Timeline of Lexington, Kentucky facts for kids

The following is a timeline of the history of Lexington, Kentucky, United States.

18th century

• 1775 – Lexington founded in the Colony of Virginia.
• 1776 – Lexington becomes part of the new state of Virginia.
• 1782
  • May – Town of Lexington established.
  • August – Siege of Bryan Station.
• 1787 – Kentucky Gazette newspaper begins publication.
• 1789
  • Lexington Light Infantry organized.
  • Transylvania Seminary opens.
• 1784 – Mount Zion Church founded.
• 1790
  • Population: 2,000.
  • First African Baptist Church founded (approximate date).
• 1792
  • Lexington becomes part of the new state of Kentucky.
  • Kentucky legislature begins meeting.
• 1796
  • Episcopal church established.
  • Lexington Library founded.
• 1797 – Postlethwait's Tavern built.

19th century

Lexington, Kentucky, 1871

• 1801 – Walnut Hill Presbyterian Church built.
• 1806
  • Court House built.
  • Sign of the Green Tree tavern in business (approximate date).
• 1808 – The Reporter newspaper begins publication.
• 1809 – Lexington Jockey Club formed.
• 1810 - Population: 4,326.
• 1811 – Giron confectionery in business.
• 1812 – Juvenile Library organized.
• 1814 – Hunt House (residence) built.
• 1816 – Usher's Theater built (approximate date).
• 1818 – Athenaeum founded.
• 1820 - Population: 5,279.
• 1821 – Lafayette Seminary established.
• 1823 – St. Catherine's Academy for girls established.
• 1824 – Eastern Lunatic Asylum established.
• 1826
  • Kentucky Association formed.
  • Masonic Hall dedicated.
• 1830
  • Lexington and Ohio Railroad established.
  • Population: 6,026.
• 1831 – Lexington Observer newspaper begins publication.
• 1832 – Episcopal Burying Ground established.
• 1833 – Cholera epidemic.
• 1835 - Frankfort-Lexington railway begins operating.
• 1840 - Population: 6,997.
• 1844 – Market-house built.
• 1845
  • Christ Church Episcopal built.
  • True American anti-slavery newspaper begins publication.
• 1847 – Licking and Lexington Railroad begins operating.
• 1848 – Lexington and Frankfort Railroad takes over the former Lexington & Ohio.
• 1849
  • Lexington Cemetery established.
  • Covington and Lexington Railroad begins operating.
• 1850
  • Lexington and Danville Railroad begins operating.
  • Maysville and Lexington Railroad begins operating.
  • Population: 8,159.
• 1854 – Sayre School established.
• 1856 – First African Baptist Church built.
• 1859 – Kentucky Central railroad begins operating trains to Cincinnati.
• 1860 – Lexington and Southern Kentucky Railroad begins operating.
• 1861 – August – Union cavalry arrive.
• 1863 – Lexington National Cemetery established.
• 1865
  • College of the Bible of Transylvania University established.
  • Kentucky Agricultural and Mechanical College established.
• 1867 – Cincinnati, Lexington and East Tennessee Railroad begins operating.
• 1869
  • Louisville, Cincinnati and Lexington Railroad merges the Lexington & Frankfort with the Louisville & Frankfort.
  • Elizabethtown, Lexington and Big Sandy Railroad begins operating.
  • Hamilton College of Transylvania University established.
  • Cemetery of the Union Benevolent Society No. 2 in use.
• 1870
  • Lexington Daily Press begins publication.
  • Odd Fellows Temple built.
• 1872 – First Presbyterian Church built.
• 1873
  • Smith Business College established.
  • Trotting Track constructed by Kentucky Trotting Horse Breeders Association.
• 1874 – Lexington Railway Company streetcars in operation.
• 1876 – Gordon School for boys established.
• 1877 – Saint Joseph Hospital founded.
• 1882 – Floral Hall built.
• 1887 – Opera House opens.
• 1888 – Kentucky Leader newspaper begins publication.
• 1892 – Lexington Standard newspaper begins publication.
• 1894
  • Woman's Club of Central Kentucky organized.
  • Central Christian Church built.
• 1900 – Population: 26,369.

20th century

• 1905 – Lexington Public Library opens.
• 1907 – Union Station opens.
• 1908 – College of Law, State University of Kentucky established.
• 1910 – Population: 35,099.
• 1916 – Stoll Field/McLean Stadium opens.
• 1920 – Population: 41,534.
• 1922 – Kentucky Theater opens.
• 1925 – Sesquicentennial.
• 1926 – Church of the Good Shepherd dedicated.
• 1930 – Population: 45,736.
• 1931 – Lexington Veterans Affairs Medical Center established.
• 1934 – United States Post Office and Court House built.
• 1936 – Keeneland Race Course opens; Ashland Stakes begin.
• 1938 – Lexington Children's Theatre founded.
• 1946 – F. W. Woolworth Building constructed.
• 1949 – Youth Symphony Orchestra active.
• 1950
  • Ashland (Henry Clay estate) museum opens.
  • Memorial Coliseum (University of Kentucky) opens.
  • Population: 55,534.
• 1951 – John C. Watts becomes U.S. representative for Kentucky's 6th congressional district.
• 1955 – Blue Grass Trust for Historic Preservation organized.
• 1957 – Waveland museum opens.
• 1958 – Urban growth boundary enacted.
• 1960 – Population: 62,810.
• 1961 – Central Kentucky Philharmonic Society formed.
• 1969 – Cliff Hagan Stadium opens.
• 1970 – Population: 108,137.
• 1972
  • Blackburn Correctional Complex built.
  • Lexington Council of the Arts organized.
  • Transit Authority of the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government established.
  • H. Foster Pettit, former state representative, becomes mayor of Lexington.
• 1973
  • Commonwealth Stadium (Kentucky) opens.
  • Lexington Ballet founded.
• 1974
  • City and Fayette County governments consolidated; Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government formed.
  • Regional Lexington Area Metropolitan Planning Organization established.
  • U.S. Federal Medical Center prison in operation.
  • Festival of the Bluegrass begins.
• 1975 – Lexington Mall built.
• 1976 – Lexington Center and Rupp Arena open.
• 1978 – Kentucky Horse Park opens.
• 1979 – Kincaid Towers built.
• 1980 – Population: 204,165.
• 1983 – Lexington Herald-Leader in publication.
• 1986 – High Security Unit, U.S. Federal Bureau of Prisons, in operation.
• 1987 – Lexington Financial Center built.
• 1990
  • Lexington Children's Museum opens.
  • Population: 225,366.
• 1991 – Arboretum established.
• 1995 – Aviation Museum of Kentucky incorporated.
• 1996
  • City website online.
  • UK Soccer Complex opens.
• 1997 - The first shops open in Hamburg Pavilion.
• 2000 – Population: 260,512.

21st century

• 2001 – Whitaker Bank Ballpark opens.
• 2003
  • The Dame music hall opens.
  • Lexington History Museum opens.
• 2004 – Kentucky Horse Park Arboretum established.
• 2005 – Bluegrass Community and Technical College established.
• 2009
  • Boomslang (music festival) begins.
  • The Alltech Arena opens.
  • Lexington Film League formed.
• 2010
  • Population: 295,803.
  • Lexington becomes the first city outside of Europe to host the World Equestrian Games.
• 2011 – Jim Gray becomes mayor.
  • The first Harry Dean Stanton film festival held
• 2012 - The Town Branch Distillery opens.
• 2013
  • Andy Barr becomes U.S. representative for Kentucky's 6th congressional district.
  • Construction of CentrePointe begins.
• 2014 – Redevelopment of the Fayette National Bank Building begins.
• 2015 – Keeneland hosted the Breeders' Cup for the first time.
• 2017 – The city's newest high school, Frederick Douglass High School, opens.