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Indian Hills is a home rule-class city along the
Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...
in Jefferson County,
Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...
, United States. The population was 2,868 as of the 2010 census. Indian Hills and the nearby cities of Mockingbird Valley, Glenview, and
Anchorage Anchorage () is the largest city in the U.S. state of Alaska by population. With a population of 291,247 in 2020, it contains nearly 40% of the state's population. The Anchorage metropolitan area, which includes Anchorage and the neighboring Ma ...
have been cited as the most prosperous suburbs of Louisville since the mid-20th century. It was among the highest-income places in the United States as of the 2000 U.S. census.


Geography

Indian Hills is located in northeastern Jefferson County at (38.278087, -85.659762). It is bordered to the northeast by Glenview and
Riverwood Riverwood may refer to: Places ;Australia *Riverwood, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney, Australia **Riverwood railway station ;United States *Riverwood, Indiana * Riverwood, Kentucky * Riverwood, Oregon *Riverwoods, Illinois * Riverwood (Nashvi ...
, to the east by
Northfield Northfield may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Northfield, Aberdeen, Scotland * Northfield, Edinburgh, Scotland * Northfield, Birmingham, England * Northfield (Kettering BC Ward), Northamptonshire, England United States * Northfield, Connec ...
, to the southeast by Windy Hills, to the south by
Druid Hills Druid Hills is a community which includes both a census-designated place (CDP) in unincorporated DeKalb County, Georgia, United States, as well as a neighborhood of the city of Atlanta. The CDP's population was 14,568 at the 2010 census. The ...
and Brownsboro Village, to the southwest by Rolling Fields, and to the north by the
Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...
, which on the far bank carries the
Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
border. On all other sides, Indian Hills is bordered by the
Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...
/Jefferson County consolidated government.
Interstate 71 Interstate 71 (I-71) is a north–south Interstate Highway in the Great Lakes/Midwestern and Southeastern region of the United States. Its southern terminus is at an interchange with I-64 and I-65 (the Kennedy Interchange) in Louisville, ...
runs through the northern part of Indian Hills, but with no direct access.
U.S. Route 42 U.S. Route 42 (US 42) is an east–west United States highway that runs southwest–northeast for from Louisville, Kentucky to Cleveland, Ohio. The route has several names including Pearl Road from Cleveland to Medina in Northeast Ohio, Readin ...
forms the southern boundary of the community, leading west to
downtown Louisville Downtown Louisville is the largest central business district in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the urban hub of the Louisville, Kentucky Metropolitan Area. Its boundaries are the Ohio River to the north, Hancock Street to the east, York and Jaco ...
. According to the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...
, the city spans a total area of , of which , or 0.89%, are water. The Muddy Fork of Beargrass Creek runs through Indian Hills. The region is hilly
karst Karst is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, dolomite, and gypsum. It is characterized by underground drainage systems with sinkholes and caves. It has also been documented for more weathering-resistant ro ...
with numerous rock outcroppings visible, and the area is densely forested. This terrain, along with the large house lots, have been mentioned as defining features of the community. Over a third of the land is intentionally left undeveloped, mostly as woodlands. Ten areas were originally developed by the
Olmsted Brothers The Olmsted Brothers company was a landscape architectural firm in the United States, established in 1898 by brothers John Charles Olmsted (1852–1920) and Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. (1870–1957), sons of the landscape architect Frederick Law ...
landscaping firm, and other tracts have been donated to the city over the years. Most of the undeveloped land is located on Indian Hills Trail between Louisville Country Club and the Ohio River. Caperton Swamp Nature Preserve is also located in the city. The undeveloped areas around Beargrass Creek and nearly all of the city north of Interstate 71 are in the 100-year
flood plain A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river which stretches from the banks of its channel to the base of the enclosing valley walls, and which experiences flooding during periods of high discharge.Goudi ...
, and seasonal flooding is common. The intersection of Indian Hills Road and River Road is closed occasionally in spring due to high water.


History


Indian Hill Stock Farm

The community is named for local settler John Veech's Indian Hill Stock Farm, for a time one of the largest horse farms in Kentucky. Veech held over as early as 1805, and his family continued to own most of the local land into the 20th century. The
Georgian-style Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1714 and 1830. It is named after the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I, George II, Geor ...
Veech house still stands at 125 Indian Hills Trail; the farm's
springhouse A spring house, or springhouse, is a small building, usually of a single room, constructed over a spring. While the original purpose of a springhouse was to keep the spring water clean by excluding fallen leaves, animals, etc., the enclosing stru ...
is at 119 Arrowhead Road. (Both have been approved for listing on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
, but the property owners have so far opted against listing.) An 1877 ''Louisville
Courier-Journal ''The Courier-Journal'', also known as the ''Louisville Courier Journal'' (and informally ''The C-J'' or ''The Courier''), is the highest circulation newspaper in Kentucky. It is owned by Gannett and billed as "Part of the ''USA Today'' Ne ...
'' article claims the name was adopted from the hundreds of Indians camped at the site at the time of
Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...
's founding in 1778, but naming developments after Indians was generally fashionable in the late-19th century.


Development

The Veech family owned much of the land into the 20th century. In 1911, the family contracted the
Olmsted Brothers The Olmsted Brothers company was a landscape architectural firm in the United States, established in 1898 by brothers John Charles Olmsted (1852–1920) and Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. (1870–1957), sons of the landscape architect Frederick Law ...
landscaping firm to plan the development of a golf course and subdivision. Two Indian Hills houses from this era are located on the National Register of Historic Places, both in the northeastern section of the city: Midlands was built in 1913 for a member of the locally prominent Belknap family, and Blankenbaker Station was built in 1916 and was one of the first "fireproof" homes in Louisville. By 1924, the Louisville Country Club had been completed, and the initial subdivision (sometimes referred to as Indian Hills-Country Club) was developed further from 1927 to 1941 by the Semonin Company. Initial lot restrictions required houses to be sold for at least $10,000, and this was raised to $20,000 in 1946. The community was formally incorporated by the
state assembly State Assembly is the name given to various legislatures, especially lower houses or full legislatures in states in federal systems of government. Channel Islands States Assembly is the name of the legislature of the Bailiwick of Jersey. The Baili ...
on December 15, 1941.Commonwealth of Kentucky. Office of the Secretary of State. Land Office. "Indian Hills, Kentucky". Accessed 29 July 2013. Calumet Road was the last street of the original Indian Hills plan to be built, with construction delayed until the 1950s due to the steep terrain.


Battles with Louisville

In 1954, Louisville proposed annexing the new city in order to extend sewer service into the area and other developments further east. This met with such opposition that ''
The Courier-Journal ''The Courier-Journal'', also known as the ''Louisville Courier Journal'' (and informally ''The C-J'' or ''The Courier''), is the highest circulation newspaper in Kentucky. It is owned by Gannett and billed as "Part of the ''USA Today'' Ne ...
'' reported itself unable to find a single supporter of annexation or sewers in Indian Hills. Two years later, the Indian Hills plans were folded in to the larger Mallon Plan to annex most of Louisville's outlying suburbs into the city government. Leaflets distributed in Indian Hills claimed taxes would go up, Louisville busses would enter Indian Hills, and sewer service would lead to expensive and unnecessary bills. While Louisville voters approved the plan by a large majority, the suburban voters rejected it by a 2-to-1 margin and the Mallon Plan had to be shelved. In the wake of the annexation vote, Indian Hills began exerting greater political autonomy, closing down a used car lot on Brownsboro Road, annexing the land, and encouraging its redevelopment for residences. (The triangle of land involved now houses the homes around Old Brownsboro Court and a small shopping center with a
Rite Aid Rite Aid Corporation is an American drugstore chain based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1962 in Scranton, Pennsylvania, by Alex Grass under the name Thrift D Discount Center. The company ranked No. 148 in the Fortune 500 lis ...
.) The city also sued the
Louisville Gas & Electric Louisville Gas & Electric (LG&E) is a utilities company based in Louisville, Kentucky. A subsidiary of PPL Corporation through the LG&E and KU Energy subsidiary, LG&E serves over 429,000 electric and over 333,000 natural gas customers, covers an are ...
Company, seeking to remove the newly installed electrical towers east of Indian Hills Trail. LG&E won the case by arguing that the land in question was
scrubland Shrubland, scrubland, scrub, brush, or bush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominance (ecology), dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, Herbaceous plant, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally or ...
unsuitable for commercial development. In the 1980s, Louisville again proposed sewers for Indian Hills, this time without annexation. Although Indian Hills rejected the plan by a 4-to-1 margin in 1988, extending a line through the community was the only economical way to provide access to communities further east who voted in favor of the service. Legal challenges delayed construction until 1992, but a line was then constructed through the city, without connecting to any of the local houses. In 1995, a local resident was sued by both his neighbors and the
county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
to deal with his overflowing
septic tank A septic tank is an underground chamber made of concrete, fiberglass, or plastic through which domestic wastewater (sewage) flows for basic sewage treatment. Settling and anaerobic digestion processes reduce solids and organics, but the treatme ...
; he and the septic tank companies claimed the problem could not be fixed and the only option was connection to the city sewer system. Mayor Jeanne Beam, who had opposed sewers throughout her 22-year service, abruptly resigned in June after the city commissioners announced they would no longer oppose connection. Beginning in 1999, the project became the most expensive sewer construction in Jefferson County history, costing residents $20,800–$31,200 each. The same year, Indian Hills was reincorporated following an election that merged the former Indian Hills with the neighboring cities of Indian Hills-Cherokee Section (inc. 1955), Robinswood (inc. 1965), and Winding Falls (inc. 1977). (An earlier attempt to annex the community of
Riverwood Riverwood may refer to: Places ;Australia *Riverwood, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney, Australia **Riverwood railway station ;United States *Riverwood, Indiana * Riverwood, Kentucky * Riverwood, Oregon *Riverwoods, Illinois * Riverwood (Nashvi ...
as well failed in 1998; Rolling Fields was approached about joining the merger but declined to participate.) The new city reached the population threshold for 4th-class status, giving it greater local control (particularly over zoning) ahead of the merger of Louisville and Jefferson County into a single metro government. It also permitted the merger of two separate local police departments. Despite the merger, the Kentucky Secretary of State continues to list Indian Hills-Cherokee Section, Robinswood, and Winding FallsCommonwealth of Kentucky. Office of the Secretary of State. Land Office.
Winding Falls, Kentucky
. Accessed 1 August 2013.
as separate and active cities.


Demographics

As of the
census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...
of 2000, there were 2,882 people, 1,119 households, and 914 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 1,162 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 95.70%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
, 1.73%
African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 1.60%
Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
, 0.03%
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe the original p ...
, 0.03% from
other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...
, and 0.90% from two or more races.
Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...
or
Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...
of any race were 1.46% of the population. There were 1,119 households, out of which 32.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 76.3% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...
living together, 3.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 18.3% were non-families. 16.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 2.88. In the city, the population was spread out, with 23.6% under the age of 18, 4.4% from 18 to 24, 17.1% from 25 to 44, 36.7% from 45 to 64, and 18.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 47 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.2 males. The median income for a household in the city was $120,602, and the median income for a family was $134,600. Males had a median income of $98,469 versus $41,000 for females. The
per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...
for the city was $66,637. About 0.5% of families and 1.2% of the population were below the
poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...
, including 1.0% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.


Notable people

*
Jennifer Lawrence Jennifer Shrader Lawrence (born August 15, 1990) is an American actress. The world's highest-paid actress in 2015 and 2016, her films have grossed over $6 billion worldwide to date. She appeared in ''Time''s 100 most influential people i ...
, Academy Award-winning actress


See also

*
List of cities and towns along the Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illinoi ...


References


External links


City of Indian Hills official website
{{authority control Cities in Kentucky Cities in Jefferson County, Kentucky Louisville metropolitan area Kentucky populated places on the Ohio River