Fern Creek is a historic community in southeastern Jefferson County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 20,009 at the 2008 census. In 2003, The area was annexed to the city of Louisville as part of a merger between the city and Jefferson County's unincorporated communities. Fern Creek was formerly a census-designated place. It is now considered a neighborhood of Louisville. It is located about 12 miles from Downtown Louisville.
The oldest structure in the area is a log home dating to 1789. The earliest road through the area, Stage Road, connected Louisville to Bardstown, Kentucky. This eventually became the Louisville and Bardstown Turnpike and finally, Bardstown Road. The community was initially known as Stringtown, but was called Fern Creek by the 1870s. Both Union and Confederate armies passed through the area during the American Civil War. An interurban railway line was connected in 1908. The Jefferson County Fairgrounds were located in the area just off Bardstown Road from 1900 to 1928. There is still a "Fairground Road" at that location.
The area was agricultural for much of its history, but has been developed as a suburb of Louisville since the 1960s.