The Courier-Journal (Louisville)

Louisville son recreates father’s WWII photo

Most tourists don’t stumble upon Nanakuli Beach Park, but the sandy beach with a distinctly curved mountain in the backdrop in Hawaii held a piece of Doug Draper’s family past. So, Doug traveled more than 4,000 miles to find it. Eighty years before,...

Flooding and power outages after storms

Thousands of customers were left without power and multiple tornadoes were reported after overnight storms hit Indiana, parts of Ohio, and Kentucky June 17-18. A slow-moving cold front brought strong to severe storms to the area that caused high winds...

‘Help, not bullets’

This story discusses suicide. If you or someone you know is having suicidal thoughts, you can call the 24/7 U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline by dialing 988 or chat online at suicidepreventionlifeline.org/chat. Rebecca Hall believes things...

‘This is not the status quo’

Charles Booker’s highest elected position is the only one on his record — a two-year stint as state representative for House District 43. But as he pushes for a U.S. Senate seat for the third time since 2020, he’s built a following across the nation....

I-65 work ‘on schedule’ even with heavy rain

Despite heavy rain on June 9, construction crews “have been working around the clock” on Interstate 65 just over a week after the two-month shutdown began, according to the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. The closure is part of KYTC’s Central...

THE DEATH OF MILTON RCIHIE

s the sign for Fordhaven Road came into view, Milton Ritchie Jr. eased off the gas and prepared to turn. It was Saturday afternoon, and the 20-year-old was spending the day away from his job at UPS. Earlier, he had visited his father, who was...

TKC Distilling Co. faces 2 suits alleging $1.5M in unpaid bills

A Kentucky bourbon company with ties to the Kentucky Castle is facing two separate lawsuits for allegedly not paying its bills. In two separate lawsuits filed in April and May, respectively, with Jefferson County Circuit Court, parties Peggy Noe...

Officials release draft of data center rules

Louisville planning officials released draft data center regulations June 9 for public input, following a months-long research process. The draft regulations ban future data centers that exceed 500,000 square feet and set strict standards for smaller...

How nonprofit helps with Ebola outbreak

Pascal Bashombana has witnessed firsthand how an overwhelmed and underfunded health system can impact a population. Raised in Goma, a major city in Congo, Bashombana has seen disease responses fail to protect his loved ones. He recently supported his...

Center looks to fill mental health crisis resource gap

Standing on the stage of Memorial Auditorium, less than a month after police fatally shot a woman experiencing a mental health crisis, two of Louisville’s most powerful leaders were asked if they’d commit to partnering with a new crisis center where...

ALI'S HEAVYWEIGHT IMPACT

016 was a particularly violent year in Louisville’s history with 118 fatal shootings. But the week after Muhammad Ali’s death on June 3 of that year, there were none. In what he called “the greatest city in the world,” some believe Ali was responsible...

DISCONTINUED

Do you remember the vehicles of yesteryear? ● Maybe you remember the big, boxy chrome-type sedans and coupes of the 1970s, or the smoother, sharper, revolutionized cars of the 1980s. Maybe the SUV and sport vehicle boom of the 1990s captured your...

Criminalizing homelessness?

Most mornings at 8 a.m., a caravan of seven to eight vehicles rumbles along East Broadway in downtown Louisville. The convoy — typically city vehicles, Louisville Metro Police Department cruisers, a garbage truck and an excavator towed by a dump truck...

IMPACTFUL LEADERSHIP

For the first time in 16 years, the roughly 12,000 union members at UAW Local 862 have a new president. Todd Dunn, the charismatic, loud and long-serving labor leader, who worked his way up from the line at Ford Motor Co. to leading the automakers...

‘All worked out like I thought it would’

LEXINGTON — Cherie DeVaux looked from the screen on her phone to the screen on her tablet then back to her phone before turning it over. She exhaled. It’s just after 10:30 a.m. She’d again spent every minute between training racehorses and a reporter...

DETOURS AND DELAYS

Louisville drivers got through their first day of commuting with the Interstate 65 closure after all north and southbound lanes for a five-mile stretch of the highway from Jefferson Street to the Interstate 264 interchange shut down June 1. The...

Finding recovery through purpose

By the time Kendra arrived at Spy Coast Farm, she only saw three options ahead of her. She could learn to muck stalls and groom horses. She could go back to prison. Or, she could die. Nearly two decades of substance abuse and addiction had...

Summer concert guide

From emerging artists to legendary talents, performing everywhere from stadiums to dark clubs, Louisville is tuning up for its most electric season of summer music in years. The city has long been home to seasoned pros across every genre, but lately,...

Data center moratorium urged until new regulations finalized

Weeks after the anticipated release of draft regulations for data centers in Louisville, planning officials have yet to publicly release their recommendations, prompting a councilwoman to propose a moratorium on data center applications while the...

Drivers encouraged to have plan in place

With the Interstate 65 closure just days away, Kentucky Transportation Cabinet officials are urging Louisville drivers to make preparations. A portion of I-65 from Jefferson Street to the Interstate 264 interchange will close June 1 as part of the...

THE LEGACY OF ‘BABY CALVIN’

When Trish Cardin’s third son was born with a deadly heart condition in May 1986, doctors suspected his tiny heart might pump for a matter of weeks. • She and her husband had two grim choices. • They could take him home to Glendale, about 85 miles...

‘The story had to end’

In King Elementary’s damp parking lot, hundreds of bikes were lined up from biggest to smallest — silver and almost full-sized at the front, pink and still bearing training wheels at the back. The first wave of students, in bright green helmets donated...

TIMEPIECE FROM THE PAST

A colorful piece of Louisville history could return for public viewing after more than a decade in storage, though several details remain undetermined after talks began in Spring 2026. The Louisville Clock, known by longtime locals for its cast of...

Always remembered

Despite a steady drizzle, a few hundred people gathered at Cave Hill Cemetery in Louisville May 22 to honor the fallen soldiers who served in the United States Armed Forces and kick off Memorial Day weekend. Each year on the Friday before Memorial Day,...

Inside our reporting on how JCPS fixed issue

Nearly three years after a major transportation disaster, Jefferson County Public Schools has largely fixed its busing woes. This school year, the last bus rider made it home by around 6:30 p.m. on the first day, almost three and a half hours earlier...

Transportation tunnel plan stalled after veto

A proposal to build a 3-mile tunnel for underground transportation in Louisville faces a rift on partisan lines. The project, which proponents say would be similar to what Elon Musk’s Boring Company has presented in Las Vegas and Nashville, seemed to...

‘MORE ACTIVITY, MORE ENERGY’

Newly released renderings are giving the public an updated look at a proposed development near Louisville Slugger Field that was first announced in December 2024. The downtown project, previously estimated to cost $250 million, would bring apartments,...

Whirlwind night

Primary elections in Kentucky always bring plenty of highlights and surprises. This week’s races across the Bluegrass State were no exception. U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie’s defeat to challenger Ed Gallrein drew plenty of headlines nationally, as did U.S....

VOTERS HEAD TO THE POLLS

It was a big day in the Bluegrass State. On May 19, voters across Kentucky weighed in on several major primaries, deciding who will move on to compete for U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell’s open seat and who earned the closely watched Republican nomination...

Clerk: Tech issues won’t happen again

In November 2024, Election Day in Jefferson County didn’t exactly go smoothly. Tech issues with the Jefferson County Clerk’s Office’s electronic pollbooks caused delays. At some polling places, lines grew long and some voters left before casting a...

‘Generations to come’

Mill Creek, the beleaguered but beloved waterway running through southwest Jefferson County, has hope for a comeback. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency approved a watershed plan for Mill Creek, local and state officials announced May 13 —...

How effective are city’s new ordinances?

Apoisonous relic of Louisville’s past continues to threaten the brains of thousands of children. The city’s new approach to the problem was influenced, in part, by the real estate industry. h Lead is a neurotoxic metal, abundant in the paint used in...

Forging ahead

Anthro Energy, a battery material manufacturer, will break ground on a new production plant in Louisville in June, company leaders said — bringing a first-of-its-kind, $42 million energy investment to Kentucky even as the state’s broader battery...

Merger turned down

Two Louisville spirits giants will not be merging after weeks of speculation, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal. The Wall Street Journal reported that Brown-Forman, the maker of Jack Daniel’s, Old Forester and Woodford Reserve,...

Magnetic vision

The time might be right for redevelopment of a vacant nearly 60-acre property in southern Clarksville. Perhaps best known for its iconic oversized clock, the former Colgate-Palmolive Co. plant could be transformed through a $300 million-plus project...

Greenberg cash-flush in changed mayor race

Louisville voters will soon narrow a crowded field of mayoral candidates in the merged citycounty’s first nonpartisan primary, a race that tests a new election system even as familiar advantages – money, incumbency and name recognition – position Mayor...

Prospect plans new downtown with housing, retail along Highway 42

A sweeping vision for about 30 acres near River Road would bring housing, retail and more to create a new downtown Prospect. A master plan for the property, between U.S. Highway 42 and River Road and between Harrods Creek and Timber Ridge Drive, was...

INDEPENDENTS ALLOWED

After years of being shut out of local primary elections, thousands of independents in Louisville can now vote in the Metro Council and mayoral primaries to decide who advances to the general election in November. Following a change in state law...

COLD CASH

Monroe Trombly he Nicaraguan woman opened her eyes. Slowly. There was nowhere she needed to be. She was in jail, and she would be for the foreseeable future. As the Trump administration last year launched a campaign to deport millions of immigrants,...

NEW SUITS OVER FATAL CRASH FILED AGAINST UPS, PILOT’S ESTATE

A flurry of new lawsuits claiming UPS and other companies are liable for the November plane crash that claimed 15 lives have been filed on behalf of victims’ families, impacted businesses and injured community members. Kentucky law firms Whiteford Law...

Interim financial leader for JCPS explains line of credit

Additional cuts to reduce Jefferson County Public Schools’ deficit will not be needed after the next budget is approved, district financial leaders said as they unveiled the next step in the 202627 budget process. The district’s tentative budget,...

U.S.-Iran negotiations at a standstill

Nations to discuss fossil fuel exit

‘A GREAT SUCCESS’

The 2026 Opening Day at Churchill Downs Racetrack was as much about the daily celebration as it was about the beginning of Kentucky Derby Week. In breaking with recent tradition, Churchill Downs earlier this year announced it would shift its Spring...

DERBY GOES GLOBAL

Churchill Downs is growing its international reach to attract new visitors, sponsors and racehorses to the Kentucky Derby.

Belvedere

A sculpture garden. A nature-inspired play space. Paved areas for food trucks, farmers markets and events. While the final design for a reimagined Belvedere is still a few months away from public release, these areas are likely to be part of the...

‘It’s a year-round economic engine’

If it’s Monday or Tuesday, Eric Foster is probably out at his barns with his team before sunrise taking care of the dozens of horses with which he works. If it’s any other day of the week, Foster, an Owensboro breeder and thoroughbred horse trainer,...

The stories behind 2 slowest winners

In 1891, The Courier Journal accused Kingman of “outwalking” three other horses to victory in “the worst Derby on record.” Seventeen years later, the paper praises Stone Street for shooting out of the crowd “unknown, and unconsidered” to become the...

Jacqueline Coleman to run for governor in 2027

FRANKFORT – The race to follow Gov. Andy Beshear into the governor’s mansion next year is off and running. Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman, who has served as the two-term Democratic governor’s second-in-command throughout his time in office, started the...

Thousands brave cold for aerial spectacle

Tens of thousands of people packed into Waterfront Park and the riverfront in Southern Indiana for Thunder Over Louisville on Saturday amid consistently rainy and cloudy weather. Despite the gloomy forecast, which included temperatures in the 50s,...

What Brown has done for you

BARDSTOWN, KY – By 9 a.m., Terry Holcomb is dressed in his matching brown pants and brown polo shirt and climbing into the big brown UPS package car to start his driving route on a rainy gray day in March. • Holcomb, 61, who lives in Louisville, has...

‘Better living spaces’

A downtown building dating back to 1886 will be turned from vacant office space into apartments with the aid of $1.5 million in public dollars. The Hubbuch Building, 324 W. Main St., is the second project to receive funding through the Downtown...

What Louisville’s median home price of $285K gets you around town

The spring home buying and selling season is here as home inventory, and prices, continue to rise. ● The median sales price of a single-family home in Jefferson County last year was $285,000, according to data from the Greater Louisville Association of...

‘A BIG MESS’

On any other year, opening a high-profile restaurant in one of Louisville’s hottest neighborhoods just ahead of the Kentucky Derby would be cause for celebration. But, the chefs behind Murray’s Creole Pub and Cipollini aren’t sure how many people will...

LIFE AFTER LOSING

F horty years ago, the crowd at Churchill Downs rose to its feet, cheering for a big-barreled chestnut colt who burst from the gate with blistering speed. Leading the pack through the first turn and down the backstretch, the colt refused to relent in...

A NEW VISION

A new plan for Jefferson Memorial Forest involves a sweeping, multimillion-dollar vision for recreation improvements and conservation, Mayor Craig Greenberg and city leaders announced April 10, with aims to turn the city’s largest nature preserve into...

Kentucky park flagged

MAMMOTH CAVE – Jerry Bransford knelt to the earth in a cemetery bearing his name, surrounded by the graves of his ancestors. The colors of spring were easing back to the quiet clearing, situated along Flint Ridge in Mammoth Cave National Park....

How Barbaro’s Kentucky Derby win, and Preakness injury, broke the horse-racing world’s heart and forged a lasting legacy.

How Barbaro’s Kentucky Derby win, and Preakness injury, broke the horse-racing world’s heart and forged a lasting legacy. 8A

‘SIGNIFICANT INVESTMENT’

The Kentucky General Assembly approved investing more than $1 billion in Louisville in the 2026 legislative session, Mayor Craig Greenberg said at a news conference April 2, one day after the session broke for the veto period. The allocations span the...

‘SHE BELONGS TO BARDSTOWN’

BARDSTOWN – Hundreds of Kentuckians stood silently along the streets of Bardstown as a woman who dedicated her life to service returned to her hometown April 9, with all flags at halfstaff. U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Ashley B. Pruitt, 34, died in the...

‘ECONOMIC ENGINE’

It has attracted billions of dollars of new investments. It’s home to thousands of residents and is a magnet for thousands more workers. It’s a hub for arts, culture and tourism. Louisville’s downtown is said to be the city’s “economic engine,” but...

PROTECTING A NATIONAL SYMBOL

Americans embraced the bald eagle as a national symbol, nearly drove it to extinction and narrowly pulled it back from the brink in what has become one of the most remarkable success stories in conservation. ● Yet Kentucky’s rebounding eagle...

‘I WANT TO HELP TURN IT AROUND’

Growing up in the St. Denis area, Adam Carter Sr. remembers grocery stores, a pharmacy and banks operating nearby. “One of those particular banks — Citizens Fidelity — I opened up my first banking account there,” Carter said, recalling how his mother...

Some Kentucky Derby fans face canceled hotel stays

After years of schedules not aligning, retired dentist Richard Sherman and his wife were ready to make memories at the 2026 Kentucky Derby and cross Churchill Downs off their bucket list. The Florida resident booked a fournight stay at a Louisville...

GOP SHOWDOWN