Did you know burgoo is actually made with squirrels + blackbirds? Just kidding.
Maybe we fooled you, maybe we didn’t. While that burgoo myth is a farce, Lexington does have some pretty wild facts that we’re sharing with you today.
Fact 1: The J.M. Smucker Company building — aka the Jif peanut butter plant on Winchester Road — is the largest peanut butter-producing facility in the world. (WKYT)
Fact 2: Lexington holds a Guinness Book of World Records title for the largest gathering of people wearing hard hats — 2,136 people. The record was set at a UK men’s basketball game against Vanderbilt at Rupp Arena on Jan. 12, 2019. The hard hats were donated by local company Bullard.
Fact 3: Burgoo — a delicious, meaty soup staple found on menus around the city — was once made from blackbirds and squirrels. Thankfully, today’s version of the stew is made with beef, chicken, or pork. (VisitLEX)
Fact 4: Clark County, Lexington’s neighbor to the East, is considered to be the home of southern snack delicacy beer cheese. Save the date: The 2022 Beer Cheese Festival will be held Sat., June 11 in downtown Winchester. (VisitLEX)
Fact 5: Belle’s Cocktail House is named after notorious local madam Belle Brezing. Belle ran a high-class Victorian-era brothel out of the Mary Todd Lincoln Home + is considered the inspiration for Gone with the Wind character Belle Watling.
These could’ve fooled us. Do you have a crazy Lexington fact that still has you second-guessing? Let us know and you just might make it into the newsletter.
