In January 1980, Jackson was buzzing with excitement. For more than six months, the talk around Breathitt County was a new restaurant that was being built on the new road (Highway 15). Rumors had identified the business as a new McDonald’s. One version said it would be a small Jerry’s. Others hoped for a Pizza Hut.
As far back as August 1976, local businessman Sam Callahan approached the Jackson City Council seeking approval of an annexation request for a new community development he called the “King Ridge Subdivision.” The new housing area located just north of Jackson on the hill above the highway would provide lots for 58 new homes in the city.
Sam Callahan provided copies of his plan for the King Ridge Subdivision and the future development of the Highway 15 corridor to Mayor Leonard Noble and the Jackson City Council in 1976.
Callahan also highlighted the planned future development of the area, which included several multi-family dwellings and a commercial space adjacent to the new road. The local developer told the City Council that he had interest from several restaurant chains that were interested in locating a store in Jackson, including Kentucky Fried Chicken and Burger Queen. Jackson had several local restaurants but no major national chain other than Long John Silver’s. The Tee Pee, Whiz, and White Flash served thousands of burgers and quick-order meals, while Deaton’s Restaurant, the Corner Lunch, and several other local restaurants specialized in home cooking.
Jackson residents were familiar with both national chains that Callahan hoped to lure to his property. A very popular Burger Queen Restaurant was frequented by local shoppers as they ventured to Hazard. At the end of the “ramp” on Highway 15 near where the Kentucky State Police Post later stood, Hazard Burger Queen welcomed travelers to Perry County’s seat. Hazard also boasted a Kentucky Fried Chicken.
The Jackson City Council approved the annexation, but the steep hillsides and the limited space along Highway 15 caused Callahan’s dream of luring a restaurant to his property to fail. Instead, the national restaurant chains looked elsewhere in the city. Kentucky Fried Chicken, a Louisville-based chain, found property on the other side of the new highway and started construction on a new building in September 1976, and the new store opened late that year in November.
View of Opening Day at the Jackson Kentucky Fried Chicken.
Burger Queen was indeed interested in locating in Jackson. The company looked for a site in Jackson for over a year and talked to several landowners. The burger chain settled on a flat piece of property on Highway 15 South. Construction started on the new building in October 1979, and the walls were up. The building was “under roof” in mid-November.
The editors of The Jackson Times printed an article announcing “Something big is cooking at Jackson” in the November 22, 1979 edition. The report confirmed the rumors that the new building on Highway 15 was, in fact, a Burger Queen and provided a history of the growth of the Kentucky-based restaurant chain.
Work continued at a quick pace. Travelers on Highway 15 followed the construction progress and were excited to see the sign hoisted in front of the store a few days before Thanksgiving 1979. Locals were told the plan was to open the new eatery by mid-December. They missed their mark and instead had a soft opening between Christmas in 1979 and New Year in 1980.
The Jackson Burger Queen shortly after its soft opening in 1979.
The Jackson Times announced the store’s opening on the front page of their January 3, 1980 paper edition.
“Queenie Bee” coming to Jackson
Burger Queen celebrating grand opening
You might say it way all part of the Christmas celebration. The opening of the Burger Queen that is. Breathitt Countians have been reacting to the opening of the restaurant and drive-in almost as if it were a present to Jackson from Santa.
According to manager Doug Fannin, response has been most satisfying. “We couldn’t be more pleased,” he said.
WE’RE READY TO SERVE YOU. That’s the word from the Burger Queen staff. Manager Doug Fannin stands with three of the 29 employees at the Jackson restaurant. Up front with Fannin is Sandy Ritchie. In the background are Lillie Johnson and Glen Johnson.
“We expected to have mostly a weekend business,” he continued, “but every day has been good since we opened.”
Transferring to Jackson from a Burger Queen managerial position at Flemingsburg, Fannin says he is extremely pleased with Breathitt’s reception of the restaurant and him as an individual. “People here are so nice and pleasant I don’t feel like I left home at all,” he added. “I feel very much at home here.”
Perhaps that feeling will be more complete when he is able to work out arrangements to bring his family- his wife and 2 ½ month old boy. Mrs. Fannin is a speech therapist and plans to move to Jackson at the end of this school year.
The local Burger Queen is serving the public with 29 employees working two shifts daily. It has a seating capacity of 101 and there have been times when it was hard to get a seat.
The facility also has a drive-in window which is proving very popular with hungry Breathitt Countians wanting service in their cars.
According to Fannin, the best-selling local menu has been hamburger, French fries, and pop. That is not necessarily true of all Burger Queens, however. In some places, he said fish and chicken are very popular items.
He estimates that on good days he has sold an average of 1,500 hamburgers since opening. He says as good as things have been since opening, he still has had some problems. One of those has been organization. He’s confident that will improve with experience.
BURGER QUEEN EMPLOYEES enjoy Burger Queen food and drinks during breaks. If in doubt ask Faye Hensley and Jerry Hensley (no kin). They are part of the opening crew and both say they enjoy their work. Jerry is a cook and Faye a future hostess. One thing Jerry says he enjoys about his new job is the people with whom he works. Faye says she likes all the nice people she gets to meet.
“In the process of opening, training employees, and generally getting started it is possible we may have served a customer food inferior to our regular standards,” said manager Fannin. “I hope that didn’t happen, but if it ever should I want customers to realize I welcome their complaints. That is one way we have to improve our service.”
He said his staff’s objective is to serve good, hot food as quickly as possible.
Burger Queen management has plans for adding a salad bar in the spring. Customers will be able to choose between 35 items such as chicken salad, potato salad, and a host of other items to make their own creation. “We’ll be catering to people with a limited lunch hour and those watching their weight,” explained Fannin.
The drive-through window is one of the popular aspect of Jackson’s newest restaurant. Almost a third of the restaurant’s business is conducted through it.
Fannin feels the Burger Queen is located on a choice site. Not only is it close to Jackson and located on busy Highway 15 it has ample parking space. He says that gives it an edge over other Burger Queens as many of them have less desirable sites.
The Burger Queen logo featuring Queenie Bee in 1979.
Come spring and some changes will he made both inside and out. More decorating will be done inside, and the landscape completed with paving and setting for shrubs. Somewhere along the line more employees will be added.
Whether it is breakfast, lunch, supper, or a snack Fannin and his staff invite the public in for a selection of favorite foods from their varied menu.
Saturday, Jan. 5 will be grand opening day for the Jackson Burger Queen so Fannin and his staff, especially invite everyone to visit them and get acquainted.
An added attraction Saturday will he a visit from “Queenie Bee” herself. Queenie Bee is symbolic of the friendship and good service extended to the community by Burger Queen.
“We hope everyone will enjoy seeing Queenie Bee,” Fannin concluded.
The Jackson Times, January 3, 1980, page 1
Burger Queen in 1980.
In the weeks and months following the grand opening on January 5, 1980, the store was “swamped with customers.” By February, the store was selling more than 1,800 burgers a day. Long hours and relentless work saw a significant employee turnover. Managers found it difficult to meet the demands of the burger-hungry public. The owners decided to make some changes.
Ben Vest was the manager of Dairy Queen in 1980.
On April 1, 1980, the owners announced that Burger Queen in Jackson would get a new manager. Ben Vest, a twelve-year veteran of Burger Queen and the current manager of the Danville store, assumed management of the local restaurant. Vest announced that the restaurant was “upgrading its service and the quality of our food.” He pledged to work on the “overall cleanliness of the eating place.”
Vest, an Air Force veteran, moved his wife Janice and his two sons to Jackson. He was anxious to build on the store’s “good summer” and was pleased that the eatery did “as much business here as can be expected from a town this size.” He continued to promote the newly installed salad bar and the variety of food the workers provided for the community.
With help from his assistant managers Jimmy Porter, Allen White, and Gloria Parkhurst, the new manager worked hard and stabilized the restaurant. Burger Queen opened at 6:00 a.m. each morning and closed promptly at 11:00 p.m. except for Saturdays when they stayed open until midnight. The Jackson restaurant prospered under the new management, and business remained steady.
New name – New sign on the front of the old Burger Queen building.
On July 25, 1980, a little more than six months after it opened on Highway 15, Burger Queen ceased to exist in Jackson. The restaurant chain’s owners told franchisees that the restaurants would continue operations but under a different name. The owners announced that more than 117 eateries across the south would change from Burger Queen to Druther’s. The Jackson location underwent the required makeover in late 1980 into 1981.
In 1981, Druther’s dropped the Queenie Bee mascot and introduced a new spokesman named “Andy Dandytale.” The overall-wearing songster played his banjo and touted the Handy Dandy meals for children. The campaign was successful, and he always used the catchphrase, “I’d ruther go to Druthers.”
While it operated in Jackson, Druther’s worked hard to be a community partner. Ben Vest and his restaurant sponsored numerous local events, ball teams, blood drives, Lees College events, the Breathitt County Library, and local fire departments. They gave away fries and meals to children in the community and students at every school. They sponsored the annual “Breakfast with Santa” event.
Soon, there was more competition in Jackson. In 1984, Hardees opened and drew customers away with its roast beef sandwich. Rumors of a McDonald’s circulated. The Jackson store started losing money as business slowed and the store closed in 1988. By 1989, Gary Campbell’s SEC Auto Sales occupied the building along Highway 15.
Sample advertisements from The Jackson Times.
The two remaining owners of the Druther’s Corporation started talks in August 1989 to sell their remaining restaurants in six states to the International Dairy Queen Corporation. The two companies agreed, and each restaurant rebranded to Dairy Queen. The popular Druther’s Restaurants disappeared- almost. In 2023, a single Druther’s Restaurant, a private franchise owned by Steve McCarty, still serves customers in Campbellsville, Kentucky.
While Burger Queen and Druther’s only operated in Jackson briefly, they left distinct marks in the memory of a generation of Breathitt Countians who had their first national restaurant hamburger chain meal there in the early 1980s. For many, they would still “ruther go to Druther’s.”
Bookie on the Trail 