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Kentucky (US: / k ə n ˈ t ʌ k i / ⓘ kən-TUK-ee, UK: / k ɛ n-/ ken-), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Kentucky borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the northeast, Virginia to the east, Tennessee to the south, and Missouri to the west.
Mar 4, 2022 · March 4, 2022, at 9:00 a.m. Getty Images. From wandering museums in the city to exploring unique attractions in the countryside, Kentucky offers something for everyone. Kentucky is generally...
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Kentucky, constituent state of the United States of America. Rivers define Kentucky’s boundaries except on the south, where it shares a border with Tennessee along a nearly straight line of about 425 miles (685 km), and on the southeast, where it shares an irregular, mountainous border with Virginia. Flowing generally northwestward, the Tug and Big Sandy rivers separate Kentucky from West Virginia on the east and northeast. On the north, Kentucky’s boundary follows the Ohio River to the Mississippi, meeting the states of Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois en route. The Mississippi River then demarcates Kentucky’s short southwestern border with Missouri. The capital, Frankfort, lies between the two major cities—Louisville, which is on the Ohio River, and Lexington.
Kentucky was long the home of various Native American peoples before the arrival of Daniel Boone and other European frontiersmen in 1769. Its name perhaps derives from an Iroquois word for “prairie.” By 1792, when Kentucky was admitted as the 15th state of the union—the first west of the Appalachian Mountains—it had drawn nearly 73,000 settlers. By 1800 this number had grown to roughly 220,000 and included some 40,000 slaves.
Kentucky lies within three major physiographic regions of the United States—the Appalachian Highlands (the Appalachian Plateau), the Interior Lowlands, and the Coastal Plain. Within the state, six smaller regions may be identified, based on the underlying rock structure: Mountain, Knobs, Bluegrass, Pennyrile (or Pennyroyal), Western Coalfield, and Purchase.
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More than 10,000 square miles (26,000 square km) of the easternmost part of Kentucky lie in the Mountain region, where the state reaches its highest point, at Big Black Mountain (4,145 feet [1,263 metres]), on the border with Virginia. The deeply dissected Cumberland Plateau, which lies to the west of the Cumberland Mountains and the Pine Mountain ridge, is a scenic land of narrow valleys, steep pinnacles, and transverse ridges. Natural passages through eastern Kentucky’s mountain mazes are sometimes provided by water gaps, such as historic Cumberland Gap, and the picturesque Breaks of Sandy. The great eastern coalfields of Kentucky also lie in the Mountain region.
The Knobs is a long, narrow region shaped like an irregular horseshoe, with both ends touching the Ohio River. It embraces the Bluegrass country on its inner side, and it is bounded by the Mountain area on the east and the Pennyrile on the west. The landscape of the Knobs is dotted with cone-shaped or rounded hills that are remnants of escarpments. Thickets of cane grew on some of the lower ground before European settlement and attracted large herds of buffalo and deer. A portion of Daniel Boone National Forest lies in the eastern Knobs.
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Explore Kentucky's regions, attractions, events and culture. Whether you're into outdoor adventures, bourbon, horses, music or horse racing, you'll find unforgettable experiences in the Bluegrass State.
Mar 13, 2023 · Learn about the geography, climate, counties, and major cities of Kentucky, the 37th largest state by land area in the U.S. See maps of Kentucky's location, outline, rivers, lakes, and regions.
Discover the diverse attractions and experiences that make Kentucky unique, from bourbon and horses to music and culture. Plan your trip by interest and share your Kentucky moments with #TRAVELKY.
Explore Kentucky's diverse attractions, from horses and bourbon to caves and museums. Find the best things to do, see and eat in this geographical and cultural crossroads of the South.
