The Seal of Louisville is an emblem used as a visual representation for the city of Louisville, Kentucky. Among other reasons, the seal is used to stamp documents to certify their authenticity. The city had four seals from its formation in 1828 to 2003 before its merger with the Jefferson County, Kentucky government and creating a new joint seal, which was designed during a citywide competition by Louisville native and art director William Glenn Hack.
The first seal established in 1828 had a steamboat ascending the falls heading to a wharf laden with boxes and bales. It was engraved with the words "City of Louisville" at the top and "Perseverando" at the bottom. Perseverando was said to mean "By Persevering" and was a part of the city motto "Industry and punctuality by persevering." This seal would be used until May 6, 1861, when the city council would approve a new seal. [1] The new seal would be inspired by the emergence of the steam locomotive and the Louisville & Nashville Railroad. [2] It entailed a locomotive with the words "Progress" included.
The second seal would remain in place for forty-nine years before the year 1910 when citizens started to feel that the locomotive became an outdated symbol for progress. Consequently, the Louisville Convention and Publicity League held a contest to design a new seal. John T. Bauscher won with the design featuring a lady holding a banner with the word "progress" on it in one hand and the other hand overflowing with cornucopia. [2] A train and steamboat were on the sides of her and a tall building was depicted in the background with the words "The Nation's Thorough-fare" on it. This third seal was enacted on December 21, 1910, by the city council. [1]
On November 25, 1953, a new seal designed by Austrian typographer Victor Hammer was adopted following mayor Charles Farnsley's campaign for a simpler seal. [2] [3] This seal was based on the city's origin of its name by implementing three fleur-de-lis in a triangle in the center representing a century of history for each. [2] They were surrounded by thirteen stars representing the original states of the nation and the year 1778 marking the first settlements of the Louisville area. The fleur-de-lis meaning "Lily Flower" was the symbol of King Louis XVI of France, the namesake for Louisville. [1]
The current seal used represents Louisville and Jefferson County following the merger of the governments on January 6, 2003. The seal reads "Louisville – Jefferson County" in a circle around a single fleur-de-lis with two stars and includes the year 1778 (the year Louisville was founded) on both sides. This seal was designed during a citywide competition by Louisville native and art director William Glenn Hack.
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. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border.
The fleur-de-lis, also spelled fleur-de-lys, is a common heraldic charge in the shape of a lily. Most notably, the fleur-de-lis is depicted on the traditional coat of arms of France that was used from the High Middle Ages until the French Revolution in 1792, and then again in brief periods in the 19th century. This design still represents France and the House of Bourbon in the form of marshalling in the arms of Spain, Quebec and Canada, for example.
Old Louisville is a historic district and neighborhood in central Louisville, Kentucky, United States. It is the third largest such district in the United States, and the largest preservation district featuring almost entirely Victorian architecture. It is also unique in that a majority of its structures are made of brick, and the neighborhood contains the highest concentration of residential homes with stained glass windows in the U.S. Many of the buildings are in the Victorian-era styles of Romanesque, Queen Anne, Italianate, among others; and many blocks have had few or no buildings razed. There are also several 20th-century buildings from 15 to 20 stories.
The Seal of the Commonwealth of Virginia is the official seal of the Commonwealth of Virginia, a U.S. state. The state flag of Virginia consists of the obverse of the seal against a blue background. A state flag was first adopted at the beginning of the American Civil War in April 1861, readopted in 1912, and standardized by the General Assembly in February 1950. The standing allegorical female figure of virtue is shown having vanquished tyranny, symbolized by a fallen king at her feet. She has an exposed breast in the manner of classical depictions of Amazons, making this the only state flag in the U.S. depicting a form of nudity. The motto, "Sic semper tyrannis", means "Thus always to tyrants." The flag may be decorated with a white fringe along the fly edge; this is usually done when the flag is displayed indoors.
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 Jacob Streets to the south, and 9th Street to the west. As of 2015, the population of Downtown Louisville was 4,700, although this does not include directly surrounding areas such as Old Louisville, Butchertown, NuLu, and Phoenix Hill.
The geology of the Ohio River, with but a single series of rapids halfway in its length from the confluence of the Monongahela and Allegheny rivers to its union with the Mississippi, made it inevitable that a town would grow on the site. Louisville, Kentucky was chartered in the late 18th century. From its early days on the frontier, it quickly grew to be a major trading and distribution center in the mid 19th century, important industrial city in the early 20th, declined in the mid 20th century, before revitalizing in the late 20th century as a culturally-focused mid-sized American city.
The municipal flag of Louisville is the official design used on flags to represent Louisville, Kentucky. The original design paid homage to Louis XVI of France and the thirteen states present when the city was founded. A new design was adopted in 2003 when the city merged with Jefferson County, Kentucky.
Belle of Louisville is a steamboat owned and operated by the city of Louisville, Kentucky, and moored at its downtown wharf next to the Riverfront Plaza/Belvedere during its annual operational period. The steamboat claims itself the "most widely traveled river steamboat in American history." Belle of Louisville's offices are aboard Mayor Andrew Broaddus, and also appears on the list of National Historic Landmarks.
The Kentucky Railway Museum, now located in New Haven, Kentucky, United States, is a non-profit railroad museum dedicated to educating the public regarding the history and heritage of Kentucky's railroads and the people who built them. Originally created in 1954 in Louisville, Kentucky, the museum is at its third location, in extreme southern Nelson County. It is one of the oldest railroad stations in the United States.
The World Scout Emblem is the emblem of the World Organization of the Scout Movement and is worn by Scouts and Scouters around the world to indicate their membership. Each national Scout organization determines the manner in which the emblem is worn.
The coat of arms of Alabama depicts a shield upon which is carried the symbols of the five states which have at various times held sovereignty over a part or the whole of what is now Alabama. These are the ancient coat of arms of France, the ancient coat of arms of Crown of Castile for Spain, the modern Union Jack of the United Kingdom and the battle flag of the Confederate States. On an escutcheon of pretence is borne the shield of the United States. The crest of the coat represents a ship which brought the French colonists who established the first permanent European settlements in the territory. Below is the state motto: Audemus jura nostra defendere, meaning "We dare defend our rights."
The Louisville Board of Aldermen was the legislative branch of government for the City of Louisville prior to its merger with Jefferson County in 2003. It comprised twelve wards.
The Louisville Metro Council is the city council of Louisville, Kentucky. It was formally established in January 2003 upon the merger of the former City of Louisville with Jefferson County and replaced the city's Board of Aldermen and the county's Fiscal Court. Louisville City Hall houses the offices and chambers of the council.
The government of Louisville, Kentucky, headquartered at Louisville City Hall in Downtown Louisville, is organized under Chapter 67C of the Kentucky Revised Statutes as a First-Class city in the state of Kentucky. Created after the merger of the governments of Louisville, Kentucky and Jefferson County, Kentucky, the city/county government is organized under a mayor-council system. The Mayor is elected to four-year terms and is responsible for the administration of city government. The Louisville Metro Council is a unicameral body consisting of 26 members, each elected from a geographic district, normally for four-year terms. The Mayor is limited to a two consecutive term limit, while members of the Louisville Metro Council are not term limited.
Louisville City Hall is a registered historic building in Louisville, Kentucky, placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976. Completed in 1873 to house the Louisville city government, the structure is located at 601 West Jefferson Street in what became Downtown Louisville, the center of the city's civic district.
The Louisville Metro Hall is the center of Louisville, Kentucky's government. It currently houses the Mayor's Office and the Jefferson County Clerk's Office for marriage licensing, delinquent tax filings, and the deeds room. The building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972. Construction began in 1837, and both the City of Louisville and Jefferson County governments starting using it in 1842.
The Kentucky Oaks Trophy is a ceremonial trophy which is presented annually to the winner of the Kentucky Oaks horse race. Since the Kentucky Oaks is run on the Friday preceding the Kentucky Derby, the trophy presentation occurs on Friday evening, the evening before the Derby.
The municipal flag of New Orleans is the representative banner of the U.S. city of New Orleans, Louisiana. The flag has a large white field that contains three gold fleurs-de-lis and is bordered on the top by a red stripe and from below by a blue stripe. The presence of the fleur-de-lis, a stylized depiction of a flower and a traditional French symbol, demonstrates the city's French heritage and strong ties to France.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Louisville, Kentucky, USA.
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