Designed by the Louisville engineering firm of Hazelet & Erdal, construction began in the spring of 1961 and completed in late 1963 at a cost of $10 million.

Monsignor John N. Dudine was the first to suggest to the Kentucky Legislature to name the new bridge for President Kennedy.

Four days later, Kentucky Governor Bert T. Combs announced that there was wide agreement that the bridge would be named in Kennedy's memory.

Between the late 1990s and 2006, the bridge was covered with rust-like spots and the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet had failed in attempts to rectify this, a subject of local controversy.

[6] The final phase was the reopening of the exit ramp from the bridge to westbound I-64, which had been closed for nearly a year, on November 14.