Jefferson County is a county located in the north central portion of the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 782,969. It is the most populous county in the commonwealth.
Hurstbourne is a home rule-class city in Jefferson County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 4,216 at the 2010 census, up from 3,884 at the time of the 2000 U.S. census. It is part of the Louisville Metro Government.
Indian Hills is a home rule-class city along the Ohio River in Jefferson County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 2,860 as of the 2020 census. Indian Hills and the nearby cities of Mockingbird Valley, Glenview, and Anchorage have been cited as Louisville's most prosperous suburbs since the mid-20th century. Indian Hills was among the nation's highest-income places as of the 2000 U.S. census.
St. Matthews is a city in Jefferson County, Kentucky, United States. It forms part of the Louisville Metro government but is separately incorporated as a home rule-class city. The population was 17,472 at the 2010 census, up from 15,852 at the 2000 census. It is the 23rd-largest city in the state. St. Matthews is one of the state's major shopping areas, home to the fifth-largest mall in Kentucky along with many smaller shopping centers along Shelbyville Road.
The Wilderness Road was one of two principal routes used by colonial and early national era settlers to reach Kentucky from the East. Although this road goes through the Cumberland Gap into southern Kentucky and northern Tennessee, the other is sometimes called the "Cumberland Road" because it started in Fort Cumberland in Maryland. Despite Kentucky Senator Henry Clay's advocacy of this route, early in the 19th century, the northern route was selected for the National Road, connecting near Washington, Pennsylvania into the Ohio Valley of northern Kentucky and Ohio.
The western theater of the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783) was the area of conflict west of the Appalachian Mountains, the region which became the Northwest Territory of the United States as well as what would become the states of Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, and Tennessee. The western war was fought between American Indians with their British allies in Detroit, and American settlers south and east of the Ohio River, and also the Spanish as allies of the latter.
William Wells, also known as Apekonit, was the son-in-law of Chief Little Turtle of the Miami. He fought for the Miami in the Northwest Indian War. During the course of that war, he became a United States Army officer, and also served in the War of 1812.
Bryan Station was an early fortified settlement in Lexington, Kentucky. It was located on present-day Bryan Station Road, about three miles (5 km) northeast of New Circle Road, on the southern bank of Elkhorn Creek near Briar Hill Road. The settlement was established in the spring of 1776 by brothers Morgan, James, William, and Joseph Bryan, and brother-in-law William Grant, all from Yadkin River Valley, Rowan County, North Carolina. After a disastrous winter and attacks by Native Americans, all the Bryan family survivors abandoned the station and returned to the Yadkin River Valley in August 1780. Falling under the command of Elijah Craig, the remaining occupants withstood several American Indian attacks.
The Zachary Taylor House, also known as Springfield, was the boyhood home of the 12th president of the United States, Zachary Taylor. Located in what is now a residential area of Louisville, Kentucky, Taylor lived there from 1785 to 1808, held his marriage there in 1810, and returned there periodically the rest of his life.
Beargrass Creek is the name given to several forks of a creek in Jefferson County, Kentucky. The Beargrass Creek watershed is one of the largest in the county, draining over 60 square miles (160 km2). It is fairly small, with an average discharge of 103 cubic feet per second at River Road in Louisville.
Louisville in the American Civil War was a major stronghold of Union forces, which kept Kentucky firmly in the Union. It was the center of planning, supplies, recruiting and transportation for numerous campaigns, especially in the Western Theater. By the end of the war, Louisville had not been attacked once, although skirmishes and battles, including the battles of Perryville and Corydon, Indiana, took place nearby.
A longhunter was an 18th-century explorer and hunter who made expeditions into the American frontier for as much as six months at a time.
Colonel James John Floyd was an American military officer. An early settler of St. Matthews, Kentucky, he helped lay out Louisville. In Kentucky, he served as a Colonel of the Kentucky Militia in which he participated in raids with George Rogers Clark and later became one of the first judges of Kentucky.
Edward Worthington was an Irish-born American frontiersman, hunter, surveyor and soldier who explored and later helped settle the Kentucky frontier. A veteran of the American Revolutionary War and the American Indian Wars, he also served as a paymaster under George Rogers Clark during the Illinois campaign. His grandson, William H. Worthington, was an officer with the 5th Iowa Volunteer Infantry Regiment during the American Civil War. Historian and author, Kathleen L. Lodwick is a direct descendant of Edward Worthington.
Alvin Wood (1831–1891) was an early settler in the area that is now the north central part of Jefferson County, Kentucky. He is credited with naming the community of Lyndon, Kentucky, in 1871. The Louisville and Nashville Railroad bordered his land, and Wood built a depot so travelers could catch the train without having to go to Gilman's Point, several miles away. Wood named the depot "Lyndon" for "Linn's Station," a pioneer fort on nearby Beargrass Creek, built in 1779. Wood affected a portion of the city of Louisville by setting in motion the events that led to the development of the area now known as Lyndon.
Fort William was a pioneer fort in Kentucky established in 1785 by Colonel William Christian and Anne Christian. William Christian directed the defense of what is now Louisville from attacks by the Indians. The fort was in the area of Jefferson County near St. Matthews and Lyndon. Although the historical marker for Fort William is located in front of the Eight Mile House, an early stone house and tavern, the location of the fort was actually southwest of the Eight Mile House. Fort William was another name for A'Sturgus Station built in 1779 on the Middle fork of Beargrass Creek. After Christian's death in 1786, his wife, Anne, began to refer to the site as Fort William. Anne Christian was a sister of Patrick Henry. The land acquired by the Christians was payment for his service during the Seven Years' War. They moved into the area with children and slaves. After William Christian's death, Anne moved to Mercer County. However, she was ill and traveled to the West Indies in hopes it would improve her health. In 1790, she died either on the return trip from Antigua or the day after arriving in Norfolk, Virginia.
Low Dutch Station was established in 1780 on the middle fork of Beargrass Creek in Kentucky. This station was settled by Dutch pioneers from Pennsylvania and was also known as New Holland Station. The station was one of a group of seven forts established on Beargrass Creek during this period in this area that is now a part of Louisville. The leader of the group was Hendrick Banta. The group of settlers were a part of the "Low Dutch Company" and had their own bylaws, a formal charter, and accounting procedures. The group had as its purpose the preservation of the language, culture and religion of the Dutch. The Dutch traveled from a settlement near Harrodsburg to Low Dutch Station.
Floyd's Station was a fort on Beargrass Creek in what is now St. Matthews, Kentucky. In November 1779 James John Floyd built cabins and a stockade near what is now Breckenridge Lane. In 1783, John Floyd, future Governor of Virginia was born in the Station. The pioneer's father was killed by Indians twelve days before the birth of his son. The station was one of six on Beargrass Creek and was involved in local conflict with Native Americans in the area for the next five years. All that remain today of Floyd's Station are a spring house and cemetery.
Big Spring Country Club is a country club located in Louisville Metro. Prior to the 2003 city-county merger, the club's location was in an unincorporated part of Jefferson County, Kentucky, bordered by Louisville and St. Matthews. The club borders the Middle Fork of Beargrass Creek and the site of Floyd's Station, a fort built by John Floyd in 1779. It was named Big Spring because of a "big spring" which once furnished water for pioneer settlers in the area. This spring, located just below the 13th green of the golf course, is still flowing today.
Annie Henry Christian was a colonial pioneer who documented the journey with her husband William Christian and their children westward to Kentucky. Her brother was Patrick Henry, the governor of Virginia. Her sister, Elizabeth Henry Campbell Russell, was a Methodist lay leader. Her letters to family, friends, and business associates provide insight into westward movement of the 18th century America and life in the wilderness. Like Martha Washington and Catharine Flood McCall, she was a rare business woman, whose success was based upon slave labor. They had feme sole status of widows or single women who were able to operate businesses, manage finances, and enter into contracts.
