suggested the colonel had used the N-word but hadn’t faced criticism for doing so. The colonel’s family responded immediately:

Sanders’ grandson, Trigg Adams, told the Louisville, Kentucky, Courier Journal on Wednesday that it is “an absolute lie” that Sanders used the racial slur or any other racially offensive words.

“He’s a weasel,” Adams said of Schnatter, according to the report. “Because he’s prejudiced, he’s trying to say somebody else was, too. (Sanders) had absolutely no prejudice against anybody.”

Sanders, who died in 1980, donated more than $20 million to charities, including to black churches, which he sometimes attended, Adams added.

Just a bit of Kentucky history. No anniversaries or anything associated with this post. I just got hungry.