James T. “Col. Jim” Looney, a Lexington grocer, known locally as the “burgoo king”, watched over a kettle of the regionally popular stew known as burgoo at the Blue Grass Fat Lamb Show and Sale at Clay Gentry Stockyards on June 22, 1946. His burgoo was served at the Lexington Trots and other events in Central Kentucky for many years. In September 1935, Looney prepared enough of his specialty to feed 4,000 people for a Labor Day “relief” picnic to benefit Lexington’s needy. The ingredients included 450 pounds of lean beef, 100 pounds of chicken, 36 one-gallon cans of tomatoes, 16 one-gallon cans of puree, four bushels of onions, eight 100-pound sacks of potatoes, four bushels of cabbage, 48 cans of corn, 25 pounds of salt and 24 cans of carrots. The remaining ingredients and seasoning remained his secret. In 1938, Looney began canning and selling Kentucky burgoo under the name “Burgoo King,” and the label bore the picture of Col. E. R. Bradley’s 1932 Kentucky Derby winner, Burgoo King, who was named after Looney. Col. Jim Looney died March 23, 1954, at age 84. Herald-Leader Archive Photo