1. Kentucky was officially recognized as the 15th state of the United States on February 18, 1792. This followed a process that began when Kentucky County, Virginia declared its independence from the state of Virginia in 1776.

2. Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States, was born in Hodgenville, Kentucky on February 12, 1809. On February 18, 1861, while traveling to his inauguration in Washington DC, he stopped in Louisville, Kentucky to deliver a speech at the Pendennis Club.

3. On February 18, 1900, the Kentucky General Assembly passed a bill to establish the Kentucky Geological Survey. The survey is tasked with studying the state's geology, mineral resources, topography, and other related fields.

4. In 1952, Union Station in Louisville, Kentucky was destroyed by fire on February 18. The station had been a prominent landmark in the city since it opened in 1891, but by the mid-20th century, it had fallen into disrepair. It was eventually replaced by a modern facility in 1980.

5. On February 18, 2001, the Cincinnati Bengals football team announced that they had hired Marvin Lewis as their new head coach. Lewis would go on to become the longest-tenured coach in Bengals history, leading the team for 16 seasons until his departure in 2018.