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The Forks

Ghost town · Estill County, Kentucky

Palmer quadrangle, USGS topographic map (1952, 1:24,000)
Palmer quadrangle, USGS topographic map (1952, 1:24,000) · U.S. Geological Survey, Historical Topographic Map Collection · Public domain

The Forks is a ghost town in Estill County, Kentucky. It is one of 40 former communities in Estill County on the federal names register. That ranks the county 2nd among the 101 Kentucky counties with a vanished settlement on record.

The U.S. Geological Survey lists The Forks as a historical populated place on the Palmer topographic quadrangle: the name is no longer in official use for a community, whether the settlement was abandoned, absorbed into a neighbouring town or renamed. The recorded location is 37.8233° N, 84.0874° W.

Key facts

USGS quadranglePalmer
Elevation905 ft
Nearest living townClay City, KY
Distance to it9 miles
GNIS feature ID2440466
Coordinates37.82329, -84.08737

Open the location on a map

What's there now

The Forks is no longer a community in its own right. The nearest living town is Clay City, KY (population 1,352), about 9 miles away in a straight line, and the site sits at roughly 905 feet above sea level. Much of the land around former townsites is private; check access before you visit.

Nearby places

Questions

Where is The Forks?

The Forks is in Estill County, Kentucky, at 37.8233, -84.0874.

How many ghost towns are in Estill County?

Estill County, Kentucky has 40 ghost towns on record at Wayfarrow.

Sources and licences

Facts marked "approximately" carry an uncertain date in the source. Text on this page is generated from the sources above; no encyclopedia prose is copied. Last updated 2026-11-05.