[3] On June 5, 1960, Kermit Speer and Keith Beaird founded Rural King Supply in Mattoon.

In 1970, land was purchased across from the Edgar County Fairgrounds and the new Paris Rural King was constructed.

In 1979, Gary Melvin, nephew of Kermit Speer, purchased an interest in Rural King.

In 1990, Bruce moved to the Mattoon corporate office to help with purchasing and expansion of the Rural King stores.

[6] In December 2015, Rural King announced they had reached, for the first time, $1 billion in total sales.

The previous facility, located at 4216 Dewitt Avenue, will continue to serve as a distribution center, and the headquarters will be expanded into the current Rural King store space.

[8] One of Rural King's notable sales tactics is offering free coffee and popcorn to customers inside their stores.