Jefferson County is located in the north central portion of the U.S. state of

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 ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 782,969. It is the most populous county in the commonwealth (with more than twice the population of second ranked Fayette County). Since a city-county merger in 2003, the county's territory, population and

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government i ...

have been coextensive with the city of Louisville, which also serves as

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US ...

. The administrative entity created by this merger is the Louisville/Jefferson County Metro Government, abbreviated to Louisville Metro. Jefferson County is the anchor of the Louisville-Jefferson County, KY-IN Metropolitan Statistical Area, locally referred to as Kentuckiana.

History

Jefferson County—originally

Jefferson County, Virginia Jefferson County, Virginia has existed twice in the U.S. state of Virginia's history. Formed in 1780, and 1801, respectively, both counties were named for one of that state's most celebrated residents, Thomas Jefferson, and each was separated f ...

—was established by the

Virginia General Assembly The Virginia General Assembly is the legislative body of the Commonwealth of Virginia, the oldest continuous law-making body in the Western Hemisphere, the first elected legislative assembly in the New World, and was established on July 30, 16 ...

in June 1780, when it abolished and partitioned

Kentucky County Kentucky County (then alternately spelled Kentucke County) was formed by the Commonwealth of Virginia from the western portion (beyond the Cumberland Mountains) of Fincastle County effective December 31, 1776. The name of the county was taken ...

into three counties: Fayette, Jefferson and Lincoln. Named for

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 18 ...

, who was governor of

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are ...

at the time, it was one of Kentucky's nine original counties on June 1, 1792. Kentucky County, Virginia 1780

In 1778, during the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

, George Rogers Clark's militia and 60 civilian settlers, established the first American settlement in the county on

Corn Island The Corn Islands are two islands about east of the Caribbean coast of Nicaragua, constituting one of 12 municipalities of the South Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region. The official name of the municipality is ''Corn Island'' (the English name is ...

in the Ohio River, at head of the Falls of the Ohio. They moved to the mainland the following year, establishing Louisville. Richard Mentor Johnson, the 9th

Vice President of the United States The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest officer in the executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks first in the presidential line of succession. The vice p ...

, was born in Jefferson County in 1780, while the family was living in a settlement along the Beargrass Creek. The last major American Indian raid in present-day Jefferson County was the Chenoweth Massacre on July 17, 1789.

Government

Whenever possible, the metro government generally avoids any self-reference including the name "Jefferson County" and has even renamed the Jefferson County Courthouse as '' Metro Hall''. Prior to the 2003 merger, the head of local government was the

County Judge/Executive A County Judge/Executive (or simply, Judge/Executive, and often written Judge-Executive) is an elected official in the U.S. Commonwealth of Kentucky who is the head of the executive branch of a government in a county. The Judge/Executive is an ...

, a post that still exists but now has few powers. The office is currently held by Queenie Averette. Local government is effectively now led by the Mayor of Louisville Metro, Greg Fischer.

Geography

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 th ...

, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (4.3%) is water. The Ohio River forms its northern boundary with the state of

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 ...

. The highest point is South Park Hill, elevation , located in the southern part of the county. The lowest point is along the Ohio River just north of West Point.

Adjacent counties

* Bullitt County (south) * Shelby County (east) * Oldham County (northeast) * Spencer County (southeast) * Hardin County (southwest) *

Clark County, Indiana Clark County is a county in the U.S. state of Indiana, located directly across the Ohio River from Louisville, Kentucky. At the 2020 census, the population was 121,093. The county seat is Jeffersonville. Clark County is part of the Louisvill ...

(north) * Harrison County, Indiana (west) * Floyd County, Indiana (northwest)

Infrastructure

Major highways

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

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 inc ...

of 2000, there were 693,604 people, 287,012 households, and 183,113 families residing in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopu ...

was . There were 305,835 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 77.38%

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 ...

, 18.88%

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ha ...

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 ...

, 0.22% Native American, 1.39% Asian, 0.04%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/ racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

, 0.68% from other races, and 1.42% from two or more races. 1.78% of the population were

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, 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 viceroyalties for ...

or Latino of any race. There were 287,012 households, out of which 29.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.20% were married couples living together, 14.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.20% were non-families. 30.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 2.97. In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.30% under the age of 18, 8.90% from 18 to 24, 30.40% from 25 to 44, 22.80% from 45 to 64, and 13.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.60 males. The median income for a household in the county was $54,357 (2018), and the median income for a family was $49,161 (2005). Males had a median income of $36,484 versus $26,255 for females (2005). 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 county was $31,980 (2018). About 14.8% 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 ...

, including 22.1% of those under age 18 and 8.2% of those age 65 or over (2018).

Communities

Since the formation of Louisville Metro on January 6, 2003, residents of the cities below also became citizens of the newly expanded Metro, but none of the incorporated places dissolved in the process. The functions formerly served by the county government for the towns were assumed by Louisville Metro. However, the former City of Louisville was effectively absorbed into the new city-county government. * Anchorage * Audubon Park * Bancroft * Barbourmeade * Beechwood Village * Bellemeade * Bellewood * Blue Ridge Manor * Briarwood * Broad Fields * Broeck Pointe * Brownsboro Farm * Brownsboro Village * Buechel † *

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

* Cherrywood Village * Coldstream * Creekside * Crossgate * Douglass Hills *

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 ...

* Fairdale † * Fairmeade * Fern Creek † * Fincastle * Fisherville * Forest Hills * Glenview Hills * Glenview Manor * Glenview * Goose Creek * Graymoor-Devondale * Green Spring * Heritage Creek * Hickory Hill * Highview † * Hills and Dales * Hollow Creek * Hollyvilla * Houston Acres * Hurstbourne Acres * Hurstbourne * Indian Hills * Jeffersontown * Keeneland *

Kingsley Kingsley may refer to: People *Kingsley (given name) * Kingsley (surname) Places Australia *Kingsley, Western Australia Canada * Rural Municipality of Kingsley No. 124, Saskatchewan England *Kingsley, Cheshire * Kingsley, Hampshire * Kingsley, ...

* Langdon Place *

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a Counties of England, county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-we ...

* Louisville * Lyndon * Lynnview * Manor Creek * Maryhill Estates * Meadow Vale * Meadowbrook Farm * Meadowview Estates * Middletown * Mockingbird Valley *

Moorland Moorland or moor is a type of habitat found in upland areas in temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands and montane grasslands and shrublands biomes, characterised by low-growing vegetation on acidic soils. Moorland, nowadays, generall ...

* Murray Hill * Newburg † * Norbourne Estates *

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, Connect ...

* Norwood * Okolona † * Old Brownsboro Place * Parkway Village * Penile *

Plantation A plantation is an agricultural estate, generally centered on a plantation house, meant for farming that specializes in cash crops, usually mainly planted with a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. Th ...

* Pleasure Ridge Park † * Plymouth Village * Poplar Hills, Kentucky, Poplar Hills * Prospect, Kentucky, Prospect * Richlawn, Kentucky, Richlawn * Riverwood, Kentucky, Riverwood * Rolling Fields, Kentucky, Rolling Fields * Rolling Hills, Kentucky, Rolling Hills * Seneca Gardens, Kentucky, Seneca Gardens * Shively, Kentucky, Shively * South Park View, Kentucky, South Park View * Spring Mill, Kentucky, Spring Mill * Spring Valley, Kentucky, Spring Valley * Springlee, Kentucky, Springlee * St. Dennis, Louisville, St. Dennis † * St. Matthews, Kentucky, St. Matthews * St. Regis Park, Kentucky, St. Regis Park * Strathmoor Manor, Kentucky, Strathmoor Manor * Strathmoor Village, Kentucky, Strathmoor Village * Sycamore, Kentucky, Sycamore * Ten Broeck, Kentucky, Ten Broeck * Thornhill, Kentucky, Thornhill * Valley Station, Louisville, Valley Station † * Watterson Park, Kentucky, Watterson Park * Wellington, Kentucky, Wellington * West Buechel, Kentucky, West Buechel * Westwood, Jefferson County, Kentucky, Westwood * Whipps Millgate, Kentucky, Whipps Millgate * Wildwood, Kentucky, Wildwood * Windy Hills, Kentucky, Windy Hills * Woodland Hills, Kentucky, Woodland Hills * Woodlawn Park, Kentucky, Woodlawn Park * Worthington Hills, Kentucky, Worthington Hills :† Formerly a census-designated place in the county, but, in 2003, these places became neighborhoods within the city limits of ''Louisville Metro''.

Politics

Jefferson County has voted for the Democratic candidate in every presidential election since 1992. In the 2019 Kentucky gubernatorial election, 2019 gubernatorial election, it voted for Democrat Andy Beshear by a higher percentage than any other county in Kentucky, giving him 67% of the vote.

Education

The public school districts for the county are: Jefferson County School District (Kentucky), Jefferson County School District (JCPS) and Anchorage Independent School District.
Text list
br>The specific Anchorage school boundary is here: The Anchorage district only covers grades K-8; Anchorage district residents may attend JCPS or Oldham County Schools. Kentucky School for the Blind, a state-operated school, is in Louisville.

References

External links

Jefferson County Clerks Office

Jefferson County Sheriff's Office

Louisville/Jefferson County Information Consortium

Louisville Metro
{{Coord, 38.19, -85.66, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-KY_source:UScensus1990 Jefferson County, Kentucky, Kentucky counties 1780 establishments in Virginia Kentucky counties on the Ohio River Louisville metropolitan area Populated places established in 1780 Former counties of Virginia