Rough River Lake Heritage Trail

Heritage Trail Site Information
Rough River Lake Heritage Trail
What is it?
There is more to Rough River Lake than
water. Come experience the heritage of
Breckinridge and Grayson Counties. Take a
drive back in time as you learn about the
past. The Heritage Trail is a driving trail that
is open 365 days per year. Drive to all the
sites or just a few, that is up to you. Many of
the sites are not regularly staffed, so please
call individual sites for hours of operation.
Help preserve the sites for future
generations- Take nothing but memories and
leave nothing but footprints. Enjoy a day or
a week learning about the heritage of
Breckinridge and Grayson Counties.
Rough River Lake
Heritage Trail
For more information contact:
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Rough River Lake
14500 Falls of Rough Rd.
Falls of Rough, KY 40119
Phone: 270-257-2061
Fax: 270-257-2623
Website: www.lrl.usace.army.mil/rrl
Friends of Rough River Lake, Inc.
654 Out Post Rd.
Leitchfield, KY 42754
Phone: 270-257-0744
Email: friendsofroughriver@yahoo.com
Website: www.friendsofroughriver.org
Grayson County Courthouse
The Grayson County Courthouse is located in the center of
Leitchfield. It has burned twice, June 3, 1896 and April 3, 1936.
All records were destroyed both times. During the Civil War
twenty-two Kentucky Courthouses were burned, including
nineteen in the last fifteen months: twelve by confederates,
eight by guerrillas, and two by Union accident. The current
courthouse was built in 1937.
 2. Green Farm Mill
55 Jennie Green Rd.
Falls of Rough, KY 40119
270-879-3468
N 37°35.338’, W 86°33.117’
Green Farm Mill
In 1829 Willis Green, a veteran of the War of 1812 and an
attorney originally from Madison County, KY, purchased the
two hundred acres that would become the cornerstone of Green
Farm. Green moved there soon after purchasing the property
and built a house, part of which remains in the present Green
Farm mansion. In addition to the existing gristmill and sawmill,
he expanded the enterprises to include a wool carding mill and
a general store. Over the next 140 years, three generations of
the Green family transformed a profitable water-powered
industry at the falls of Rough River into a business dynasty that
spawned a family-owned town, Falls of Rough, Kentucky.
Rough River Lake
Heritage Trail Kickoff
The Heritage Trail Kickoff is the third
Saturday in May from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. On
this day, each site will be staffed to help you
learn about its historical significance. Visit
all the sites, or just a few, that is up to you. It
does not matter which site you begin or end
with. Come and enjoy our history!
Grayson County
 1. Grayson County Courthouse
10 Public Square
Leitchfield, KY 42754
Judge Gary Logsdon
270-259-3159
N 37°28.821’, W 86°17.634’
Rough River Lake Heritage Trail Kickoff
Third Saturday in May
9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
For more information contact:
U.S.A.C.E., Rough River Lake- 270-257-2061
Friends of Rough River Lake, Inc.– 270-257-0744
 3. Jack Thomas House
122 East Main St.
Leitchfield, KY 42755
270-230-8989
N 37°28.801’, W 86°17.534’
Jack Thomas House
The Jack Thomas House is the oldest house in Grayson County
still standing. The rear portion of the house was built in about
1815 by Jack Thomas, the first court clerk of Grayson County.
Later, about 1825, he connected the house to a new Greek
Revival style house that he erected on East Main Street. The
house was purchased by the Grayson County Historical Society
in 1981 and is today operated as a research library, museum,
and tourist attraction. The house is open Tuesday-Friday from
10 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 1 p.m. to 4p.m. There is a $4 fee to tour
the museum (waived during the Heritage Trail Kickoff Event).
 4. Pine Knob Community
1227 Pine Knob Rd.
Caneyville, KY 42721
270-879-8190/270-991-8191 (cell)
www.pineknob.com
N 37°29.008’, W 86°30.712’
Pine Knob Store
The Pine Knob Store: Built in 1938 this store is no longer
open to the public. The present owners, Larry and Jackie
Shepherd make the store their home. This store was originally
owned by the playwright's Grandfather and Father. The
memories of the long ago tales and folklore overheard while the
men folk played checkers around the pot-bellied stove are
responsible for much of the context of the outdoor plays at Pine
Knob Theatre.
The Pine Knob School: This school built in 1925 has 4
classrooms, a partial basement to house the furnace, and a stage
for performing. The school is not open at present to the public,
but it can be viewed from outside. The building is original and
is used for the Theatre rehearsals and storage. The last public
school was held here in 1959-60.
 5. Rough River Dam State Resort Park
450 Lodge Rd.
Falls of Rough, KY 40119
270-257-2311
N 37°36.897’, W 86°30.507’
Rough River Dam State Resort Park
Stop by Rough River Dam State Resort Park and visit a
Historical Cemetery where a Revolutionary War Soldier,
George Eskridge, is buried. On the day of the Heritage Trail
Kickoff Event, the park will present a special program at 11:00
am (CST).
 6. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Rough River Lake
14500 Falls of Rough Rd.
Falls of Rough, KY 40119
270-257-2061
N 37°37.055’, W 86°30.208’
Rough River Dam
Rough River Lake was authorized under the Flood Control Act
of 1938. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers designed, built,
and operates the project to reduce flood damages downstream
from the dam. Construction began in November 1955, and the
lake became operational in June 1961. Behind the project office
you will find a reconstructed log cabin. This cabin is typical of
what the settlers of Kentucky would have lived in. Most cabins
were one room, approximately sixteen feet by sixteen feet.
Cabins were commonly built of tulip poplar logs with wood
shakes or shingles. Generally, settlers chose a south-facing slope
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used by the judges since 1869. It is made of
Italian wood with decorative carvings. The
Archives is open Monday-Friday 8 a.m.-4 p.m.
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Walnut Grove School
The Archives, located in the basement of the
courthouse, was started in 1985. County
records from 1800 to the present are in the
Archives. Some of the records are marriages,
Breckinridge County became a county in 1799.
The first courthouse was a log cabin built in
1801. The second courthouse was built in 1816.
The third courthouse was built in 1869 and was
a 2-story brick building. It burned in 1958. The
fourth and present courthouse was built in
1959. It is a 2-story brick building with a
basement.
Breckinridge County
 8. Breckinridge County Courthouse &
Archives
208 S. Main St.
Hardinsburg, KY 40143
Karen Schafer
270-756-6112
N 37°46.864’, W 86°27.714’ Breck. County Courthouse
The Walnut Grove School is one of the only
three one-room schools in Grayson County in a
state of preservation. These schools typically
educated children from the community from
grades 1 through 8. This Walnut Grove School
is the last of three erected in this community
from about 1870 through 1911. The school was
closed in 1957. The school was donated to the
Grayson County Historical Society in 1979.
 7. Walnut Grove School
Walnut Grove Rd.
Caneyville, KY 42721
270-230-8989
N 37°26.638’, W 86°30.299’
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Continued
to build their cabin to avoid the cold north
winds in the winter and to take advantage of the
southern breeze in the summer. For the Heritage
Trail Kickoff Event, the Friends of Rough River
Lake, Inc. will have vendors set up at the Project
office making and selling historical crafts.
Breck. Historical Museum
Holt House
 12. Irvington Railroad
Station Museum
243 N. First St.
Irvington, KY 40141
270-547-3835/270-6682179
N 37°52.948’, W 86°17.020’
Irvington Railroad Museum
The Judge Joseph Holt House is a distinct
historic site listed in the National Register of
Historic Places in 1976 based on its significance
in national history, politics and architecture.
Holt (1807-1894) was a prominent lawyer who
achieved national prominence serving in the
administration of President Abraham Lincoln,
who appointed him the nation’s first Judge
Advocate General in 1862. His most
memorable role in this position came following
the assassination of President Lincoln, when
Holt presided over the trial of the Lincoln
assassination conspirators. The house was
constructed during this time of Holt’s national
service, with the oldest portion dating to 185070. The family cemetery with Joseph Holt’s
burial site is located on a small parcel adjacent
to the home. The house and surrounding 19.5
acres were acquired by Breckinridge County
Fiscal Court in December 2008 through a
$158,000 Kentucky Lincoln Bicentennial
Preservation Grant, and the site’s preservation
and restoration has been named a Legacy
Project of the Kentucky Abraham Lincoln
Bicentennial Commission. To assist fiscal court
in developing a long-term rehabilitation and
reuse strategy, a steering committee has been
formed including the state historic preservation
officer and representatives of the Kentucky
Heritage Council, Kentucky Historical Society,
Preservation Kentucky, Kentucky Lincoln
Bicentennial Commission, local leaders and
elected officials, volunteers and advocates. At
this time the house is not open to visitors, but
you are welcome to stop by and take photos of
the exterior.
 11. Holt House
6205 Highway 144
Hardinsburg, KY 40143
270-756-2269
N 37°54.743’, W 86°
34.664’
County. Cloverport has a long history of river
and railroad businesses. Its early history has
been preserved at the local Cloverport
Community Museum. The Museum is located
in the old Railroad freight station and has a
caboose available for touring. The Museum is
open on Sunday afternoons from 2:00 – 4:00
(CST) April through October. May visit by
appointment by contacting 270-927-6829 or
270-788-3237.
The station is in the process of restoration by
the Irvington Heritage Council as part of the
city’s historic district. The city is a participant in
the state’s Renaissance City/ Main St.
Programs. The station was built by the
Louisville, Henderson & St. Louis Railway in
the mid 1920s, this railroad was absorbed the
Louisville & Nashville Railroad in 1929. At one
time there were three passenger trains daily in
each direction which stopped in Irvington. A
branch line to Fordsville had as many as two
trains a day in that direction. This line was
abandoned in 1941. The last passenger train
stopped in Irvington in November, 1958. The
station also received and shipped freight either
by full or less than carload. Newspapers, mail,
 10. Cloverport
express all came in by rail and the station was
Community Museum
the focal point of the community. The station is
410 E. Houston St.
open by request by calling Irvington City Hall
Cloverport, KY 40111
270-547-3835 or Becky Brown 270-668-2179. It
270-927-6829/270-788-3237
N 37°50.288’, W 86°37.509’ Cloverport Comm. Museum is also opened during the annual Railroad
Festival on the third Saturday in May and on
Cloverport is a picturesque little town on the the third Saturday in December for the
Ohio River in the northwest corner Breckinridge Christmas parade and bazaar.
The Breckinridge County Historical Society
Museum at one time was located in the former
Tobin’s Dry Goods Store on Main St. but was
moved to allow for the demolition of that
building. It is now located in the historic Taylor
House which was built by B.F. (Benjamin
Franklin) Beard, President of the Bank of
Hardinsburg around 1925. The bank closed in
1931, and Alfred Taylor purchased the house
around 1931-32.. The house is still owned by his
descendants. It houses artifacts from the entire
county which includes a great collection of tools
to household utensils, photographs, uniforms,
dresses, books and manuscripts. The society was
established over 25 years ago to preserve, protect
and promote the county’s heritage so all may
enjoy. The society holds monthly meetings, and
many are held in the museum. They have an
annual Christmas gathering at which one of the
members is recognized for their efforts as
historian of the year. The museum is open on
Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. (April-October)
and Monday-Friday 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. (June-Mid
September). Admission is free.
 9. Breckinridge County
Historical Museum
Taylor House
108 E. Third St.
Hardinsburg, KY 40143
Robert Moorman
270-756-2867
N 37°46.800’, W 86°27.617’
Heritage Trail Site Information Continued deeds and wills. Also in the Archives is the chair
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Rough River Lake Heritage Trail Map