Oldham

Formed December 15, 1823 (74^th county)

Oldham County (67,609), La Grange (10,049)

A dark red brick Colonial courthouse for Oldham County was constructed in 1875.  It is located at Main, 2^nd, Jefferson, and 1^st streets.  First Street is Kentucky State Highway 53 in the town.  Monroe Q. Wilson is the building designer.  The courthouse has been enlarged and a Courts building was added.  The courthouse features columns and veteran memorials are in a park area nearby.  Oldham County was formed on December 15, 1823 from parts of Henry, Jefferson, and Shelby counties as the 74^th county.  Westport was the first county seat with La Grange assuming the county seat in 1838.  The county is named for Revolutionary War hero Colonel William Oldham.  The county seat is named for the estate of Marquis de Lafayette. 

Oldham County government consists of a County Judge Executive, a sheriff, a clerk, an attorney, a treasurer, a coroner, and an appraiser (executive).  It has 8 Magistrates (legislative.)  Two Circuit Court Judges, Two District Court Judges, and One Family Court Judge serve Oldham, Henry, and Trimble counties and a court clerk serves Oldham County (judicial.) Oldham County is directly northeast of Louisville, Kentucky on the northern border with Indiana.  The Ohio River forms its north and west borders.  The county center is 7.9 miles Southwest of La Grange nearer Park Lake.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Indiana and Trimble, Henry, Shelby, and Jefferson counties. 

The area of the county is 189 square miles.  It is 109 out of 120 in the state.  It ranks 13 out of 120 in population in the state.  It has a density of 357.7 persons per square mile making it 6 out of 120 in the state.  Oldham County has 30.7% of its population in its incorporated areas.  Interstate Highway 71 crosses the county northeast to southwest from Henry County to Jefferson County.  United States Highway 42 parallels Interstate Highway 71 from Trimble County to Jefferson County.  The county looks like a bowl of popcorn spilling toward the west.  La Grange is located in the northeast quarter of the county.  La Grange is the county seat and the largest city.  It is 14.9% of the county population.  This county is in the Louisville/Jefferson County Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Prospect