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20-698: The Cumberland River is a major waterway of the Southern United States . The 688-mile-long (1,107 km) river drains almost 18,000 square miles (47,000 km) of southern Kentucky and north-central Tennessee . The river flows generally west from a source in the Appalachian Mountains to its confluence with the Ohio River near Paducah, Kentucky , and the mouth of the Tennessee River . Major tributaries include

40-479: A UNESCO World Heritage Site , the oldest known waterway system in the world, is considered to be one of the world's largest and most extensive project of engineering . The European Conference of Ministers of Transport established in 1953 a classification of waterways that was later expanded to take into account the development of push-towing. Europe is a continent with a great variety of waterway characteristics, which makes this classification valuable to appreciate

60-749: A 58,000-acre (230 km ) reservoir in Livingston County , Lyon County and Trigg County in Kentucky and extending into Stewart County and Houston County in Tennessee , was impounded by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 1966 upon the completion of Barkley Dam . Both the lake and the dam are named for Vice President Alben Barkley , a Kentucky native. The dam impounds the Cumberland River near Grand Rivers, Kentucky , approximately 38 miles (61 km) upstream from where

80-555: A passage for hunters and settlers, the Cumberland River also supported later riverboat trade, which traveled to the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. Villages, towns, and cities were located at landing points along its banks. Through the middle of the 19th century, settlers depended on rivers as the primary transportation routes for trading and travel. In more recent history, a number of severe floods have struck various regions that

100-549: A shoreline measuring 1,004 miles (1,616 km). The lake's level is maintained at different levels throughout the year for flood control purposes. Summer pool, 359 ft (109 m) above sea level , is normally reached by May 1. The water level begins dropping gradually on July 1, and winter pool (354 ft; 108 m) is reached by December 1. The spring rise starts April 1. The lake's water surface area varies accordingly from 57,920 acres (234.4 km ) at summer pool to 45,210 acres (183.0 km ) at winter pool. As with

120-613: A tunnel under Little Black Mountain, from which it emerges in Baxter and converges with Martins Fork. Poor Fork begins as a small stream on Pine Mountain in Letcher County near Flat Gap, Virginia. It flows southwest in parallel with Pine Mountain until it merges with the other two forks in Baxter. From there, the wider river, now named Cumberland, continues flowing west through the mountains of Kentucky before turning northward toward Cumberland Falls . The 68-foot (21 m) falls

140-589: A waterway that could be termed "inland" but in practice is generally referred to as a "maritime waterway" (examples Seine Maritime, Loire Maritime , Seeschiffahrtsstraße Elbe). The term "inland waterway" refers to navigable rivers and canals designed to be used by inland waterway craft only, implicitly of much smaller dimensions than seagoing ships. In order for a waterway to be navigable , it must meet several criteria: Vessels using waterways vary from small animal -drawn barges to immense ocean tankers and ocean liners , such as cruise ships . In order to increase

160-601: Is one of the largest waterfalls in the southeastern United States and is one of the few places in the Western Hemisphere where a moonbow can be seen. Beyond Cumberland Falls, the river turns abruptly west once again and continues to expand as other creeks and streams feed into it. It receives the Laurel and Rockcastle rivers from the northeast, followed by the Big South Fork of the Cumberland River from

180-630: The 2010 Tennessee floods , the river overflowed its banks and flooded Nashville and Clarksville, Tennessee . The downtown area was ordered to evacuate. Major flooding occurred along the Cumberland River at Pineville , Barbourville , and Williamsburg in early February 2020. Notes Bibliography [REDACTED]  This article incorporates public domain material from Major Flooding Inundates Southeast Kentucky Followed by Light Snow From February 6–7, 2020 . National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration . Waterway Where seaports are located inland, they are approached through

200-902: The Obey , Caney Fork , Stones , and Red Rivers. Although the Cumberland River basin is predominantly rural, there are also some large cities on the river, including Nashville and Clarksville , both in Tennessee. The river system has been extensively altered for flood control . Major dams impound areas of both the main stem and many of its important tributaries. Its headwaters are three separate forks that begin in Kentucky and converge in Baxter, KY , located in Harlan County . Martin's Fork starts near Hensley Settlement on Brush Mountain in Bell County and snakes its way north through

220-771: The Stones River , the river is dammed to form Cheatham Lake . The river turns northwest toward Clarksville , where it is joined by the Red River . It flows back into Kentucky at the Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area , a section of land nestled between Lake Barkley , which is fed by the Cumberland River, and Kentucky Lake . Finally, the river flows north and merges with the Ohio River at Smithland , northeast of Paducah . The explorer Thomas Walker of Virginia in 1758 named

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240-477: The Cumberland empties into the Ohio River . One mile (1.6 km) above the dam is a canal connecting Lake Barkley with Kentucky Lake , forming one of the greatest freshwater recreational complexes in the country. The lakes run parallel courses for more than 50 miles (80 km), with the Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area located between them. Lake Barkley is 134 miles (216 km) long with

260-511: The different classes in waterway. There is also a remarkable variety of waterway characteristics in many countries of Asia, but there has not been any equivalent international drive for uniformity. This classification is provided by the UN Economic Commission for Europe , Inland Transport Committee, Working Party on Inland Water Transport. A low resolution version of that map is shown here. Lake Barkley Lake Barkley ,

280-631: The formation of Kentucky Lake , communities were flooded in the 1960s to build Lake Barkley. Locals often refer to "Old Eddyville" for Eddyville and "Old Kuttawa" for Kuttawa . The "Old" areas were the portions of the cities that were left above the water after the areas were flooded; these old areas are now lakefront. The present-day cities were created on nearby sites after the lake was impounded. Old foundations and streets, previously flooded, are still visible during winter pool. Highways were even relocated, including US 68 and US 62 , along with state routes and smaller streets. The Illinois Central Railroad

300-934: The importance of inland waterway transport, the European Commission presented a 35-point action plan in June 2021. The main goals are to increase the amount of goods moved through Europe's rivers and canals and to speed up the switch to zero-emission barges by 2050. This is in accordance with the Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy and the European Green Deal , which set the target of boosting inland canal and short-sea shipping by 25% by 2030 and by 50% by 2050. Waterways have been an important part of human activity since prehistoric times and navigability has allowed watercraft and canals to pass through every body of water . The Grand Canal (China) ,

320-515: The mountains to Baxter. Clover Fork starts on Black Mountain in Holmes Mill, near the Virginia border, and flows west in parallel with Kentucky Route 38 until it reaches Harlan . Clover Fork once flowed through downtown Harlan and merged with Martins Fork at what is now the intersection of Kentucky Route 38 and US Route 421 . A flood control project begun in 1992 diverted it through

340-647: The river flows through. In April 1977, Harlan, Kentucky , and many surrounding communities were inundated with floodwaters, destroying most of the homes and businesses within the floodplain of the river. This event led to the building of the Martins Fork Dam for flood control and the diversion of the Clover Fork around the city of Harlan. In addition, the river was diverted through a mountain cut in Loyall, Kentucky . In late April and early May 2010, due to

360-786: The river, but whether for the Duke of Cumberland or the English county of Cumberland is not known. The Cumberland River was called Wasioto by the Shawnee Native Americans , who lived in this area. French traders called it the Riviere des Chaouanons , or "River of the Shawnee" for this association. The river was also known as the Shawnee River (or Shawanoe River ) for years after Walker's trip. Important first as

380-540: The south. From here it flows into the man-made Lake Cumberland , formed by Wolf Creek Dam . The more than 100-mile (160 km) reservoir is one of the largest artificial lakes in the eastern US. Near Celina, Tennessee , the river crosses south into that state, where it is joined by the Obey River and Caney Fork . Northeast of Nashville , the river is dammed twice more, forming Cordell Hull Lake and Old Hickory Lake . After flowing through Nashville and picking up

400-479: Was also relocated; the former alignment can still be seen under water from low flying planes above. The area was significantly damaged by a violent EF4 tornado on December 10, 2021. The State Park lodges were opened to house area residents whose homes were destroyed. Lake Barkley State Resort Park is located on the eastern shore of the lake. The largest yellow bass ever taken in Kentucky (1 lb., 1 oz.)

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