Lake Cumberland, named by Dr. Thomas Walker in 1750 for the Duke of Cumberland, son of the King, is the third largest lake in Kentucky. It officially became a lake when Wolf Creek Dam, the 25^th largest in America, was constructed in 1950. To create the lake required moving the entire town of Burnside, Kentucky (the birthplace of the Boy Scouts of America, although the title is occasionally disputed by a few other towns) to higher ground and destroyed the town of Rowena entirely.

Where to stay

At the same time Wolf Creek Dam was built, the large parcel of land around Lake Cumberland was given to the state of Kentucky by the U.S. government to be turned into a state park. [Read more…]