Cumberland River Ferry
Turkey Neck Bend area, Monroe County
270-487-1314
Connecting two segments of KY 214, this is the only ferry owned and operated by the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

Dale Hollow Lake
270-433-7431 (Dale Hollow State Resort Park)
Dale Hollow Lake covers 4,300 acres and is considered one of the nation's best lakes for smallmouth bass. There are also rainbow trout and occasional muskie and walleye catches. Dale Hollow Lake can be reached via I-65 to Louie B. Nunn Parkway, KY 90 to KY 163 through Tompkinsville.

Old Mulkey Meeting House State Historic Site
270-487-8481
Two miles south of Tompkinsville on KY 1446
The oldest log church west of the Alleghenies. Daniel Boone's sister, Hannah Boone Pennington, and several Revolutionary War veterans are buried in the church cemetery. First available church records are dated 1798, but tradition claims the church was established much earlier. The park offers a peaceful setting for a journey into the past with the uniquely shaped rustic log building and pioneer graveyard. Visitors will also find tranquil picnic areas and a gift shop featuring traditional arts and crafts.

Mt. Vernon Church
Located 1.5 miles from Gamaliel on KY 100, this ancient log building once served as both a church and school building for the African-American community of Freetown. It was built before the Civil War by the freed slaves of William Howard.

Civil War
Numerous skirmishes between Union and Confederate forces took places in Monroe County, and as in much of Kentucky, loyalties of residents were divided. Monroe was the site of Col. John Hunt Morgan's first raid into Kentucky, and the county courthouse at Tompkinsville was later burned by Confederates.

Rolley Hole Marbles
A unique game of marbles, passed down for generations, is played in this area, mainly by adult men using handmade flint marbles. Local marble players have won national and international honors with their skills. Rolley-Hole Marble Tournaments are part of both the Watermelon Festival and the County Fair.

Amish & Mennonite Communities
Monroe County is home to several Amish and Menonite communities where their traditional way of life is still practiced. In most of these areas, crafts and home-grown produce are marketed on site.

Hunting & Fishing
Opportunities for fisherment abound in Monroe County in Tompkinsville's City Lake as well as in the Cumberland and Barren Rivers. Both Dale Hollow Lake and Barren River Lake are located nearby, offering a wide variety of water sports. Area woodlands are a hunter's paradise, with deer, squirrels, rabbits, doves and turkeys among the abundant game.

About Monroe County
The geographic center of southern Kentucky, Monroe County offers the natural beauty of the Upper Cumberland hills, as well as the hospitality and slower-paced lifestyle typical of rural Kentucky. Each of the four seasons here has its own distinctive attractions, although temperatures are moderate year-round. Monroe County's rolling countryside provides acres of green pastureland for dairy and beef cattle, in addition to tree-covered hills that supply hardwood timber for local lumber and pallet industries. The scenic Cumberland River winds through the south-eastern part of the county, while Barren River meanders through the southwest section, and numerous smaller streams flow throughout the county.

Tompkinsville
Monroe is the only county in the nation named for a president (James Monroe) with the county seat, Tompkinsville, named for the contemporary vice president (Daniel Tompkins). Located near the center of the county, Tompkinsville was first settled about 1790.

Gamaliel
First settled in the late 1700s and later named for a Biblical physician, Gamaliel, is located near the headwaters of Barren River, one mile from the Kentucky-Tennessee border.

Fountain Run
Settled about 1800, Fountain Run is the "crossroads of three counties." Located in westernmost Monroe County, near the borders of Barren and Allen counties.