Key facts
- Colonel Sanders' former home, Blackwood Hall, and the Claudia Sanders Dinner House are up for auction.
- Personal memorabilia, including watches, a cash register, and a 1964 planner with a recipe, are also being auctioned.
- The 1964 planner contains a recipe with 11 herbs and spices, but KFC has stated it does not match their secret formula.
- The property was the first headquarters for KFC and was sold by Sanders in 1974.
- Bids for the home and restaurant are being accepted until Friday, while memorabilia auctions are ongoing.
Colonel Harland Sanders' former home, known as Blackwood Hall, and the Claudia Sanders Dinner House restaurant he opened are up for auction in Shelbyville, Kentucky. The property, which served as the first headquarters for his Kentucky Fried Chicken business in the late 1950s, was sold by Sanders in 1974 to Tommy and Cherry Settle, who have operated the restaurant since.
Alongside the property, dozens of Sanders' personal items are also being auctioned, including his pressure cooker, black bow tie, watches, an original cash register, cutlery set, a sculpted bust, and a commercial gas range. A 1964 personal planner containing a handwritten recipe with 11 herbs and spices is among the memorabilia, sparking speculation about whether it is KFC's secret recipe. However, KFC Corp. previously examined the recipe during a legal dispute and concluded that the ingredients did not match their secret blend, suggesting it may have been for a stuffing recipe.
Auctioneer Bill Menish described Sanders as the original celebrity chef and a marketing genius who adopted the colonel persona. The online pre-bidding for memorabilia concludes with a live auction, while sealed bids for the restaurant and home will be accepted until Friday. The current highest bid for an honorary Kentucky Colonel certificate is $7,500, and a black bow tie has garnered over $4,000 in online bids.