A147-acre farm that Meriwether Lewis Clark Jr. purchased for the Louisville Jockey Club and Driving Park Assoc. from the Churchill family to replace the old Oakland Race Course that had been established in 1832 on a 55-acre plot at the present day 7th St. and Magnolia Ave.

The original track entrance lodge, grandstand, clubhouse, and stables on the S.W. turn that were used for the first running of the Kentucky Derby in 1875 are all gone today.

The Louisville Jockey Club was renamed Churchill Downs in 1937 and the racetrack has undergone a myriad of changes over the years. By 1896 all of the original structures had been replaced. A brick and metal girder grandstand was built on the west side of the track that included the famous twin spires. Some of that grandstand still exists. The classical clubhouse built in 1902 stood until the major remodeling in 2004 created most of what we see today.

In the 1940s the grandstands were extended around the first curve, and in the 1960s VIP skyboxes were built where the old clubhouse had stood, giving the facade the appearance of a giant ship. The museum was added in 1985.

The major remodeling project of the early 2000s expanded the track’s capacity for spectators, which can now handle 165,000 fans for the Kentucky Derby.

The place rather than the buildings give Churchill Downs its National Historic Landmark status. Fans come to witness the story, the running of horses, and winning of bets on a race.

www.churchilldowns.com

First planned in the 1860s, the Water Tower is the oldest and most ornamental structure of its kind in the country. It merged “architectural beauty with industrial efficiency”.

Unknown to residents at the time, the lack of a safe water supply presented a significant health risk to the city. Louisville got the nickname “graveyard of the west” in the 1830-40s due to the polluted local water coming from tainted private wells, giving Louisville residents cholera and typhoid at epidemic levels.

After several devastating fires in the 1850s, Louisville voters approved the investment and the water company became a government-owned corporation.

The Greek temple themed tower was able to produce 12 million gallons of water a day that flowed through the city’s 26 miles of pipes. After the water project’s completion in 1866, Louisville was free of cholera.

A tornado in 1890 destroyed the tower, the original wood paneled tower was replaced with cast iron. Two of the original ten statues surrounding the tower were also destroyed. A new pumping station and reservoir opened in Crescent Hill after that, and the original water tower ceased pumping operations in 1909.

The water tower is a standpipe. When water is pumped to the top of the tower a gravity flow is created to fill a connected reservoir at an equal elevation without additional pumping.

The Louisville WaterWorks Museum opened in 2014. A portion of the facility is a museum that tells the story of Louisville’s water history.

Wed. – Fri. 1-5
Sat. – Sun. 10-3

$5, seniors $4, youths $3

3005 River Rd.

Louisville Water Tower Park