Louisville

Sister cities

• Quito

History

The history of Louisville spans hundreds of years, and has been influenced by the area's geography and proximity to the Falls of the Ohio River. Since the Falls created a barrier to river travel, settlements grew at this portage point. The first European settlement in the vicinity of modern-day Louisville was on Corn Island in 1778 by Col. George Rogers Clark, credited as the founder of Louisville. Several landmarks in the community are named after him. Two years later, in 1780, the Virginia General Assembly approved the town charter of Louisville. The city was named in honor of King Louis XVI of France, whose soldiers were then aiding Americans in the Revolutionary War. Early residents lived in forts to protect themselves from raids from the local indigenous population, but they moved out by the late 1780s. In 1803, explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark organized their expedition across America in the town of Clarksville, Indiana at the present-day Falls of the Ohio opposite Louisville, Kentucky. The city's early growth was influenced by the fact that river boats had to be unloaded and moved downriver before reaching the falls. By 1828, the population had grown to 7,000 and Louisville became an incorporated city. Early Louisville was a major shipping port and enslaved African Americans worked in a variety of associated trades. The city was often a point of escape for fugitive slaves to the north, as Indiana was a free state. During this point in the 1850s, the city was growing and vibrant, but that also came with negativity. It was the center of planning, supplies, recruiting, and transportation for numerous campaigns, especially in the Western Theater. Ethnic tensions rose, and on August 6, 1855, known as "Bloody Monday", Protestant mobs attacked German…

Geography

==Geography== Louisville and Jefferson County have a combined area of , of which is land and (4.33%) is covered by water. Louisville is southeasterly situated along the border between Kentucky and Indiana, the Ohio River, in north-central Kentucky at the Falls of the Ohio. Louisville is an Upper South city located in a Southern state that is influenced by both Southern and Midwestern culture. It is sometimes referred to as either one of the northernmost Southern cities or as one of the southernmost Northern cities in the United States. Louisville is located in Kentucky's outer Bluegrass region. Its development has been influenced by its location on the Ohio River, which spurred Louisville's growth from an isolated camp site into a major shipping port. Much of the city is located on a very wide and flat floodplain surrounded by hill country on all sides. Much of the area was swampland that had to be drained as the city grew. In the 1840s, most creeks were rerouted or placed in canals to prevent flooding and disease outbreaks. Areas generally east of I-65 are above the flood plain, and are composed of gently rolling hills. The southernmost parts of Jefferson County are in the scenic and largely undeveloped Knobs region, which is home to Jefferson Memorial Forest. The Louisville-Jefferson County, KY-IN Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), the 43rd largest in the United States, includes the Kentucky county of Jefferson (coterminous with Louisville Metro), plus twelve outlying counties—seven in Kentucky and five in Southern Indiana. Louisville's MSA is included in the Louisville–Elizabethtown–Madison, KY–IN Combined Statistical Area (CSA), which also includes the Elizabethtown, KY MSA, as well as the Madison, IN Micropolitan Statistical Area. The Louisville area is…

Most-observed species

• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  31,138
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  29,209
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  23,402
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  22,327
• Carolina Chickadee

  Poecile carolinensis (Audubon, 1834) · Aves
  20,641
• Song Sparrow

  Melospiza melodia (A.Wilson, 1810) · Aves
  19,960
• Tufted Titmouse

  Baeolophus bicolor (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  19,774
• Carolina Wren

  Thryothorus ludovicianus (Latham, 1790) · Aves
  19,635

Largest nearby schools

• Marion C. Moore School
  High · Louisville · 2,320 students · 18.3:1 ratio
• Pathfinder School of Innovation
  Other · Louisville · 2,030 students · 28.2:1 ratio
• Ballard High
  High · Louisville · 2,014 students · 18.6:1 ratio
• Louisville Male High
  High · Louisville · 1,991 students · 21.2:1 ratio
• duPont Manual High
  High · Louisville · 1,929 students · 18.2:1 ratio
• Fern Creek High
  High · Louisville · 1,688 students · 15.6:1 ratio
• Pleasure Ridge Park High
  High · Louisville · 1,517 students · 17.4:1 ratio
• Atherton High
  High · Louisville · 1,461 students · 18.3:1 ratio