Early Childhood
Harland David Sanders was born on September 09, 1890 on a country road three miles (4.8 km) east of Henryville, Indiana. It must be said that Sanders’ childhood was tough. First, he was not the only child in the family, who was not very rich. He was the oldest of three children born to Wilbur David and Margaret Ann Sanders.
His father worked part time, doing some errands of farmers in Henryville. Mother did not work, as she had to take care of the children.
The problems began when the father of Harland Sanders suddenly died. In 1895 one summer afternoon, Sanders’ father came back home with a fever and died later that day. This occurred when the future founder of KFC was only 6 years old. His life changed dramatically. First, his mother went to work to a tomato-canning factory to feed the family somehow. And Harland Sanders was required to be a babysitter and take care of younger brother and sister at home.
This fact was the key to his life. Since these factors have contributed to the development of Sanders as the chef. All the relatives began to notice that the little boy was a real talent in this case.
When his mother remarried, he escaped from home because his stepfather beat him. Sanders falsified his birth date and volunteered for the U.S. Army at the age of 15 years. He served a full term and ended his service in Cuba. During his early years Sanders had to work as a steamboat pilot, insurance agent, farmer and etc. Finally, he found a good regular job as a fireman in the U.S. railway company.
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