London, Kentucky

History

The area around London had been territory of the Cherokee people for centuries. In 1776 Daniel Boone passed through the area that would become London.

Upon the establishment of Laurel County in 1825, a vote was held to provide for the new area's seat of government. The land offered by John Jackson and his son Jarvis Jackson was selected, along with their suggested name of London, honoring their English heritage.

The town was founded the next year, its post office established in 1831,

One of John Jackson's sons was Hancock Lee Jackson, 13th governor of Missouri. His second cousin was Claiborne Fox Jackson, 15th governor of Missouri.

In 1861, the Battle of Camp Wildcat was fought early in the American Civil War to the north of the town.

In 1865 the non denominational, First Christian Church of London was founded.

The St. Joseph's Hospital was founded in 1926.

During the Depression of the late 1930s and early 1940s, the Works Progress Administration of President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Pack Horse Library Project to serve rural people in the mountains. London served as a central collection agency for books donated to his program. It also had a pack horse library, whose riders delivered books to rural residents.

2025 tornado

Main article: 2025 Somerset–London tornado

On the night of May 16, 2025, a violent EF4 tornado tore through the southern portions of London. The tornado resulted in catastrophic damage, destroyed roughly 280 homes, and killed 17 people in the city.

Geography

London is located in central Laurel County. U.S. Route 25 passes through London as its Main Street. Route 25 leads northwest 25 mi to Mount Vernon and south 13 mi to Corbin. Interstate 75, running parallel to US 25, passes along the western edge of London, with access from Exits 38 and 41. I-75 leads north 76 mi to Lexington and south 97 mi to Knoxville, Tennessee. The Hal Rogers Parkway runs along the northern edge of London, leading east 21 mi to Garrard and west 32 mi to Somerset.

According to the United States Census Bureau, London has a total area of 30.1 km2, of which 0.1 km2, or 0.39%, are water. Between the 2000 and 2010 censuses, the city annexed a significant portion of land.

Climate

London has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen: Cfa) with continental influences. Summers are hot and humid with frequent storms. July is the warmest month, with an average high of 86 F and an average low of 66 F. Winters are cold with a few mild periods. January is the coldest month with an average high of 44 F and an average low of 26 F. The highest recorded temperature was 105 F on June 29, 2012, and the lowest recorded temperature was -25 F on January 19, 1994. May has the highest average rainfall of 4.92 in and October has the lowest average rainfall of 3.01 in.

|Jan record high F = 74 |Feb record high F = 81 |Mar record high F = 87 |Apr record high F = 90 |May record high F = 91 |Jun record high F = 105 |Jul record high F = 101 |Aug record high F = 102 |Sep record high F = 97 |Oct record high F = 94 |Nov record high F = 83 |Dec record high F = 78 |year record high F = 105

|Jan avg record high F = 65.6 |Feb avg record high F = 69.1 |Mar avg record high F = 77.4 |Apr avg record high F = 84.1 |May avg record high F = 87.0 |Jun avg record high F = 91.7 |Jul avg record high F = 93.2 |Aug avg record high F = 92.5 |Sep avg record high F = 90.1 |Oct avg record high F = 83.4 |Nov avg record high F = 74.7 |Dec avg record high F = 67.0 |year avg record high F = 94.5

|Jan avg record low F = 5.0 |Feb avg record low F = 11.5 |Mar avg record low F = 17.9 |Apr avg record low F = 28.2 |May avg record low F = 37.5 |Jun avg record low F = 49.4 |Jul avg record low F = 57.0 |Aug avg record low F = 54.8 |Sep avg record low F = 43.1 |Oct avg record low F = 29.7 |Nov avg record low F = 20.0 |Dec avg record low F = 13.6 |year avg record low F = 2.4

|Jan record low F = −25 |Feb record low F = −17 |Mar record low F = −12 |Apr record low F = 19 |May record low F = 28 |Jun record low F = 34 |Jul record low F = 45 |Aug record low F = 44 |Sep record low F = 32 |Oct record low F = 18 |Nov record low F = 2 |Dec record low F = −17 |year record low F = −25 | access-date = June 22, 2021}} | access-date = June 22, 2021}} | access-date = June 22, 2021}}

Demographics

London is part of the London, Kentucky micropolitan area. Of the seventeen micropolitan areas in Kentucky, London is the largest; the London micropolitan area's 2010 Census population was 126,368.

As of the census of 2000, there were 5,692 people, 2,400 households, and 1,461 families residing in the city. The population density was 738.1 PD/sqmi. There were 2,676 housing units at an average density of 347.0 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the city was 96.03% White, 1.83% African American, 0.33% Native American, 0.69% Asian, 0.11% from other races, and 1.02% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.47% of the population.

There were 2,400 households, out of which 25.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.8% were married couples living together, 13.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.1% were non-families. 35.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.16 and the average family size was 2.78.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 19.3% under the age of 18, 9.7% from 18 to 24, 28.1% from 25 to 44, 23.4% from 45 to 64, and 19.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.6 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $27,283, and the median income for a family was $34,340. Males had a median income of $32,355 versus $19,873 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,046. About 19.4% of families and 20.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 31.9% of those under age 18 and 18.4% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

Major employers in London include:

• ABC Group
• Aisin
• Bimbo Bakeries USA
• Flowers Foods
• Maximus
• Hearthside Food Solutions
• Highlands Diversified Services
• Niflheim Finances
• OneMain Financial
• Senture
• SourceHOV
• Walmart
• Xerox
• Serco

Education

Public schools are administered by Laurel County Public Schools. The district has two comprehensive high schools: North Laurel High School and South Laurel High School.

There is a private school, London Christian Academy.

Colleges

• Laurel Technical College
• Somerset Community and Technical College (Laurel Campus)
• Sue Bennett College was a private college in London, which operated from 1897 through 1997.

Public library

London has a lending library, the Laurel County Public Library.

Transportation

Greyhound Lines provides service to London on its route serving Atlanta, Knoxville, and Detroit. Rural Transit Enterprises Coordinated provides on-demand public transportation to Laurel County and surrounding counties. Daniel Boone Transit and Harlan County Community Action Agency provide connecting services from other counties to Greyhound in London.

London-Corbin Airport is located three miles south of London.

Notable people

• Granville Aikman, Kansas state judge
• Teel Bruner, College Football Hall of Fame inductee
• Chera-Lyn Cook, Miss Kentucky 1998; placed 4th runner-up to Miss America 1999
• Brady Deaton, Chancellor of the University of Missouri
• Gene Huff, politician
• Derek Lewis, American politician; born in London
• Nan Phelps, artist
• Flem Sampson, 42nd governor of Kentucky
• Darrell Scott, musician
• Reed Sheppard (born 2004), basketball player, picked 3rd overall in 2024 NBA draft by Houston Rockets
• Bill Taylor, professional bass fisherman and former FLW director of tournament operations

Gallery

File:Laurel_County_Kentucky_Courthouse.jpg|Laurel Country Court house (2007)

File:Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse and Annex, London, Kentucky LCCN2015646761 (cropped).jpg|Federal building and US courthouse Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse and Annex. U.S. Courthouse built in 1910 by Architect James Knox Taylor. Annex built in 2002. The historic building was designed to house the post office for London, Kentucky. The structure is masonry bearing wall with steel interior columns. There is a two-story half elliptical wing that projects from the rear of the building reflecting the elliptical shape of the second floor court room.

File:First_Christian_Church_London,Kentucky(est._1865-1907).jpg|First Christian Church London (2018)

File:Saint_William_Church_(London,Kentucky)-_exterior_2.jpg|Saint William Church (2023)

References

References

1. "London mayor Randall Weddle reinstated by court after city council removal". LEX 18.
2. "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau.
3. "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places in Kentucky: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2022". United States Census Bureau.
4. {{GNIS. 2404950
5. "Summary and Reference Guide to House Bill 331 City Classification Reform". Kentucky League of Cities.
6. "Find a County". National Association of Counties.
7. "Total Population: 2020 Census DEC Summary File 1 (P1), London city, Kentucky". U.S. Census Bureau.
8. Rennick, Robert. ''Kentucky Place Names'', [https://books.google.com/books?id=3Lac2FUSj_oC&pg=PA178 p. 178]. University Press of Kentucky (Lexington), 1987. Accessed August 1, 2013.
9. "London, Kentucky". City Town Info.
10. and its city rights granted in 1836.Commonwealth of Kentucky. Office of the Secretary of State. Land Office. "London, Kentucky". Accessed August 1, 2013.
11. [https://fcclondonky.com/about-us/ website of the First Christian Church of London Kentucky].
12. Ayers, Ruth. (October 26, 1936). "Pittsburgh Woman Heads Pack Horse Library Service to Mountain Homes". The Pittsburgh Press.
13. (March 18, 1937). "Mountain Trails Used By WPA Employees to Distribute Books". The Cincinnati Enquirer.
14. Fisher, Jenna. (2025-05-17). "At Least 27 Dead After Tornadoes and Storms Tear Across Central U.S.". The New York Times.
15. (May 21, 2025). "NWS Damage Survey for May 16, 2025 Russell, Pulaski, and Laurel County Tornado Event". Iowa Environmental Mesonet.
16. "U.S. Gazetteer Files: 2019: Places: Kentucky".
17. "Kentucky Cities and Counties: London, Kentucky". Land Office, Kentucky Secretary of State.
18. Bureau, US Census. "City and Town Population Totals: 2020-2024".
19. "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov.
20. "U.S. Census website". [[United States Census Bureau]].
21. [http://www.thinkkentucky.com/cmnty/BusInd.aspx?cw=055 London Laurel County Community Profile]
22. "Laurel County Public Schools". Digital School Network.
23. "Kentucky Public Library Directory". Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives.
24. "Greyhound-us - Greyhound US0110 Atlanta - Knoxville - Flint • Bus route".
25. "Public Transportation".
26. "Transportation – Daniel Boone Community Action Agency, Inc".
27. "Transportation | Harlan County Community Action Agency".
28. (November 13, 2013). "Deaton departs". The Maneater.
29. "Derek Lewis (Kentucky)".
30. (2025-04-04). "Bill Taylor Honored with Bass Fishing Hall of Fame Meritorious Service Award".