Ask Caray: Why does the Masonic Homes have its own ZIP code?

LOUISVILLE, Ky. —

There are about 66 different ZIP codes in Louisville, but there's one that stands out: 40041.

That is the ZIP code for the Masonic Homes Kentucky on Frankfort Avenue.

ZIP codes are usually assigned to an area or neighborhood of many homes, but one small area in Louisville has its very own.

Why does the Masonic Homes have its own ZIP code?

In July 1936, almost 30 years before ZIP codes were invented, John L. Phillips came up with the idea to get a post office at the Masonic Home in Louisville.

At the time, the Masonic Home was a place for widows and children orphaned by the Civil War.

"The orphans here learned a trade. One of those trades was having a print shop. So the print shop being on campus and the orphans learning that trade it was good for the print shop to