Cave Run Lake

Beneath the waters of Cave Run Lake lies a forgotten valley. Today, Cave Run Lake is one of Kentucky’s most beloved destinations — a place known for muskie fishing, scenic camping, boating, and the beauty of the Daniel Boone National Forest. Each year thousands of visitors travel to northeastern Kentucky to experience its quiet coves, wooded ridges, and clear waters. But long before the lake existed, the upper Licking River Valley was home to thriving communities, farms, schools, churches, and cemeteries. Names like Yale, Zilpo, Bangor, Cogswell, and Stoney Cove once marked places where families lived and worked for generations. When the dam was built and the waters rose in 1974, those communities disappeared beneath the surface. Cave Run Lake: History, Memory, and Legacy tells the full story of the valley before the lake, the planning and construction of the dam, the families who were forced to relocate, and the transformation of the region that followed. Drawing from oral histories, archival records, and local memory, author Joe Clark preserves the stories of the people and places that once defined the Licking River Valley. Part regional history, part cultural memory, and part tribute to the communities that were lost, this book ensures that the story of Cave Run Lake includes not only the water we see today—but also the lives that once existed beneath it.