Louisville,the largestcityin theCommonwealth of Kentuckyand the30th-most populous cityin the United States,is one of two cities in Kentucky designated asfirst-class.Louisville is the historicalseatand, since 2003, the nominal seat ofJefferson County.It was founded in 1778 byGeorge Rogers Clarkand is named afterKing Louis XVI of France, making Louisville one of the oldest cities west of theAppalachian Mountains. Sited beside theFalls of the Ohio, the only major obstruction to river traffic between the upperOhio Riverand theGulf of Mexico, the settlement first grew as aportagesite.An important internal shipping port in the 19th century, Louisville is today most well known for the Kentucky Derby, the widely watched first race of the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing.
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County.
