Jeffersontown is a home rule-class city in Jefferson County,

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

, United States. The population was 28,474 at the 2020 census. It is a major suburb of

Louisville Louisville is the most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeast, and the 27th-most-populous city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 24th-largest city; however, by populatio ...

. When the Louisville Metro government was established in 2003, Jeffersontown chose to retain its status as an independent city. It is the metro area's largest municipality outside Louisville. Locally, the city is often referred to by the abbreviated name J-town.

History

Before European exploration, this was occupied by succeeding cultures of Native Americans. They hunted the area for its rich game, including

bison A bison (: bison) is a large bovine in the genus ''Bison'' (from Greek, meaning 'wild ox') within the tribe Bovini. Two extant taxon, extant and numerous extinction, extinct species are recognised. Of the two surviving species, the American ...

herds. The bison created paths through the forests and meadows for their seasonal migrations that were later used by Native Americans and, in turn, by Europeans and Americans alike. Located in southeastern Jefferson County, along the north central border of Kentucky, Jeffersontown was initially developed in the late 1700s as a stopover and trading station for early European-American pioneers on their way to the Falls of the Ohio at Louisville. Farmers began to cultivate the rich land, which was surveyed by Thomas Bullitt in 1773 and John Floyd the next year. The Hites, Tylers, and Oldhams all settled the area under land grants given to veterans for military service following 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 the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

, as the new government was cash poor.''The Kentucky Encyclopedia''
pp. 468
"Jeffersontown". University Press of Kentucky (Lexington), 1992. Accessed August 1, 2013. In 1794, Abraham Bruner purchased of land. In May 1797,Commonwealth of Kentucky. Office of the Secretary of State. Land Office. "Jeffersontown, Kentucky". Accessed August 1, 2013. he successfully petitioned the Jefferson County Fiscal Court to incorporate a section of his land as the city of Jefferson named either after the county or after

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (, 1743July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was the primary author of the United States Declaration of Indepe ...

, then the

vice president A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...

of the United States. The city was long known as Bruner's Town or Brunerstown by its inhabitants, but the usage Jefferson Town eventually became adopted as its present name.Rennick, Robert. ''Kentucky Place Names''
p. 152
University Press of Kentucky (Lexington), 1987. Accessed August 1, 2013. A large, 600-acre area from the pioneer days has been preserved since the late 20th century and recognized as the Tyler Settlement Rural Historic District. It is used largely for agricultural purposes. This district is east of Jeffersontown; it contains several of the Tylers' original log cabins and barns. A large portion of the Tyler settlement is known as the Blackacre Nature Preserve. This 170-acre tract is used by Jefferson County public schools as part of their environmental education.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the city has a total area of , of which is land and 0.10% is water.

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2010, there were 26,595 people, 10,653 households, and 7,275 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 11,220 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 82.2%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 11.1%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.2% Native American, 1.8% Asian, 0.1%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, 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 th ...

, 2.1% from other races, and 2.5% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 5.04% of the population. Jeffersontown KY 022

There were 10,653 households, out of which 32.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.3% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.7% were non-families. 26.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 2.99. In the city, the population was spread out, with 24.8% under the age of 18, 7.7% from 18 to 24, 33.4% from 25 to 44, 23.3% from 45 to 64, and 10.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.1 males. The median income for a household in the city was $51,999, and the median income for a family was $60,951. Males had a median income of $41,345 versus $29,537 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $23,977. About 3.7% of families and 4.3% 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 5.4% of those under age 18 and 5.4% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

The Bluegrass Commerce Park (formerly known as The Bluegrass Research & Industrial Park) opened in 1966 and encompasses . It was the first such development in the United States. Today, Bluegrass Commerce Park has expanded to more than and is home to approximately 850 businesses. The park is the largest in the state of Kentucky. The 38,000 employees who work there make the park and Jeffersontown the third-largest city of employment in the state. The park's seven units include: *Bluegrass Commerce Park *Commonwealth Park *Watterson Trail Industrial Park *Plainview Office Park *Jeffersontown Industrial Park *Holloway Industrial Park *Blankenbaker Crossings

Papa John's Pizza Papa John's International, Inc., trading as Papa Johns, is an American pizza restaurant chain. , it is the fourth largest pizza delivery restaurant chain in the United States, with headquarters in the Louisville, Kentucky and Atlanta, Georgi ...

has its headquarters in Jeffersontown. In November 2020, the company announced its new global headquarters would be moved to the Three Ballpark Center at

The Battery Atlanta The Battery Atlanta is a mixed-use development located in the Atlanta metropolitan area, approximately 10 miles (16 km) northwest of downtown Atlanta in the Unincorporated area#United States, unincorporated community of Cumberland, Georgi ...

Government

The city of Jeffersontown is governed by a

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

and eight

city council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, borough counc ...

members. The mayor serves a four-year

term of office A term of office, electoral term, or parliamentary term is the length of time a person serves in a particular elected office. In many jurisdictions there is a defined limit on how long terms of office may be before the officeholder must be subjec ...

while the council members serve two-year terms. The city council members are elected

at-large At large (''before a noun'': at-large) is a description for members of a governing body who are elected or appointed to represent a whole membership or population (notably a city, county, state, province, nation, club or association), rather tha ...

, made up of the top eight candidates receiving the most votes in the general election.

Education

Jeffersontown has a

lending library A lending library is a library from which books and other media are lent out. The major classifications are endowed libraries, institutional libraries (the most diverse), public libraries, and subscription libraries. It may also refer to a librar ...

, a branch of the Louisville Free Public Library.

Notable people

Jon Ackerson Jon Winston Ackerson (born 1943) is a former member of the Kentucky House of Representatives, and the Kentucky Senate The Kentucky Senate is the upper house of the Kentucky General Assembly. The Kentucky Senate is composed of 38 members elect ...

, politician who served in both houses of the Kentucky State Legislature; former Jeffersontown city council member

References

External links

*
Jeffersontown Historical Museum
{{authority control Populated places established in 1797 Cities in Jefferson County, Kentucky Cities in Kentucky Louisville metropolitan area 1797 establishments in Kentucky