1. The Kentucky Historical Society was founded on January 25, 1836. Its mission is to collect, preserve, and share the history of Kentucky with the public.
2. On January 25, 1865, Confederate General John Hunt Morgan escaped from the Ohio Penitentiary in Columbus, Ohio. Morgan was a notorious raider who had led several successful cavalry raids in Kentucky during the Civil War.
3. The Kentucky Fried Chicken chain of restaurants was founded by Colonel Harland Sanders in Corbin, Kentucky on January 25, 1930. Sanders developed his famous "secret recipe" of 11 herbs and spices and began selling his chicken from a roadside gas station.
4. Muhammad Ali, one of the greatest boxers of all time and a native of Louisville, Kentucky, was born on January 17, 1942. Ali won the gold medal in the light heavyweight division at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome and went on to become a three-time world heavyweight champion.
5. Kentucky became the 15th state in the United States on June 1, 1792. However, it was not until January 25, 1909 that the Kentucky state flag was officially adopted. The flag features the state seal on a blue background and the words "Commonwealth of Kentucky" above and below the seal.