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D−History
History · Northfield

Northfield dates to 1965

Among the newest of U.S. towns. What drives it

Most of Northfield was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1975. Below: maps from 1905 on and the census since 1970.

1965founded
0on the National Register
0.0%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Northfield began

When was Northfield founded?

1965

Northfield dates its founding to 1965 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1970.

First census: 364 in 19702020 census: 99161 years

How historic is Northfield?

D−

Among the newest of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Northfield’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Northfield is among the newest of U.S. towns. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.

D−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Northfield’s overall grade.
Founding era1965, from Wikidata: founded 1945 or later, an older era than 2% of U.S. townsD−Homes built before 19400.0% of homes (±2.2) · typical KY town 5.9% · U.S. 8.4%D−National RegisterNo listings counted · typical KY town 29.9 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Among the newest
NewerOlder

Kentucky towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Kentucky town has 29.9 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Northfield’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (12% of Kentucky towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be D−. The pre-1940 share (±2.2 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1965.

Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Northfield’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Northfield are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19058 editions of the USGS map, 1905 to 1993. Watch Northfield change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Northfield’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Northfield’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Northfield on the map, 1905 to 1993

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Northfield. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Northfield on the 1905 USGS mapNorthfield on the 1912 USGS mapNorthfield on the 1937 USGS mapNorthfield on the 1946 USGS mapNorthfield on the 1960 USGS mapNorthfield on the 1971 USGS mapNorthfield on the 1982 USGS mapNorthfield on the 1993 USGS map1905Prospect sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Northfield.

The story

How Northfield came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Northfield.

Read it all →

Northfield was incorporated in July 1965. One of the factors in incorporation was the threat of annexation by nearby St. Matthews. The city is located on a subdivision of the former 3,500 acre Glenview horse farm.

Northfield was one of the hardest hit neighborhoods when Louisville was hit by an F4 tornado on April 3, 1974. This tornado was part of the 1974 Super Outbreak of 148 tornadoes that hit 13 U.S. states and one Canadian province.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
Add from your album
People over time

Northfield, census by census

02004006008001,000198020002020Peak: 1,020

Between 364 and 1,020 people in every census since 1970.

6 censuses, 1970–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Northfield’s Wikipedia page.

Places that used to be

Old corners

Old hamlets and crossroads still carry their names on the map.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Glenview Manor

Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Glenview ManorIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Northfield’s history

What year was Northfield founded?

In 1965, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. the census of 1970 counted 364 people here.

How does Northfield rank for history?

Northfield is among the newest of U.S. towns. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

How old are the homes in Northfield?

0.0% of Northfield’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.2 points), against a typical 5.9% for a Kentucky town; the median home was built in 1975.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.