Weird Louisville: 6 off-limits and mysterious places we want to visit

Louisville is full of fascinating structures, hidden passages, natural wonders and oddities ... many of which have limited or zero access to the public.

A few seem grand on the surface, but less so, once you actually step inside. Some are accessible to those with deep enough pocketbooks, while others sit quietly with nothing but a few wasps to call it home. Sometimes an elaborate dome is just a dome.

While thousands have probably wondered “what’s up there?,” sometimes the answer is simply, “not a lot.”

Several weeks ago I began a thought experiment where I asked friends and colleagues which parts of Louisville they wished they had more, or any, access.  

Here are six places around Louisville we wish the public had access, and what they could be with a little imagination:

Did we miss a spot around town? Send me a note at [email protected]

Dome at 'The Mercer Building'

The Mercer Building. Dec 26, 2024

The domed tower now called 400 West Market, which is better known as the "The Mercer Building," opened in 1993. It's arguably the most distinct building in Louisville's skyline, and its iconic glass dome gives off the appearance there's something luxurious at the top. Perhaps a restaurant or a penthouse with a stunning view of downtown Louisville, the Ohio River and Southern Indiana?

Nope.

This illuminated, open air dome is mostly home to antennas, mechanical equipment and some pigeons. My colleague, reporter Lucas Aulbach, dug into the history of 400 W. Market earlier this year and learned a little more about the vision and purpose of the dome in his reporting.

"It’s not really intended for public access. Not so much today, but early on, a lot of companies that needed antenna sites would have antennas up there," Chris Cieminski, the building's manager, told the Courier Journal. "The dome is very impressive from the outside, but there isn’t a whole lot up there."

The Mercer Building. Dec 26, 2024

"It’s got pigeons. Hawks take their prey up there," Doug Owen, the building's leasing agent, said. "We have so many people say, ‘Oh, you should do a roof area up there.' It’s just, the building wasn’t designed for that. You have to go through a maintenance shaft, the elevator doesn’t serve it.” 

For an intimate, top floor dining experience that I'm dreaming of, you'll need to head over to Swizzle inside the Galt House at 140 N. Fourth St.

KFC test kitchen

Well, this opportunity is moving to Texas now? (Thanks a lot, KFC.) But imagine if the KFC test kitchen had been open to all of Louisville. Think about all the unconventional menu items that have come out of it over the years.

Rather than screen that behind a hidden taste-testing panel, wouldn’t it have been delightful, if there had been some sort of cafeteria where Kentucky’s own could weigh in on how the world perceives the flavors of the commonwealth?

(Hey, Texas Roadhouse, now that KFC is moving on, any chance you'd like to take this idea and run with it?)

Ohio River Islands

Twelve Mile Island.

The Ohio River is home to several islands near Louisville and Southern Indiana, and some of them are open to the public. For example, 12 Mile Island, which is named for its distance from Louisville, has been a popular boating and camping spot for decades. It even has wooden steps for boaters and paddlers to disembark onto.

But to those of us without access to a boat and less than eager to travel by kayak ― the Kentuckian island experience isn't easy to tap into.

Wouldn't it be interesting, though, if there was some sort of a ferry or tour that traveled from island-to-island and showcased their natural wonders? I wonder what it would take to make these interesting, natural resources as much of a part as of the Louisville nature scene as Jefferson Memorial Forest?

The Rathskeller at the Seelbach Hilton

This is probably the most accessible place in this thought experiment. The Rathskeller is a wildly impressive event space inside the historic Seelbach Hotel. It’s said to be the only surviving room in the world completely encrusted in Rookwood pottery. Larry Johnson, the Seelbach’s historian, has taken me down there a few times over the years. I’ve popped in a couple times and shown it to friends, who always greet it with the same sense of awe.

The Rathskeller is only used for private events these days, but when famed author F. Scott Fitzgerald was stationed in Louisville in 1918, it was the hub for the USO during World War I and a dance hall.

This isn’t really a hidden gem, but it’s certainly an underused one. I’d love to see it in its full dance-hall glory, just like Fitzgerald did.

Sauerkraut Cave in E.P. Tom Sawyer State Park

This is the most grim spot on a list otherwise filled with whimsy. Frankly, I do not wish to go here at all. But Sauerkraut Cave in E.P. Tom Sawyer State Park definitely came up among some of the more daring folks in my thought experience.

The 550-acre E. P. Tom Sawyer State Park was once home to a Louisville mental hospital, and the conditions were far from ideal. The Courier Journal reported in 1882 that a grand jury indicted several employees for assaulting patients, and one was even charged with murder for submerging a patient in a bathtub. Local lore says the cave was used as an escape passage for patients, or that women who became pregnant in the facility would be taken into the caves to give birth.

Sauerkraut Cave was once accessible to the public and over the years its been a hotspot for paranormal investigations. In recent years, it's been closed off for safety reasons.

Twin spires at Churchill Downs racetrack

Churchill Downs changed its grandstand signage between the twin spires Thursday to reflect the 2025 Kentucky Derby. The sign change has been a tradition since 1939. March 27, 2025

Full disclosure, in 2019 I actually went inside the twin spires at Churchill Downs, the storied racetrack where the Kentucky Derby is held each year. So I can tell you firsthand after climbing up a hidden ladder and across a catwalk, and going up its unlit stairs, that being inside one of the spires feels very much like stepping back into the 1890s. For as much pomp and circumstance as there is around the image of the spires, there isn’t anything glamourous inside this iconic structure.

This isn’t a place that Churchill Downs invites guests into for tours, and rightfully so. I’m surprised I didn’t need to sign a waiver to go up there.

But wouldn't it be grand, if someone found a way to turn this Kentucky Derby staple into something the public could enjoy? The very first radio broadcast from the Kentucky Derby in 1925 was done from the spires, so clearly there's enough room up there for Churchill Downs to use its picture perfect view for something something like an intimate bourbon tasting or an exclusive box.

Features columnist Maggie Menderski writes about what makes Louisville, Southern Indiana and Kentucky unique, wonderful, and occasionally, a little weird. If you've got something in your family, your town or even your closet that fits that description — she wants to hear from you. Say hello at [email protected]. Follow along on Instagram @MaggieMenderski.