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Lexington, Kentucky is the "Horse Capital of the World," located in the heart of the Bluegrass. It is the second largest city in Kentucky and has the second largest metropolitan area (after Louisville).
Lexington is home to the Kentucky Horse Park, Transylvania University and the University of Kentucky. UK's basketball program is immensely popular in the city; for example, the area code (859) spells out UKY.
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 (733 km²) of gently rolling plateau in the center of the inner Bluegrass Region. The area is noted for its beauty, fertile soil, excellent pastureland and horse and stock farms. Poa Pratensis (bluegrass) thrives on the limestone beneath the soil's surface, playing a major role in the area's scenic beauty and in the development of champion horses. Numerous small creeks rise and flow into the Kentucky River.
In 1970, the governments of the city of Lexington and Fayette County combined to create the current Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government. The estimated 2000 population of Lexington-Fayette was 260,512. The estimated 2000 population of the metropolitan statistical area (MSA), comprised of Bourbon, Clark, Fayette, Jessamine, Madison, Scott, and Woodford counties, is 424,778.
There are over 230 churches and synagogues in Lexington, representing 38 denominations.
Daily morning newspaper: Lexington Herald-Leader
The mean average temperature in Lexington is 54.9 °F (13 °C). Annual precipitation is 45.68 inches (1.2 m). Lexington and the Bluegrass have four distinct seasons that include cool plateau breezes, moderate nights in the summer, and no prolonged periods of heat, cold, rain, wind, or snow.
Traditional products of the area include horses, tobacco and handcrafts, but an increasing diversity of products and services contributes to a healthy economy. Major employers in the Lexington area include
Kentucky state sales tax is 6 percent. Groceries and horse sales are exempt. Hotel tax is 6 percent.
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