Timeline of Louisville, Kentucky facts for kids
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Louisville, Kentucky, USA.
Prior to 19th century
- 1778 – George Rogers Clark settles on Corn Island.
- 1780 – Louisville chartered.
- 1798 – Jefferson Seminary chartered.
19th century
- 1807 – Louisville Gazette newspaper begins publication.
- 1820 – Population: 4,012.
- 1828 – John Bucklin becomes mayor.
- 1829
- Lewis Pottery Company incorporated.
- Dover's Pottery in business.
- 1830
- Louisville Daily Journal newspaper begins publication.
- Louisville and Portland Canal opens.
- Population: 10,341.
- 1831 – Louisville Lyceum established.
- 1837 – Louisville Medical Institute founded.
- 1838 – Louisville Gas and Water established.
- 1839 – Kentucky Institution for the Education of the Blind founded.
- 1840
- Belknap Hardware and Manufacturing Company began on the banks of the Ohio River.
- Louisville Collegiate Institute founded.
- Franklin Lyceum founded.
- 1841
- Louisville Law Library in operation.
- Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Louisville established.
- 1842
- Jefferson County Courthouse opens.
- Mercantile Library Association founded.
- 1844 – Louisville Morning Courier newspaper begins publication.
- 1846 – University of Louisville formed.
- 1848 – Cave Hill Cemetery dedicated.
- 1850
- Louisville and Nashville Railroad begins operating.
- Kentucky Glass Works in business.
- 1851 – German Protestant Orphan's Home founded.
- 1859 – J. F. Hillerich in business.
- 1860 – Population: 68,033.
- 1862 – Board of Trade organized.
- 1868
- Fourteenth Street Bridge built.
- The Courier-Journal newspaper begins publication.
- 1872 – Industrial Exposition.
- 1874 – Louisville Jockey Club and Driving Park Association formed.
- 1875 – Kentucky Derby begins; Churchill Downs opens.
- 1876 – Polytechnic Society of Kentucky organized.
- 1877 – Southern Baptist Theological Seminary relocates to Louisville.
- 1879 – Kaufman-Straus department store opens.
- 1880 – Population: 123,758.
- 1882 – Louisville Eclipse baseball team formed.
- 1883 – Southern Exposition begins.
- 1884
- Filson Club founded.
- The Louisville Times newspaper begins publication.
- Chestnut Street Baptist Church built.
- 1886 – Kentucky & Indiana Terminal Bridge opens.
- 1888 - Louisville Camera Club formed.
- 1889 – Union Station built.
- 1890
- Columbia Building constructed.
- Tornado.
- Population: 161,129.
- 1893 – Southern Parkway opens.
- 1894 – St. Peter's German Evangelical Church built.
- 1895 – Big Four Bridge opens.
- 1897 – Louisville Business Women's Club founded.
- 1900
- Louisville Bar Association established.
- Jennie Benedict opens catering business.
- Population: 204,731.
20th century
1901–1959
- 1905
- Louisville Free Public Library, Western Colored Branch opens.
- Louisville Gardens opens.
- Jefferson School of Law opens.
- Fontaine Ferry Park (amusement park) opens.
- 1907 - The annual Kentucky State Fair moves permanently to Louisville.
- 1908 - Louisville Free Public Library main branch opens.
- 1910
- Snead Manufacturing Building constructed.
- Waverly Hills Sanatorium opens.
- Population: 223,928.
- 1920 – Population: 234,891.
- 1921
- Bowman airfield opens.
- Legal Aid Society of Louisville and Urban League branch established.
- 1923
- Brown Hotel opened.
- Brown Hotel chef Fred Schmidt introduces the Hot Brown sandwich.
- Chickasaw Park laid out (approximate date).
- 1926 - Zachary Taylor National Cemetery created by the Taylor family.
- 1929 - Louisville Municipal Bridge opens.
- 1930
- Masonic Temple built.
- Population: 307,745.
- 1932 - U.S. Post Office, Court House and Custom House built.
- 1937
- Louisville Orchestra is founded.
- Ohio River flood.
- 1941 - Standiford Field airport built.
- 1946 - Jefferson County Memorial Forest inaugurated.
- 1947 - Standiford Field opens for commercial flights.
- 1949 - Carriage House Players active.
- 1950 - Bellarmine College opens.
- 1952 - Big Spring Country Club hosted the annual PGA Championship; Jim Turnesa won the event.
- 1954 - The annual WHAS Crusade for Children telethon begins.
- 1956
- Freedom Hall opened on the Kentucky Fairgrounds.
- Kentucky Derby Festival begins as two weeks preceding the first Saturday in May, the day of the Kentucky Derby.
- 1957 - St. James Court Art Show held its first annual arts and craft show in the Old Louisville neighborhood.
- 1958 - Freedom Hall hosted the 1958 NCAA Men's Basketball National Championship; University of Kentucky won the National Championship.
- 1959 - Freedom Hall hosted the 1959 NCAA Men's Basketball National Championship; University of California-Berkeley won the National Championship.
1960–2000
- 1962
- Sherman Minton Bridge opened.
- Mid-City Mall opened.
- Freedom Hall hosted the 1962 NCAA Men's Basketball National Championship; University of Cincinnati won the National Championship.
- 1963
- John F. Kennedy Memorial Bridge opened.
- Freedom Hall hosted the 1963 NCAA Men's Basketball National Championship; Loyola University (IL) won the National Championship.
- 1964
- Kennedy Interchange (Spaghetti Junction) opened.
- Actors Theatre of Louisville opened.
- 1965
- Louisville and Jefferson County Riverport Authority established as a public agency.
- Republican Kenneth A. Schmied was elected mayor; he was the last Republican to be elected mayor.
- 1967
- Kentucky Colonels basketball team founded.
- Freedom Hall hosted the 1967 NCAA Men's Basketball National Championship; UCLA won the National Championship.
- 1969
- Louisville Zoo opens as "State Zoo of Kentucky".
- Freedom Hall hosted the 1969 NCAA Men's Basketball National Championship; UCLA won the National Championship.
- Democrat Frank W. Burke was elected mayor.
- 1971 - Romano Mazzoli becomes U.S. representative for Kentucky's 3rd congressional district.
- 1973
- Democrat Harvey I. Sloane was elected mayor for the first time.
- Triple Crown Winner Secretariat ran the fastest time ever at the annual Kentucky Derby.
- 1974
- Tornado occurs in the east end of Louisville.
- Actors Theatre of Louisville opened is designated the "State Theater of Kentucky"
- TARC began operating as the city bus line in 1974.
- 1977
- Foreign trade zone established for the Riverport Authority.
- Democrat William B. Stansbury was elected mayor.
- 1982 - Democrat Harvey I. Sloane was elected mayor for the second time.
- 1986 - Democrat Jerry Abramson was elected mayor for the first time.
- 1987
- Kentucky Kingdom amusement park opened the Kentucky Exposition Center.
- The Courier-Journal was purchased by media giant Gannett.
- 1988 - Louisville Motor Speedway opened.
- 1990
- Thunder Over Louisville has its first annual event and becomes the first event of the annual Kentucky Derby Festival.
- Population: 269,063.
- 1993 - AEGON Center is completed and becomes the tallest building in Kentucky.
- 1995 - Standiford Field is renamed to Louisville International Airport.
- 1996 - Louisville Slugger Museum opened in Downtown Louisville.
- 1999
- Louisville Waterfront Park dedicated.
- Democrat David L. Armstrong was elected mayor.
- 2000
- Louisville Slugger Field opened for the newly renamed Louisville Bats, who became a minor league affiliate for the Cincinnati Reds the same year.
- Valhalla Golf Club hosts the annual PGA Championship, Tiger Woods won the competition.
- City website online (approximate date).
21st century
- 2001 - Louisville Bats win the Governors' Cup, AAA Championship
- 2002
- Louisville Extreme Park opens.
- Valley Sports wins the 2002 Little League World Series.
- Forecastle Festival begins its annual music festival.
- 2003
- City–county merger increases Louisville's total population to near one-million.
- Democrat Jerry Abramson is elected mayor for the second time.
- 2004
- Fourth Street Live opened as entertainment complex/venue in downtown Louisville.
- Valhalla Golf Club hosts the annual PGA Championship, Hale Irwin won the competition.
- 2005
- Muhammad Ali Center opens as a tribute to the champion boxer Muhammad Ali.
- The annual Abbey Road on the River is held in Louisville for the first time.
- Jim Patterson Stadium opens.
- 2006 - Churchill Downs hosts the annual Breeders Cup.
- 2007
- University of Louisville competes in its first BCS game by defeating Wake Forest in the Orange Bowl
- Thunder Over Louisville sets record crowd of over 800,000 people.'
- John Yarmuth becomes U.S. representative for Kentucky's 3rd congressional district.
- 2008 - Valhalla Golf Club hosts the annual Ryder Cup, the United States won the competition.
- 2009
- McAlpine Locks and Dam are expanded.
- Widely publicized extortion trial between University of Louisville men's basketball coach Rick Pitino and Karen Sypher occurred.
- Dedication ceremony held for Lincoln Memorial at Waterfront Park.
- 2010
- 2010 US Census Population: 602,011.
- Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom closed due to the rejection of an amended lease by the Kentucky State Fair Board.
- KFC Yum! Center opened as Louisville's new downtown multi-use arena.
- Churchill Downs hosted the annual Breeders Cup.
- 2011
- Democrat Greg Fischer is elected mayor after Jerry Abramson becomes Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky
- Valhalla Golf Club hosted the annual PGA Championship; Tom Watson won the competition.
- Sherman Minton Bridge temporarily closed in September after construction crews found cracks in the main load-bearing structural element.
- Churchill Downs hosts the annual Breeders Cup.
- 2012
- Sherman Minton Bridge reopened in February after months of repairs.
- KFC Yum! Center hosted second and third-round games of the 2012 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament.
- 2013
- Big Four Bridge opened as a converted pedestrian walkway from Louisville into Jeffersonville, Indiana.
- University of Louisville won its third men's basketball NCAA Championship.
- University of Louisville competed in its second BCS game, defeats Florida in the Sugar Bowl
- 2014
- Kentucky Kingdom reopened as Louisville's theme park.
- Valhalla Golf Club hosted the annual PGA Championship; Rory McIlroy won the competition.
- Mayor Fischer is re-elected in November.
- Construction of the Ohio River Bridges Project begins.
- 2015
- KFC Yum! Center hosted second and third-round games of the 2015 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament.
- Abraham Lincoln Bridge (part of the Ohio River Bridges Project) opened for public use.
- 2016
- Speed Art Museum reopened after a 3 1/2-year, $60 million expansion project.
- Death of Muhammad Ali, his globally televised funeral procession, and private interment at Cave Hill Cemetery.
Images for kids
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Childhood home of Zachary Taylor
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Timeline of Louisville, Kentucky Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.