City (pop., 2000: 256,231), north-central Kentucky, U.S., located on the Ohio River .
Settled in 1778 on Corn Island, it expanded the next year when the settlers moved ashore. Named for Louis XVI of France, it became an important river trading centre and was chartered as a city in 1828. During the American Civil War it served as a Union military headquarters and supply depot. The largest city in Kentucky, it is a leading producer of bonded bourbon whiskey and cigarettes. It is home to the University of Louisville (founded 1798) and Churchill Downs, the site of the Kentucky Derby .