The Kentucky River is a

tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage ...

of the

Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...

, long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data
The National Map
, accessed June 13, 2011 in the U.S. Commonwealth of

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

. The river and its tributaries drain much of the central region of the state, with its upper course passing through the

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when dea ...

mining Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the economic via ...

regions of the

Cumberland Mountains The Cumberland Mountains are a mountain range in the southeastern section of the Appalachian Mountains. They are located in western Virginia, southwestern West Virginia, the eastern edges of Kentucky, and eastern middle Tennessee, including the ...

, and its lower course passing through the

Bluegrass region The Bluegrass region is a geographic region in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It makes up the central and northern part of the state, roughly bounded by the cities of Frankfort, Paris, Richmond and Stanford. The Bluegrass region is characteriz ...

in the north central part of the state. Its watershed encompasses about . It supplies drinking water to about one-sixth of the population of the

Commonwealth of Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

. The river is no longer navigable above Lock 4 at Frankfort. Concrete bulkheads have been poured behind the upper

lock Lock(s) may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainment * ''Lock ...

gates of Locks 5-14 to strengthen the weakest link in the dam structures. All 14 dams are now under the management of the state-run Kentucky River Authority. The primary importance of the locks today is to maintain a pool that allows the city of Lexington to draw its drinking water from the river. Although the Lexington area receives well over of precipitation annually, the

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

karst Karst is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, dolomite, and gypsum. It is characterized by underground drainage systems with sinkholes and caves. It has also been documented for more weathering-resistant ro ...

geology Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ear ...

of that area results in surprisingly little natural surface water to be found in the region.

Winchester Winchester is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs Nation ...

, Beattyville, Irvine,

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

, Lancaster, Nicholasville,

Harrodsburg Harrodsburg is a home rule-class city in Mercer County, Kentucky, United States. It is the seat of its county. The population was 9,064 at the 2020 census. Although Harrodsburg was formally established by the House of Burgesses after Boonesbo ...

, Wilmore,

Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, u ...

, Lawrenceburg, and Frankfort also draw water from the river for their municipal water supplies. It is estimated that more than 700,000 people depend on the river for water.

Description

The main stem of the Kentucky River is formed in Eastern Kentucky at Beattyville, in Lee County, by the confluence of the North and South Forks at about elevation. The Middle Fork enters the North Fork about five miles above Beattyville. The river flows generally northwest, in a highly

meander A meander is one of a series of regular sinuous curves in the channel of a river or other watercourse. It is produced as a watercourse erodes the sediments of an outer, concave bank ( cut bank) and deposits sediments on an inner, convex bank ...

ing course through the mountains, through the

Daniel Boone National Forest The Daniel Boone National Forest (originally the Cumberland National Forest) is a national forest in Kentucky. Established in 1937, it includes of federally owned land within a proclamation boundary. The name of the forest was changed in 1966 ...

, past Irvine and Boonesborough, flowing southwest and passing south of Lexington, then north through Frankfort. It joins the Ohio at Carrollton. Approximately southeast of Boonesborough, the Kentucky is joined by its tributary the Red River. Approximately west of Boonesborough, it is joined by Silver Creek. At High Bridge, it is joined by the

Dix River The Dix River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed June 13, 2011 tributary of the Kentucky River in central Kentucky in the United States. It begins in western Rockcast ...

. At Frankfort, it is joined by Benson Creek; that confluence was the junction of Kentucky's three original counties. At Monterey, approximately north of Frankfort, it is joined by Elkhorn Creek, which drains much of the Inner Bluegrass region. Between Clays Ferry in Madison County and Frankfort, the river passes through the

Kentucky River Palisades The Kentucky River Palisades are a series of steep, scenic Canyon, gorges and limestone outcroppings that stretch for approximately 100 mi (160 km), along the Kentucky River in central Kentucky in the United States. Geology The Kentuc ...

, a series of dramatic steep gorges approximately in length.

Forks

North Fork

The North Fork Kentucky River is approximately long. It rises on the northwest side of Pine Mountain, in the

Appalachians The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, (french: Appalaches), are a system of mountains in eastern to northeastern North America. The Appalachians first formed roughly 480 million years ago during the Ordovician Period. They ...

of extreme southeastern Kentucky, in eastern

Letcher County Letcher County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 21,548. Its county seat is Whitesburg. The county, founded in 1842, is named for Robert P. Letcher, Governor of Kentucky from 1840 to ...

near the

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

state line in Payne Gap, near the intersection of US 23 and US 119. It flows generally northwest, in a winding course through the mountainous

Cumberland Plateau The Cumberland Plateau is the southern part of the Appalachian Plateau in the Appalachian Mountains of the United States. It includes much of eastern Kentucky and Tennessee, and portions of northern Alabama and northwest Georgia. The terms "Alle ...

, past Whitesburg,

Hazard A hazard is a potential source of harm Harm is a moral and legal concept. Bernard Gert construes harm as any of the following: * pain * death * disability * mortality * loss of abil ity or freedom * loss of pleasure. Joel Feinberg giv ...

and

Jackson Jackson may refer to: People and fictional characters * Jackson (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the surname or given name Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Qu ...

. It receives Rockhouse Creek at Blackey near its source. Approximately southeast of Hazard, it receives the Carr Fork. It receives Troublesome Creek at Haddix, southeast of Jackson. Three miles upstream from its confluence with the South Fork, it receives the Middle Fork. It joins the South Fork to form the Kentucky at Beattyville. At Airdale, the river has a mean average discharge of approximately 863 cubic feet per second, per data collected during the period 1930-1942.

Middle Fork

The Middle Fork Kentucky River is a tributary of the North Fork Kentucky River, approximately long, in southeastern Kentucky. It rises in the

Appalachian Mountains The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, (french: Appalaches), are a system of mountains in eastern to northeastern North America. The Appalachians first formed roughly 480 million years ago during the Ordovician Period. They ...

in southernmost Leslie County, approximately from the

state line, and flows north through the

past Hyden. At Buckhorn, it is impounded to form the Buckhorn Lake reservoir. North of the reservoir it flows generally northwest and joins the North Fork in Lee County, approximately east of the confluence of the North and South forks at Beattyville. At Tallega, the river has a mean annual discharge of 792 cubic feet per second.

South Fork

The South Fork Kentucky River is approximately long. It is formed in

Clay County Clay County is the name of 18 counties in the United States. Most are named for Henry Clay, U.S. Senator and statesman: * Clay County, Alabama * Clay County, Arkansas (named for John Clayton, and originally named Clayton County) * Clay County, Fl ...

, at the town of

Oneida Oneida may refer to: Native American/First Nations * Oneida people, a Native American/First Nations people and one of the five founding nations of the Iroquois Confederacy * Oneida language * Oneida Indian Nation, based in New York * Oneida Na ...

in the

, approximately northeast of

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

, by the confluence of Goose Creek and the

Red Bird River The Red Bird River is one of two tributaries at the head of the South Fork of the Kentucky River, the other being the Goose Creek. It is located in the Daniel Boone National Forest in extreme southeastern portion of the U.S. state of Kentucky ...

. Bullskin Creek enters just downstream. The South Fork flows generally north in a highly

ing course through the mountainous

region. It joins the North Fork to form the Kentucky at Beattyville. At Booneville, the river has a mean annual discharge of 1,052 cubic feet per second.

Floods

Kentucky River flooding has been recorded since the early 1800s. Swiss immigrant and lock-keeper, Frank Wurtz, recorded the floods from 1867 on and spoke with local farmers to learn of earlier ones. They told him of great floods in 1817, 1832, 1847, and 1854. Wurtz documented the floods of 1867, 1880, and 1883, which he claims was five feet higher than the high tide of the 1847 flood. The waters of the 1883 flood washed his post away. On January 1, 1919, the waters rose 10 feet in ten hours at Frankfort, causing damage to many smaller towns along the river. In November of the same year, the waters rose 3 feet in one hour at Frankfort. In 1920, flooding caused the sewers in Frankfort to back up. There was also major flooding in early 1924 and late December 1926. Floods hit Kentucky and the South in 1927, causing widespread damage in the Kentucky River basin, in communities such as

Neon Neon is a chemical element with the symbol Ne and atomic number 10. It is a noble gas. Neon is a colorless, odorless, inert monatomic gas under standard conditions, with about two-thirds the density of air. It was discovered (along with krypton ...

, Whitesburg, and

. Hundreds of people were forced from their homes.

Politics of flooding in the 1930s

Throughout the 1930s, the area, already suffering from the

economic depression An economic depression is a period of carried long-term economical downturn that is result of lowered economic activity in one major or more national economies. Economic depression maybe related to one specific country were there is some economic ...

, had to deal with several floods, including a particularly bad one in 1936. As the Ohio river flooded that year, it backed into the lower Kentucky. The crest reached tall, and flooded half of Frankfort, completely isolating the Old State Capitol. In all, of the Ohio valley were flooded. The severe 1937 flooding, exacerbated by cold weather, resulted in civil unrest. In the

Kentucky State Reformatory Kentucky State Reformatory (KSR) is a medium-security prison for adult males. The prison is located in unincorporated Oldham County, Kentucky, near La Grange, and about northeast of Louisville. It opened in 1940 to replace the Kentucky State ...

at Frankfort, the water rose to in the walls. With the downstairs population moving up a floor, racial tensions erupted. 24 prisoners tried to escape, but after a warning shot was fired, only one man left. No clean water or food was left in the prison, so authorities moved the population of 2,900 to the "feeble-minded institute" on the hill next to the prison. Carpenters were brought in to build small, temporary housing units. Due to the unrest of the prison riots, the National Guard was brought in to oversee the makeshift prison. The prisoners considered to be too dangerous for the setting were sent to Lawrenceburg and Lexington. Governor

Happy Chandler Albert Benjamin "Happy" Chandler Sr. (July 14, 1898 – June 15, 1991) was an American politician from Kentucky. He represented Kentucky in the U.S. Senate and served as its 44th and 49th governor. Aside from his political positions, he also se ...

successfully pushed for a new reformatory to be built in LaGrange. While the public was still dealing with the effects of the flooding,

Kentucky Utilities Kentucky Utilities (KU) is based in Lexington, Kentucky, and provides electricity to 77 counties in Kentucky. KU also serves five counties in Virginia under the name Old Dominion Power.

opened the Dix Dam spillways, which added more height to the flood waters. When it was turned off, extra of water were added. In Mercer county, the ferry connecting to the shore of

Woodford Woodford may refer to: Places Australia *Woodford, New South Wales *Woodford, Queensland, a town in the Moreton Bay Region *Woodford, Victoria Canada * Woodford, Ontario England *Woodford, Cornwall * Woodford, Gloucestershire *Woodford, Greate ...

washed away and was never replaced. A flood in 1939 rose slightly higher in Hazard than the flood in 1937. Residents in the Kentucky River watershed demanded the federal government do more to control floods. Kentucky Hydro-Electric began pushing as early as 1925 for a dam above Booneville on the South Fork. For a variety of reasons, many people protested this. The dam would create a reservoir, backing up the South Fork for over . In 1939, President

Franklin Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

signed the

Flood Control Act of 1938 The Flood Control Act of 1938 was an Act of the United States Congress signed into law by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt that authorized civil engineering projects such as dams, levees, dikes, and other flood control measures through the Un ...

, which authorized construction or study of many dams and reservoirs by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Only two small lakes, Carr Fork and Buckhorn, were created in the Kentucky River watershed. The most controversial project, a Red River dam that would have flooded most of the river's scenic gorge, was finally abandoned in 1975. By that time, more people understood the widespread environmental and habitat effects of such dam construction and were less willing to support them.

Recreation

The river provides excellent fishing. The largest goldeye ever taken in the state of Kentucky () was caught in the Kentucky River.

Notes

References

* Clark, Thomas D.
The Kentucky
. The Rivers of America Series, 1942. reprinted 1969 by Henry Clay Press * Collins, Robert F.
A History of the Daniel Boone National Forest
. (1975) * Arthur Benke & Colbert Cushing,
Rivers of North America
'. Elsevier Academic Press, 2005 * Rhodes, Captain Rick,
The Ohio River --In American History and Voyaging on Today's River
' has a section on the Kentucky River; Heron Island Guides, 2007,

External links

Flood Inundation Maps for a 6.5-mile Reach of the Kentucky River at Frankfort, Kentucky

United States Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, ...