Middle Fork Kentucky River

Template:Short description Template:Use American English Template:Template other Middle Fork Kentucky River is a river in Kentucky in the United States.Template:Sfn It is a fork of the Kentucky River that it joins just upstream of Beattyville.Template:Sfn Template:Citation needed span

Basin and hydrology

Floods

The Kentucky River basin, including Middle Fork and its tributaries, suffered a major flood in January and February 1957.Template:Sfn Peak flood levels were higher by at Buckhorn and at Tallega than the previous record peak levels in 1939.Template:Sfn One person was drowned in Cutshin Creek.Template:Sfn

Most of the urban damage was at Buckhorn, with properties under up to of water, and at Hyden.Template:Sfn In Bockhorn 10 homes were destroyed, and in Hyden 30% of the homes were damaged in some way.Template:Sfn 20 commercial buildings in Hyden were flooded, and the local lumber company had a lot of its stock swept away.Template:Sfn

Tributaries and other locations

• Its major tributaries include:
  • Hell-for-Certain Creek downstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn mouth at headwaters at .
    • Mill Branch upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn mouth at headwaters at
    • Big ForkTemplate:Sfn
    • Devils Jump Branch upstream,Template:Sfn mouth at headwaters at
  • Oldhouse Branch downstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn mouth at headwaters at
  • Polly Morril Branch downstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn mouth at headwaters at
  • Bull Creek downstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn whose name anecdotally comes from pioneer settler John Amis having shot a bull buffalo on its banks,Template:Sfn mouth at headwaters at
    • Lower Field Branch upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • Wolf Pen Branch upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn mouth at headwaters at
    • Thousand Sticks Branch upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn mouth at headwaters at at the foot of Thousandsticks MountainTemplate:Sfn
    • Henry Fork (a.k.a. Osborne Fork)Template:Sfn
    • Davidson Fork upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn mouth at headwaters at
  • Cutshin Creek downstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn mouth at , whose further tributaries and locations are in its article
  • Mile Branch downstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn mouth at headwaters at
  • Nighwaw Branch downstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • Elic Branch downstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn mouth at headwaters at
  • Asher Branch downstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn mouth at headwaters at
  • Betty Branch downstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • Owls-Nest Branch downstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn mouth at
    • a left branch upstream,Template:Sfn
    • Banger Branch upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn mouth at headwaters at
  • Roberts Branch downstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • Rockhouse Creek at Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • Tantrough Branch upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • Big Lute Branch upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • Shack Branch upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • Potato Knob Branch upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • Puncheon Camp Branch upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • Road Fork upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • Left Branch upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
      • Laurel Creek upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • Hurst Creek upstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • Round Hole Branch upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • Rough Branch upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • Davis Branch (a.k.a. Mart's Branch) upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • Short Creek upstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • a right branch upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • a right branch upstream,Template:Sfn
    • a right branch upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • Munsey Creek upstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • Right Fork upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • Hurricane Creek upstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • a left branch upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • Wolf Fork upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • a right branch upstream,Template:Sfn
  • Burnt Camp Creek upstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • Morgan Branch at Burnt Camp mouth at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • Left Fork upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • Big Branch upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • Camp Branch upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • Johns Creek upstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • Right Fork upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • Lower Bad Creek,Template:Sfn
    • Bonnet Rock Branch upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • Marion Fork upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • Stinnett Creek upstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • Little Stinnett Creek upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • Lick Fork upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • Big Branch upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • Greasy Creek upstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • Saltwell Branch upstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • Trace Branch (a.k.a. Harmon Branch upstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • Martor Fork upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • Beech Fork upstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn whose further tributaries and locations are in its article
  • Lower Bad Creek upstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • Pinch Hollow upstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • Upper Bad Creek upstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • Sang Branch (a.k.a. Ginseng Branch) upstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • White Oak Creek upstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • War Branch upstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • Rye Cove Branch upstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • Roark Branch upstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • Turkey Branch upstream of Hyden,Template:Sfn
  • Spruce Pine Creek upstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
    • Dry Fork upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
      • two forks upstream,Template:Sfn
    • Long Fork upstream at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • Mazie Branch upstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • Rough Branch upstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn
  • Rainbow Branch (a.k.a. Meadow Branch) upstream of Hyden at altitude ,Template:Sfn

The confluence of Bull Creek, the main Middle Fork, and Cutshin Creek was known in the 19th century in Kentucky as a "turkeyfoot".Template:Sfn

Hell-For-Certain Creek and Osha, Omarsville/Kaliopi post offices

The name of Hell-For-Certain Creek comes, anecdotally, from the bad experience of a pair of travellers navigating its waters.Template:Sfn It is a common favourite name to use in stories about travelling in Kentucky, although the eye dialect pronunciation of "Hell For Sartin" that is employed by storytellers is incorrect and considered offensive and insulting by native Kentuckyans.Template:Sfn

The Osha post office was established by postmaster William C. "Short Buckel Bill" Begley on 1906-09-15.Template:Sfn Begley had originally wanted the name Hell For Certain after the creek, but this was rejected by the USPS, so his second choice was the name of his daughter (1893–1990).Template:Sfn It was located at the mouth of Hell-for-Certain Creek, and closed in December 1907.Template:Sfn

The Omarsville post office was established on 1929-02-27 by postmaster Lilbern W. Woods.Template:Sfn It was named after Omar Huff, the son of Republican Party official Elmer Huff.Template:Sfn Originally located at the mouth of Mill Branch, it moved around several times over the years.Template:Sfn It was at several sites on Big Fork, then in 1942 postmasters Ethel Pilatos (née Woods and Lilbern's sister) and her husband Sam Pilatos (an immigrant from Greece) moved it to the site of Sam's store that, then was and still now is, located at the mouth of Devils Jump and called The Mouth of Devils Jump Branch.Template:Sfn Because of other similarly named post offices and mail being misdirected, on 1945-03-01 Omarsville was renamed Kaliopi after Sam's mother (cf. Calliope).Template:Sfn It closed in July 1981.Template:Sfn

Dryhill and Gad/Thousandsticks post offices on Bull Creek

The Dryhill post office was established on 1897-09-30 by postmaster Dan McDaniel.Template:Sfn It was located on a literally dry hill just above the "turkeyfoot" confluence of Bull Creek, Middle Fork, and Cutshin Creek, where the Daniel Boone Parkway and Kentucky Route 257 now cross Middle Fork.Template:Sfn Like Omarsville, it served a store located at the mouth of Bull Creek and called The Mouth of Bull Creek.Template:Sfn It closed in July 1908, and McDaniel tried to reestablish it on 1910-08-13, this time using his own surname.Template:Sfn However, that name was taken in Breckenridge County so he continued with the original Dryhill.Template:Sfn It became a rural branch of Hyden post office in 1964.Template:Sfn

The Gad post office was established on 1905-03-01 by postmaster Polly Osborne.Template:Sfn She had originally wanted the name Bull Creek but that was taken and so she chose Gad after the Tribe of Gad or Gad.Template:Sfn It was originally located a slight distance upstream on Henry Fork, and on 1924-05-31 moved to Bull Creek itself at the mouth of Thousandsticks Creek, after which it was at the same time renamed.Template:Sfn It closed in November 2004.Template:Sfn

Thousandsticks post office, the creek it was renamed after, a school, church, the local weekly newspaper in Hyden, and Thousandsticks Mountain after which they all were named, have two different origin stories for their names.Template:Sfn The first is that early settlers found a large number of old dead trees in the area and so named it after the "thousand sticks", i.e. tree trunks.Template:Sfn The second is that early travellers discovered the aftermath of a forest fire in the area and so named it after the "thousand sticks", i.e. charred tree stumps.Template:Sfn

Kentucky Route 118, which joins the Daniel Boone Parkway at Thousandsticks, is called the "Hyden Spur" as it is the access road for Hyden.Template:Sfn

General

In 1918, Howard Asher and Rene Asher had mines on Red Bird just downstream of the ford that is downstream of Asher Branch.Template:Sfn Andrew Asher had one on Banger Branch;Template:Sfn and Hughes Asher one on Roberts Branch.Template:Sfn

Nathanial Roberts's mine was on Roberts Branch.Template:Sfn

See also

• List of rivers of Kentucky

Sources

• (Template:Trim Coals of the Middle Fork of Kentucky River in Leslie and Harlan Counties at the Internet Archive)