Lost Creek (Kentucky) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Lost Creek |
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|---|---|
| Physical characteristics | |
| Main source | Lost Creek headwaters 37°19′16″N 83°10′55″W / 37.32101°N 83.18195°W |
| 2nd source | Ten Mile Creek headwaters 37°22′09″N 83°17′23″W / 37.36906°N 83.28972°W |
| 3rd source | Fifteen Mile Creek headwaters 37°20′24″N 83°14′17″W / 37.33999°N 83.23809°W |
| 4th source | Sixteen Mile Creek headwaters 37°19′28″N 83°12′07″W / 37.32451°N 83.20198°W |
| River mouth | Troublesome Creek 37°28′41″N 83°19′22″W / 37.47796°N 83.32269°W |
Lost Creek is a creek that flows mainly through Breathitt County, Kentucky in the United States. It's like a smaller river that eventually joins a bigger one.
Lost Creek flows into Troublesome Creek, which then joins the North Fork Kentucky River. Lost Creek meets Troublesome Creek in Perry County, Kentucky, about 1 mile (1.6 km) before Troublesome Creek ends. Lost Creek is about 10 miles (16 km) long. You can find it near the meeting point of Kentucky Route 476 and Kentucky Route 15, about 6 miles (9.7 km) southeast of Jackson, Kentucky.
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What's in a Name?
The name "Lost Creek" has some interesting stories behind it! People say it's called "Lost" because hunters and early travelers sometimes got lost when they wandered too far from the creek's path. There's also a story about a family who lost all their belongings when a part of the creek was frozen. Even some famous local people, like Ned O'Grady, Colby Haddix, and Barney Russell, were said to have gotten lost there.
Smaller Streams Joining Lost Creek
Lost Creek has many smaller streams, called tributaries, that flow into it. These tributaries add water to Lost Creek as it makes its way downstream.
- Some of its main tributaries are:
- Mill Branch joins about 2 miles (3.2 km) upstream from the mouth of Lost Creek.
- Leatherwood Branch
- Cockerell's Fork (also called Cockrell Fork) joins about 8.75 miles (14.08 km) upstream.
- Ten Mile Creek joins about 10 miles (16 km) upstream.
- Rock House Fork
- Hollybush Branch
- Rock House Fork
- Collins Branch joins about 11.25 miles (18.11 km) upstream.
- Low Gap Branch joins about 12.25 miles (19.71 km) upstream.
- Fifteen Mile Creek joins about 15 miles (24 km) upstream.
- Sixteen Mile Creek joins about 16 miles (26 km) upstream.
- Strong Branch joins about 1.25 miles (2.01 km) upstream on Sixteen Mile Creek.
- Hiram Branch joins about 2 miles (3.2 km) upstream on Sixteen Mile Creek.
- Low Gap Branch joins about 16.5 miles (26.6 km) upstream.
- Will Branch joins about 17.25 miles (27.76 km) upstream.
- Camp Branch joins about 17.75 miles (28.57 km) upstream.
- Bowman Branch joins about 18 miles (29 km) upstream.
- Rock Fork joins about 18.5 miles (29.8 km) upstream.
- Laurel Fork joins about 19.5 miles (31.4 km) upstream.
You might notice that Ten, Fifteen, and Sixteen Mile Creeks are named for how far upstream they join Lost Creek. This is a common way to name streams in Kentucky!
Post Offices Along the Creek
Over the years, several post offices have been set up in the areas around Lost Creek.
Post Offices in Perry County
Lost Creek flows through parts of Perry County, and two post offices were located there.
Dice Post Office
The Dice post office was first planned in 1903 but didn't open then. It was near where Sixteen Mile Creek joins Lost Creek. People in the area thought it was named after someone called Dice, Dicie, or Dicey.
It finally opened on December 26, 1908, but closed in May 1911. It opened again on February 15, 1923, when a small village had grown there. It closed again in November 1936. The Dice post office opened for a third time on August 13, 1942, and it is still open today!
Engle Post Office
The Engle post office opened on March 7, 1959. The person who started it, James B. Engle, wanted to name it "Oliver," but that name was already being used for another post office.
This post office first started on the Rock House Fork of Ten Mile Creek. In 1938, it moved about 1 mile (1.6 km) along the creek to the Hollybush Branch of Ten Mile. The Engle post office closed in 1980.
Post Offices in Breathitt County
Lost Creek is mainly in Breathitt County, where more post offices were established.
Ned Post Office
The Ned post office opened on February 26, 1886. People often thought it was named after Edward P. "Ned" Turner, but he was only 12 at the time! It's more likely that it was named after Edward "Ned" Sizemore, a neighbor.
This post office was located at Cockerell's Fork. By the 1890s, a small village grew around it with stores and mills. The post office moved a few times but eventually closed in 1984.
Leatherwood and Watts Post Office
The Leatherwood post office opened on June 18, 1913. It closed in 1919 but reopened in the winter of 1934–1935. In 1949, it was renamed Watts after the Watts family, even though the area was still known as Leatherwood. It continued to operate as a smaller branch office until 1973.
Lost Creek Post Office
The Lost Creek post office itself opened on October 11, 1848. A village grew around it in the 1880s, and this village was known as Troublesome. It had general stores and a mill. The Lost Creek post office still exists today and has the ZIP code 41348.
Climate and Flooding
The area around Troublesome Creek and its tributaries, including Lost Creek, can experience heavy rains. In July 2022, a sudden flash flood hit the area, causing damage to many homes along Lost Creek.
