Louisville Weddings
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Louisville is Kentucky's largest city. It is ranked as either the 17th or 27th largest city in the United States depending on how the population is calculated (see Nomenclature, population, and ranking below). The settlement that became the City of Louisville was founded in 1778 by George Rogers Clark and is named after King Louis XVI of France. Louisville is famous as the home of "The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports": the Kentucky Derby, the widely watched first race of the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing.
Louisville is situated in north-central Kentucky on the Kentucky-Indiana border at the only natural obstacle in the Ohio River, the Falls of the Ohio. Louisville is the county seat of Jefferson County, and since 2003, the city's borders are coterminous with those of the county due to merger. Because it includes counties in Southern Indiana, the Louisville metropolitan area is regularly referred to as Kentuckiana. A resident of Louisville is referred to as a Louisvillian. Although situated in a Southern state, Louisville is influenced by both Midwestern and Southern culture, and is commonly referred to as either the northernmost Southern city or the southernmost Northern city in the United States.
Louisville has been the site of many important innovations through history. Notable residents have included inventor Thomas Edison, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis, boxing legend Muhammad Ali, newscaster Diane Sawyer, actor Tom Cruise, and writers Hunter S. Thompson and Sue Grafton. Notable events occurring in the city include the first public viewing place of Edison's light bulb, the first library open to African Americans in the South, and medical advances including the first human hand transplant, the first self-contained artificial heart transplant, and the development site of the first cervical cancer vaccine.
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Louisville Weddings
Traditions
Why Louisville?
Marriage License Requirements
Marriage licenses are issued in the County Clerk’s office. Both bride and groom must appear together. The license is valid for 30 days from the date of issuance and the license fee is non-refundable. The license must be used within the State of Kentucky.
Age requirements
You must be 18 years of age to be married in Kentucky without parental consent. Applicants 16 & 17 years old must have parental consent and the license issued in the county of residence of the under aged applicant. If both applicants are under age, the application needs to be made in the bride’s county of residence. No one under the age of 16 may be issued a license unless they are pregnant and have a District Court Judge issue a court order directing the Clerk to do so.
Procedures
No waiting period or blood test is required prior to issuance of a marriage license. In Franklin County, the bride and groom complete an application. Information needed (from both bride & groom) to complete the application includes:
¨ Name & address
¨ Date of birth & age
¨ Place of Birth (If in KY give county, in another state give state)
¨ Father’s name
¨ Mother’s first & maiden name
¨ Current status of bride & groom (Single, Divorced, Annulled, Widowed)
¨ Number of previous marriages of bride & groom
¨ Occupations of bride & groom
¨ Race of bride & groom
¨ Whether bride & groom are related ( First & second cousins are not permitted to marry in Kentucky)
¨ Date of marriage
You may view and print a copy of the marriage application and complete prior to coming to the clerk’s office. Just click on marriage application.
County Clerk Address and Phone Number List
Jefferson County Clerk 527 West Jefferson St Louisville, KY 40202 502-574-5700
How To Get There
Get in
By Car
Several Interstates pass through Louisville: I-65, I-64 and I-71.
- I-71 (North-South) begins in Louisville and heads Northeast to Cincinnati and Cleveland.
- I-65 (North-South) will carry you from just outside Chicago, through Indianapolis North of Louisville and to the south through Nashville, Birmingham, Montgomery, Alabama, all the way to the coast at Mobile.
- I-64 (East-West) travels east through Lexington, West Virginia, on into Richmond, and ends at the Atlantic Ocean in Newport News. To the west you'll find its beginning/end in Saint Louis, the "Gateway to the West"
By Bus
Greyhound, 1-800-231-2222, services Louisville. Their depot is located at 720 W Muhammad Ali Blvd which is near the center of town. Service is frequent but it is inadvisable to arrive at the bus station late at night unless someone is coming to pick you up.
By Train
Formerly served by Amtrak's Kentucky Cardinal, Louisville presently has no passenger train service.
By Plane
Louisville International Airport (SDF) serves all the major American airlines though it is only a spoke for most. The one terminal holds two concourses. Concourse A holds all the Skyteam (Delta, Northwest, and Continental Airlines) carriers (which dominate SDF as far as passengers carried) plus American Airlines (which moved from concourse B to the old TWA gates) and Midwest Airlines, while Concourse B holds United Airlines, US Airways, Southwest Airlines, and Frontier Airlines. The terminal is small and easy to navigate.
With all of the airlines listed above, direct flights are available to most of their hubs, including Chicago, Dallas, Atlanta, New York, Detroit, Philadelphia, and popular tourist destinations such as Orlando and Las Vegas. The airport is "International" in name only — there are once a week flights from Montreal and to Toronto! Too bad you can't fly with UPS whose huge all-points international "worldport" is located in Louisville just south of the passenger terminal.
Get around
By Bus
Louisville's public transit service, TARC, operates bus lines in all parts of Metro Louisville (Jefferson County). Fares are $1.50 for adults (75 cents for children between 6 and 17) with a possibility for two transfers in two hours. Tickets can be purchased at some banks and government offices but this will not really save you much money unless you are going to be staying in the city and getting around by bus for at least two weeks. Buses generally run from about 6AM-10PM, some later on weekends, but it is a good idea to check the schedule for each specific route. Timetables are only posted at major stops. The buses are also rather impractical in the suburbs, as they are infrequent and the stops are far apart.
By Car
Car rental services are available at the airport. Louisville is encircled by two beltways, I-264 (locally referred to as 'the Watterson') and I-265, (the Gene Snyder). Traffic is generally moderate except at peak hours on I-264 and in downtown. In particular, try to avoid 'Spaghetti Junction', the downtown freeway interchange, between four-thirty and seven on weekdays.
The city streets are laid out in a grid pattern in downtown and a wheel-and-spoke system farther out. Frequently, the streets are named after outlying towns they eventually reach (Shelbyville Road, Taylorsville Road, etc.) Some of the urban neighborhoods, notably Germantown, Portland, and Cherokee Park, can be confusing for non-locals. Fortunately most neighborhoods are quite safe and passers-by will be more than happy to give you directions.
Louisvillians generally do not honk their horns unless there is real danger imminent. If this is not the case it is liable to be viewed as aggressive behavior.
By Bike
Bicycling is becoming an increasingly effective way to get around Louisville. Although Louisville's bike program (jonathan.villines@louisvilleky.gov) is in its infancy (born at the 2005 Louisville Bike Summit), developments are occuring rapidly, and there are significant improvements on the immediate horizon. Bike lanes are being added on city streets, especially in and around Downtown which is already the most bike-friendly area of the city.
Every TARC bus in the city is equipped with bike racks, making bicycling a viable option for long-distance trips and trips along major arterial corridors. If you plan your transit route in advance, it is easy to get anywhere in the city using just your bicycle and public transit. Metro Government is also installing more bike racks every day, making it easy to park your bike at your destination.
Stay safe
Most of Louisville is pretty safe (for a city its size it has never been featured on the TV show "Cops"). Probably the least safe areas are west of Ninth St, and the Greyhound bus station is unfortunately located here. Professional scammers acting as panhandlers are common at the station, and while not terribly aggressive or rude they are persistent. Pickpockets are also a problem, as they will often snatch belongings from the side pockets of any bags or purses you may have. In addition, several attempted muggings have occurred directly outside of the terminal, (with station security being shockingly apathetic and unhelpful in these situations, at least until the LPD arrive) so be very cautious. However, a day-time drive through this part of town along Portland and then Northwestern Parkway is very interesting and not dangerous at all. Areas around Churchill Downs are also relatively sketchy, but again, simply driving through in the day-time is not a risk.
Crime is virtually nonexistent east of the Highlands. Within the Highlands, crime is still low, but use caution exiting bars on Baxter Avenue if you are alone. This same advice applies to Old Louisville, only more so. Other than this, just use common sense like you would anywhere else.
Get out
There are plenty of places to visit outside Louisville. To the south are Mammoth Cave National Park (longest cave system in the world), Fort Knox (home of the gold bullion and the Patton Museum), the Abbey of Gethsemani, the historic town of Bardstown, home of Stephen Foster-The Musical, the Bourbon Trail, the Lincoln Birthplace, the Bernheim Forest Arboretum and Nature Center.
To the east is the state capitol at Frankfort, where you'll find some distilleries in the area. Lexington is the home of the Kentucky Horse Park. Located off I-71 is the Kentucky Speedway, home to Indycar, Busch Series and, someday, Nextel Cup racing.
To the north is the river town of Madison, Indiana, home of the Madison Regatta. Nashville, Indiana and Brown County are a haven for artists.
To the west, numerous caves are found, including Squire Boone, Wyandotte and Marengo. Holiday World in Santa Claus boasts the Raven, one of the most popular wooden roller coasters in America.
Metro Louisville communities
- Brandenburg
- Clarksville
- Jeffersontown
- Jeffersonville
- New Albany
- Saint Matthews
- Shelbyville
- Shepherdsville
Insider Tips
Best Time to Go
Climate
Louisville, KY Weather
Louisville, KY climate is warm during summer when temperatures tend to be in the 70's and very cold during winter when temperatures tend to be in the 30's.
The warmest month of the year is July with an average maximum temperature of 87.00 degrees Fahrenheit, while the coldest month of the year is January with an average minimum temperature of 24.90 degrees Fahrenheit.
Temperature variations between night and day tend to be fairly limited during summer with a difference that can reach 17 degrees Fahrenheit, and fairly limited during winter with an average difference of 17 degrees Fahrenheit.
The annual average precipitation at Louisville is 42.80 Inches. Rainfall in is fairly evenly distributed throughout the year. The wettest month of the year is May with an average rainfall of 4.49 Inches.
Normal Climate
Normal Temperatures
(LOUISVILLE STANDIFORD AP Weather station, 5.37 miles from Louisville) Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Annual Max °F 41.0 46.6 56.8 66.8 75.4 83.3 87.0 85.8 79.4 68.4 55.9 45.4 66.0 Mean °F 33.0 37.6 46.9 56.4 65.8 74.2 78.4 77.0 70.1 58.5 47.6 37.6 56.9 Min °F 24.9 28.5 37.1 46.0 56.1 65.1 69.8 68.2 60.9 48.5 39.3 29.9 47.9
Normal Precipitation
(LOUISVILLE UPPER GAGE Weather station, 2.83 miles from Louisville) Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Annual Inch 3.17 2.99 4.14 3.88 4.49 3.77 3.95 3.32 3.09 2.66 3.62 3.72 42.80