 Lexington
Kentucky History: Daniel Boone was one of the first Anglo-Saxons
to explore the Bluegrass area. Kentucky's first forts were established
in Harrodsburg and Boonesborough. Lexington was founded in 1775,
17 years before Kentucky became a state. By 1820, it was one of
the largest and wealthiest towns west of the Allegheny Mountains.
So cultured was its lifestyle, Lexington gained the nickname "Athens
of the West." Within a day's drive of 75% of the population of the
United States, Lexington is strategically located at the intersection
of interstates 64 and 75.
Lexington is accessible by air with approximately 100 direct and
nonstop flights. Fayette County consists of 283 square miles of
gently rolling plateau in the center of the inner Bluegrass Region.
The area is noted for its colorful Lexington hotels, restaurants,
Keeneland, the University of Kentucky, beauty, fertile soil, excellent
pastureland and horse and stock farms. Numerous small creeks rise
and flow into the Kentucky River. The estimated 1993 population
of Lexington-Fayette County was 260,512. The estimated population
of the metropolitan statistical area (MSA), which is comprised of
Bourbon, Clark, Fayette, Jessamine, Madison, Scott, and Woodford
counties, is approximately 425,000. |
