Editing Lebanon Junction, Kentucky

{{redirect|Lebanon Junction|the Oregon railroad station|Tallman, Oregon}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2023}}
{{Infobox settlement
| official_name      = Lebanon Junction, Kentucky
| settlement_type    = [[list of Ky cities|City]]
| nickname           = 
| motto              = 
| named_for          = its position on the [[Louisville and Nashville Railroad|L&N railroad]]

<!-- Images -->
| image_skyline      = 
| imagesize          = 
| image_caption      = 
| image_flag         = 
| image_seal         = 
<!-- Maps -->
| image_map          = File:Bullitt County Kentucky Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Lebanon Junction Highlighted 2144362.svg
| mapsize            = 250px
| map_caption        = Location of Lebanon Junction in Bullitt County, Kentucky.
| image_map1         = 
| mapsize1           = 
| map_caption1       = 
<!-- Location -->
| subdivision_type   = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
| subdivision_name   = United States
| subdivision_type1  = [[U.S. state|State]]
| subdivision_name1  = [[Kentucky]]
| subdivision_type2  = [[List of counties in Kentucky|County]]
| subdivision_name2  = [[Bullitt County, Kentucky|Bullitt]]
| government_footnotes = 
| government_type    = 
| leader_title       = 
| leader_name        = 
| leader_title1      = 
| leader_name1       = 
| established_title  = Incorporated
| established_date   = 1895

<!-- Area -->
| unit_pref          = Imperial
| area_footnotes     = <ref name="CenPopGazetteer2020">{{cite web|title=2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2020_Gazetteer/2020_gaz_place_21.txt|publisher=United States Census Bureau|accessdate=March 18, 2022}}</ref>
| area_magnitude     = 
| area_total_km2     = 14.87
| area_land_km2      = 14.61
| area_water_km2     = 0.25
| area_total_sq_mi   = 5.74
| area_land_sq_mi    = 5.64
| area_water_sq_mi   = 0.10

<!-- Population -->
| population_as_of   = [[2020 United States census|2020]]
| population_footnotes = 
| population_total   = 1746
| population_density_km2 = 119.49
| population_density_sq_mi = 309.46

<!-- General information -->
| timezone           = [[North American Eastern Time Zone|Eastern (EST)]]
| utc_offset         = -5
| timezone_DST       = EDT
| utc_offset_DST     = -4
| elevation_footnotes = <ref name=gnis/>
| elevation_ft       = 532
| coordinates        = {{coord|37|50|09|N|85|43|27|W|region:US_type:city|display=inline,title}}
| postal_code_type   = [[ZIP code]]
| postal_code        = 40150
| area_code          = [[Area code 502|502]]
| blank_name         = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
| blank_info         = 21-44362
| blank1_name        = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature ID
| blank1_info        = 2404904<ref name=gnis>{{GNIS|2404904}}</ref>
| website            = 
| footnotes          = 
| pop_est_as_of      = 2022
| pop_est_footnotes  = <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/tables/2020-2022/cities/totals/SUB-IP-EST2022-POP-21.xlsx|title=Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places in Kentucky: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2022|publisher= United States Census Bureau|access-date= May 26, 2023}}</ref>
| population_est     = 1778
}}

'''Lebanon Junction''' is a [[list of Kentucky cities|home rule-class city]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.klc.org/UserFiles/files/ClassificationReformFACT(3).pdf |title=Summary and Reference Guide to House Bill 331 City Classification Reform |publisher=Kentucky League of Cities |accessdate=December 30, 2014}}</ref> in [[Bullitt County, Kentucky|Bullitt County]], [[Kentucky]], in the United States. The population was 1,746 as of the [[2020 United States census|2020 census]], down from 1,813 as of the [[2010 United States Census|2010 census]].<ref name="Census 2010">{{Cite web| url=http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_DP/G001/1600000US2144362| archive-url=https://archive.today/20200212180127/http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_DP/G001/1600000US2144362| url-status=dead| archive-date=February 12, 2020| title=Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Lebanon Junction city, Kentucky| publisher=U.S. Census Bureau, American Factfinder| accessdate=November 26, 2013}}</ref>

==Geography==
Lebanon Junction is located in southern Bullitt County, on the southeastern edge of [[Fort Knox]]. [[Interstate 65]] passes through the city, with access to the downtown area from Exit 105. Via I-65 it is {{convert|13|mi}} north to [[Shepherdsville, Kentucky|Shepherdsville]], the county seat, and {{convert|32|mi}} north to downtown [[Louisville, Kentucky|Louisville]]. [[Elizabethtown, Kentucky|Elizabethtown]] is {{convert|14|mi}} to the southwest via I-65.

The [[Rolling Fork (Kentucky)|Rolling Fork]] river forms the southwest boundary of the city and also serves as the county line, with [[Hardin County, Kentucky|Hardin County]] on the opposite side. [[Nelson County, Kentucky|Nelson County]] is to the south, across Wilson Creek.

According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], Lebanon Junction has a total area of {{convert|14.9|km2|order=flip}}, of which {{convert|14.6|sqkm|order=flip}} is land and {{convert|0.3|sqkm|order=flip}}, or 1.71%, is water.<ref name="Census 2010"/>

==History==
[[File:Lebanon Junction CSXT 1.jpg|thumb|CSX Main Line and the old Lebanon Branch]]
Lebanon Junction sprang into existence from a railroad switching point that split [[Louisville and Nashville Railroad]] (now [[CSX Transportation]]) traffic off the mainline to the [[Louisville and Nashville Railroad Lebanon Branch|Lebanon Branch]] that ended in [[Lebanon, Kentucky]]. This branch was completed no later than March 8, 1858, and the town grew out of a need for railroad workers to man the terminal and switching station.

The city of Lebanon Junction was incorporated April 1, 1895.<ref name=sos>Commonwealth of Kentucky. Office of the Secretary of State. Land Office. "Lebanon Junction, Kentucky". Accessed 1 August 2013.</ref> The initial population of the town was "about 700" as detailed in the official surveyor's description. The town grew and prospered until May 24, 1912, when a devastating fire swept through the business district, destroying several businesses and residences. This did not hamper the town's growth, however, and by the end of 1912 the business section was rebuilt, offering better facilities than before.

The town continued to grow, building a 1st–12th grade school in 1931. The school served as the center of town activities until 1970 when the public education system was consolidated into the Bullitt County school system as mandated by the state. Many a night, townsfolk would pack the gymnasium rebuilt in 1938 after the [[Ohio River flood of 1937|flood of 1937]] to watch basketball games. The school even fielded a six-man football team.

Lebanon Junction was the site of the first [[parochial school]] in Bullitt County when Father Harold Ritter established the St. Benedict School in 1948. This school offered education in grades 1-12 from 1949 to 1965. In 1966 it was scaled back and offered 1-8th grades only. The school was closed in 2001.

Growth leveled off in the 1930s with the onset of the [[Great Depression]] and the centralization of railroad operations at the southern [[Louisville, Kentucky|Louisville]] yards. This, coupled with the drastic decline in commuter train use, the development of [[diesel engine]]s, and automated switching and traffic control, lowered the importance of the railroad to the town and vice versa.

Throughout its history, the town has been rocked by flooding along the [[Rolling Fork (Kentucky)|Rolling Fork river]]; probably since its inception, but definitely since the great flood of 1937. Floods repeated to varying degrees in 1961, 1964, 1978, 1989, and 1997. After the flood of 1997, new [[levee]] work was completed, but that has yet to be tested by another flood.

Despite the many setbacks, both economic and natural, the town has persevered. Today its economic life revolves around its proximity to Interstate 65. Most of the economic growth of the town is centered on the highway exit now. In the 1980s, a gas station and large truck stop were constructed. In 1990, Publisher's Printing Company built a large printing facility just to the east of the exit.

Recent development in the town includes the aforementioned levee work, the construction of new wastewater processing lagoons, the shutdown of a dollar store, and various restaurants. A new public library, completed in the summer of 2010, recalls the railroad heritage of the town.

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
| 1880 = 116
| 1900 = 599
| 1910 = 807
| 1920 = 882
| 1930 = 1267
| 1940 = 1141
| 1950 = 1243
| 1960 = 1527
| 1970 = 1571
| 1980 = 1581
| 1990 = 1741
| 2000 = 1801
| 2010 = 1813
| 2020 = 1746
| estyear = 2022
| estimate = 1778
| estref = <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/tables/2020-2022/cities/totals/SUB-IP-EST2022-POP-21.xlsx|title=Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places in Kentucky: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2022|publisher= United States Census Bureau|access-date= May 26, 2023}}</ref>
| footnote = U.S. Decennial Census<ref name="DecennialCensus">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|title=Census of Population and Housing|publisher=Census.gov|accessdate=June 4, 2015}}</ref>
}}
As of the [[census]]<ref name="GR2">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|accessdate=2008-01-31|title=U.S. Census website}}</ref> of 2000, there were 1,801 people, 716 households, and 499 families residing in the city. The population density was {{convert|337.9|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. There were 752 housing units at an average density of {{convert|141.1|/mi2|/km2|disp=preunit|units&nbsp;|units|}}. The racial makeup of the city was 98.22% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 0.56% [[African American (U.S. Census)|African American]], 0.28% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 0.06% [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]], and 0.89% from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] of any race were 0.61% of the population.

There were 716 households, out of which 32.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.8% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 11.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.3% were non-families. 27.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 3.05.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 26.0% under the age of 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 29.0% from 25 to 44, 21.5% from 45 to 64, and 14.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.7 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $28,571, and the median income for a family was $38,021. Males had a median income of $30,000 versus $21,935 for females. The [[per capita income]] for the city was $15,890. About 11.8% of families and 14.8% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 15.4% of those under age 18 and 17.6% of those age 65 or over.

==Schools==
The town is a shadow of its former self in terms of education facilities. Today the town has one public school, Lebanon Junction Elementary School, offering grades K-5 only. The designated middle school (grades 6–8) is Bernheim Middle School, located just off Route 245 at exit 112 on I-65. The designated high school is Bullitt Central High School located in [[Shepherdsville, Kentucky|Shepherdsville]] just east of exit 117 off I-65.

The town also has a public library which is a branch of the Bullitt County Public Library system.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://kdla.ky.gov/librarians/pages/librarydirectory.aspx | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190111202017/https://kdla.ky.gov/librarians/pages/librarydirectory.aspx | url-status=dead | archive-date=11 January 2019 | title=Kentucky Public Library Directory | publisher=Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives | accessdate=5 June 2019}}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==External links==
* [https://www.courier-journal.com/story/news/local/bullitt/2015/12/04/lebanon-junction-once-hustling-bustling-spot/76794432/ "Lebanon Junction once was hustling, bustling spot"] - Article by David Strange in ''[[The Courier-Journal]]''
*[http://orig.courier-journal.com/reweb/community/placetime/bullitt-lebanonjunction.html "Ebb and Flow of Its Fortunes Have Been Linked to a Turn of the Tracks, the Tide of a River"] — Article by Bobbie Harville of ''[[The Courier-Journal]]''
* [http://www.pioneernews.net/content/masden-talks-about-lj%E2%80%99s-rich-history Article on the History of Lebanon Junction in the local newspaper - ][http://www.pioneernews.net/ The Pioneer News]
* [http://water.weather.gov/ahps2/hydrograph.php?wfo=lmk&gage=lbjk2&view=1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1&toggles=10,7,8,2,9,15,6&type=0 Rolling Fork River Hydrologic Gauge Near Lebanon Junction]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070207041822/http://ww2.bullittschools.org/ljes/ Lebanon Junction Elementary School]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20060205131037/http://ww2.bullittschools.org/bms/ Bernheim Middle School]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20060704042731/http://ww2.bullittschools.org/bchs/bcentral2.htm Bullitt Central High School]
* [http://www.bcplib.org/ Bullitt County Public Library system]

{{Bullitt County, Kentucky}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:Cities in Bullitt County, Kentucky]]
[[Category:Cities in Kentucky]]
[[Category:Louisville metropolitan area]]
[[Category:Populated places established in 1895]]
[[Category:1895 establishments in Kentucky]]