Red Bird River

Template:Short description Template:Use American English The Red Bird River (a.k.a. Red Bird Creek or Redbird Creek) is one of two tributaries at the head of the South Fork Kentucky River, the other being the Goose Creek. It is located in the Daniel Boone National Forest, in the southeast of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It is long and drains the eastern half of Clay County.

Hydrology and basin

At its mouth, the Red Bird River's mean annual discharge is . It drains an area of . Its overall gradient is .

Tributaries and other locations

The headwaters of Red Bird River are in north-eastern Bell County, separated from the rest of that county by the Kentucky Ridge. It constitutes the county line between Clay and Leslie Counties for a reach. Kentucky Route 66 follows the course of the River from Oneida to the Clay–Bell County line. Template:Tree list

• Its major tributaries include:
  • Bear Creek upstream at altitude , mouth at , whose further tributaries and locations are in its own article
  • Banks Branch upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
  • Sam Branch upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
  • Dry Branch upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
  • Hector Creek upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
    • Ben Branch upstream at altitude
    • a right branch upstream at altitude
    • a left branch upstream
    • a left branch upstream
    • a left drain upstream at altitude
  • Jacks Creek upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
    • Dave Bowling Branch (a.k.a. Spurlock Branch) upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
      • Right Fork upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
  • Copes Branch upstream at altitude
  • Big Creek upstream at altitude , mouth at , whose further tributaries and locations are in its own article
  • Elk Creek upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
    • Town Branch upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
    • Left Fork upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
  • Little Double Creek upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
  • Big Double Creek upstream at altitude , mouth at right and left forks at
    • Right Fork upstream at altitude , headwaters at
    • Left Fork upstream at altitude , headwaters at
      • upper forks upstream,
  • Sugar Creek upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
    • Bond Hollow upstream at altitude ,
    • Spruce Pine Branch upstream at altitude ,
    • Masters Branch upstream at altitude ,
    • Sulphur Spring Branch upstream at altitude ,
  • Gilbert Creek upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
    • Bowling Branch upstream at altitude ,
  • Little Creek upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
    • Right Fork upstream at altitude ,
    • Left Fork upstream at altitude ,
  • Elisha Creek upstream at altitude , mouth at
    • Left Fork upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
    • Middle Fork upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
    • Right Fork upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
  • Flat Creek upstream at altitude , long and which rises in the Sand Hills, mouth at headwaters at
    • Little Flat Creek upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
    • Panther Branch upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
    • Left Fork upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
  • Bowen Creek upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
    • Daniel Branch upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
    • Brushy Fork upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
  • Spring Creek, long and rising in the Sand Hills east of the Brightshade post office on Goose Creek, mouth at headwaters at
    • Cane Knob Branch upstream at altitude ,
    • Right Fork upstream at altitude , headwaters at
    • Left Fork upstream at altitude , headwaters at
  • Rich Branch upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
  • Katy's Creek upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
    • Left Fork upstream at altitude ,
  • Jacks Creek upstream at altitude , mouth at upper forks at
    • Old-House Branch upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
    • Left Fork upstream at altitude , headwaters at
      • Oakley Cave Branch upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
    • Right Fork upstream at altitude , headwaters at
      • Jesse Fork upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
  • Bear Creek upstream at altitude , mouth at upper forks at
  • Whitehead Branch upstream at altitude ,
  • Phillips Fork upstream at altitude , long with a gradient of ; mouth just south of Queendale at headwaters at . Flowing generally north-east, it varies in width between to .
    • Saw-Pit Branch (a.k.a. Steel Trap Branch) upstream at altitude ,
    • Pups Branch upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
    • East Hilton Branch upstream at altitude ,
    • Sandy Fork long
  • Blue-Hole Branch upstream at altitude ,
    • Bear Wallow upstream,
    • the forks upstream,
  • Lick Fork upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
    • the forks upstream,
  • Rich Branch upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at
  • Meadow Fork upstream at altitude ,
  • Cow Fork upstream at altitude , mouth at headwaters at

Template:Tree list/end The two Bear Creek tributaries are sometimes distinguished as Lower Bear Creek and Upper Bear Creek. The two Jack's Creek tributaries are likewise sometimes distinguished as Lower Jack's Creek and Upper Jack's Creek. Similarly, on some modern maps a distinction is drawn between Red Bird Creek, which is the reach upstream of the confluence with Phillips Fork, and Red Bird River, which is the reach downstream; although the KGS Fourth Report in 1918 made no such distinction and simply named whole thing Redbird Creek.

The meeting point of Clay, Bell, and Leslie counties is just east of Sandy Fork.

Hector Creek, Jack's Creek, the Red Bird post offices, Beverly, Nuckles, and the Red Bird school

Red Bird was the name of a Native American who was murdered near the river, according to a 19th-century tale that traces back at least to an early settler and preacher named John Gilbert. The story goes that a Chief Red Bird with his housekeeper Jack were murdered just upstream of the creek mouth of Hector Creek, at the former site of the Red Bird River Petroglyphs. Jack's Creek (the Lower one) is named after the Jack in the tale. Gilbert, or his son Abijah, is also credited in a similar story with coining the name of Hector Creek, naming it after his hunting dog that was killed by a bear on its banks.

Local schoolteacher and minister John Jay Dickey recorded the Gilberts's tales in his diary in the 1890s. Chief Red Bird and Jack are not recorded in any history books at all from the early 19th century, only being recorded by Dickey as aforementioned and by Richard Collins (revising his father Lewis's earlier work) in the 1870s; however there were two Red Bird post offices and several other things named after (at least) the river and the two creeks.

The first Red Bird post office is largely a mystery. It is known to have operated from 1828 to 1831, but its location and postmaster are unknown, and its location only narrowed down as far as being either on Red Bird Creek next to the mouth of Big Creek or somewhere on Big Creek.

The second Red Bird post office in Bell County was established on 1876-10-24 by postmaster Richard Wilkerson Asher. It was located at the mouth of Cow Creek and remained there as it passed through the hands of successive family members. When R. W. Asher died in 1884 it passed to his daughter Amanda "Mandy" Jane, who married one William R. "Bill" Knuckles. She attempted to rename the post office Knuckles, but she misspelled it as Nuckles on the USPS forms. She in turn died in 1890, the postmastership passing to her husband, who in his turn died in 1910 with their son John Beverly Knuckles taking over the postmastership. The USPS requested a change of name in August 1911, and the post office finally became Beverly. John was replaced by his wife Myrtle as postmaster on 1913-12-22.

In the latter part of the 20th century the Beverly post office moved to the mouth of the Lawson Branch of Lawson Creek, some away. It is still open as of the 21st century.

R. W. Asher was a storekeeper and a preacher, and in his time the post office served a small area with a corn mill, a school, and a church. Bill Knuckles was also a storekeeper, and also a lawyer. John Beverly Knuckles and Millard F. Knuckles were landowners, who in 1921 offered their land to build a school and hospital.

This was to become the Red Bird Mission and Settlement School, built by the Women's Missionary Society of the Evangelical Church of Pennsylvania. It has operated a sales outlet for local craftspeople, a community store, several schools, fifteen churches across five counties, a hospital, and a clinic.

The Jacks Creek post office was established on 1932-02-26 by postmaster Marion Hensley. It closed in June 1954.

The Burns post office was established on 1892-06-20 by postmaster Harriet Burns. She had wanted the names Burns Store, Hector, or Hayes (after a local family). It was located upstream on Hector Creek, and closed in August 1893.

The Hector post office was established on 1900-12-28 by postmaster Arazona Davidson. It was originally upstream on Hector Creek, but was moved in 1924 by postmaster Jane L. Chadwell to the mouth of a left branch of Hector now known as Davidson Branch and earlier known as Jim Hubbard's Branch, close to where Burns had been years before. It closed in 1977.

A gap named Hector Gap connects the headwaters of Hector Creek to the Lockhart Creek tributary of Goose Creek. Kentucky Route 149 crosses that gap and follows Hector Creek for the whole of its course, the Daniel Boone Parkway also following the creek for most of it.

Eriline

The Eriline post office was established on 1902-12-09 and lasted until 1988, with a 32-year hiatus from 1911. It was supposed to be named after Eveline (some sources spell as Evaline) Britton (1861–1939), wife of Van Britton (1855–1911) its first postmaster, but the clerks at the USPS could not read the handwriting on the application form, naming it Eriline instead, and the Brittons did not consider it important enough to make a fuss about the name.

It was originally established at the Brittons's home at the mouth of Hector Creek, but moved three times. The first move was to the east side of the Red Bird River, south of the mouth of Big Creek, which was the result of its reëstablishment after the hiatus on 1943-08-29 by George C. Hensley. The second move was back north in 1944 by Mary W. Bowling to the west of the Red Bird, from the then Jacks Creek post office. The third move took it upriver in 1949, and at its closure in 1988 it was still on the west side of the Red Bird, at the junction of Kentucky Route 66 and Jacks Creek Road.

Spring Creek

The Spring Creek post office was established on 1876-07-10 by postmaster Jesse Mattingly. It was located at several sites on Spring Creek at or just upstream of the creek mouth. After closing on 1884-05-08 it was reëstablished at the mouth of Flat Creek by on 1885-01-16 by postmaster Christopher Bowling. After later moving back to Spring Creek, it closed in October 1944.

Marcum

The Marcum post office was established on 1908-03-11 by postmaster Henry B. Marcum Jr. It was named after his family, descendants of Henry's grandfather Thomas Marcum who was an early settler on Red Bird some time around 1812. It was originally located just below and across from the mouth of Sugar Creek. Some time before 1928 it moved upstream by to across from the mouth of Gilbert Creek. It closed in June 1984.

Antepast

The Antepast post office was established on 1910-01-20 by postmaster Wilson T. Martin. It was originally located on Red Bird downstream of the mouth of (Lower) Beaar Creek, and moved further downstream in November 1932 under postmaster Howell T. Bowling. It was here, some upstream of Oneida, that it closed in November 1936.

There are several competing hypotheses recorded for the origin of its name. Clay County historian Jess D. Wilson, in his book When They Hanged The Fiddler, gives the most directly sourced: a story from his own family lore about the local preacher waiting for "Andy's passing" in the middle of church services, as Wilson's great-grandfather Andy Baker would drunkenly and noisily pass by. Another account, supported by George R. Stewart's American Given Names dictionary, states that it was after some person whose name in turn was taken from Biblical figure Herod Antipas, no such person being recorded in the area, however. The third, and least likely, account, from George R. Stewart's American Place Names dictionary, is that it was named after antepasti.

Gardner serving Bringardner

The Gardner post office was established on 1931-05-31 and run by postmaster Ray Kevil Carter until August 1940. It served the Gardner Station on the railroad for the Bringardner Lumber Company, owned by Fred Bringardner of Lexington. The post office was at the mouth of Lick Fork.

The Bringardner Lumber Company's railway operated out of what was at the time known as Asher's Fork, further upstream towards the Beverly post office. Charles Bringardner, Fred's son, sales manager, and a later president of Bringardner Lumber, also later operated the Red Bird Lumber Company near to Marcum post office. Charles was commissioned as a junior lieutenant in the United States Naval Reserve in World War 2, with M. R. McCorckle of McCorckle Lumber running Bringardner Lumber whilst he was away.

Flat Creek and Creekville and Van Camp post offices

The Flat Creek post office was established on 1857-08-15 by postmaster Felix G. Gilbert. It is not known exactly where it was located and it closed on 1861-09-06.

The Van Camp post office was established on 1924-09-29 by postmaster Jable L. Stewart. It was located upstream on Flat Creek at the mouth of its Rocky Fork. Stewart's first choice of name had been Sand Hills after the creek's headwaters, but this was rejected by the USPS. It closed in September 1938.

The Creekville post office was established on 1928-09-01 by postmaster Bascom C. Bowling, one-time postmaster of the Annalee post office that was to become Peabody. Bowling's first choice of name had been Flat Creek. It was located at the Flat Creek mouth on Red Bird, and closed in 1972.

Skidmore and Sandy Fork

The Skidmore post office was established on 1876-08-03 by postmaster J. D. Asher. It was named after his successor Andrew C. Skidmore who took over from Asher on 1876-10-27. It was in the store of Joasiah Asher, J. D. Asher being a local miller, at the mouth of Phillips Fork. Postmaster James F. Asher moved it upstream to just away from the county line in 1902. It closed in June 1913.

The Sandy Fork post office was established on 1877-02-26 by postmaster J. R. Fairchild. It was located at the mouth of the same-named Sandy Fork, and changed name to Sandyfork in March 1894. It closed on 1911-09-30.

Roark

The Roark post office was established on 1907-01-29 by postmasters John A. and Lucy F. Roark. Located upstream on (Upper) Jack's Creek it has been operated by members of the Roark family, all descendants of early John Coke Roark from Roanoke, Virginia. It is still there today.

Asher family

A family named Asher settled in the Upper Red Bird Creek area in the 19th century, descendents of early settler and local landowner in the Goose Creek and Red Bird valleys, Dillion Asher (1774–1844), who back in 1800 had lived in a minor tributary hollow just downstream of the Phillip's Fork. He may or may not have been the first tollgate keeper at Cumberland Ford, the Asher family history saying that he was but Robert L. Kincaid in The Wilderness Road saying that it was rather one Robert Craig. He definitely had a lean-to at the ford in 1797, but he moved to Upper Red Bird shortly afterwards. He had passed through he area earlier in 1777, planting some peach seeds along the way, and he came back to see how they had fared. He built a log home there in 1799, which still stands on the grounds of the Red Bird River Community Hospital of the United Brethren Church.

The Asher Fork post office and tributary of Goose Creek are named for the family. As is the Asher post office on the Beech Fork of Middle Fork Kentucky River to the west.

The family included the aforementioned Richard Wilkerson Asher, J. D. Asher, Josiah Asher, and James F. Asher. Other Ashers were Matilda Asher, who lived on Saw-Pit Branch, a Mrs Asher (forename unrecorded) who had a mine upstream on Phillips Fork, and A. J. Asher who had a mine on Lick Fork.

See also

• List of rivers of Kentucky

Sources

• (The coals of Goose Creek and its tributaries at the Internet Archive)
• (When They Hanged The Fiddler and Other Stories from "It Happened Here" at the Internet Archive)

External links

• University of Kentucky: Kentucky River Basin Report
• Daniel Boone National Forest: Red Bird Ranger District