Kentucky, a river of Kentucky, is formed by two forks which rise in the Cumberland Mountains, and, after a winding north-went course of about 250 miles, enters the Ohio, 12 miles above Madison, Indiana. The river runs through part of its course between perpendicular limestone walls. It is navigable by steamboats to beyond Frankfort.

kintiH'ky, a state of the American Union, in the great central or Mississippi Valley, lies between 36° 30' and 39° 6' N. lat. coprrw i°w '»u-*and between 82° 3' and 89° 30' W. kjj.i Lippuwott long. Its greatest length from comi«nj. east to wet-t is about 400 miles, its breadth from north to south about 175 miles; its area is 40,400 *|. m. The eastern and south-eastern parts of the state are mountainous, broken by the Cumberland Mountains (2000-3000 feet) and their offshoots. Westward from this region is a plateau sloping gradually toward the Ohio and the Mississippi rivers, which bound the state on the north and west. Large cypress-swamps still exist in some parts, especially in the south-west. Kentucky has a river boundary of more than 800 miles in length, including a stretch of nearly 650 miles along the Ohio, 50 miles on the Mississippi, and 120 on the Big Sandy. The Cumlierland, Tennessee, Licking, and Kentucky rivers rise among the mountains in the east, and cross the. state to the Ohio, whose other large tributaries, the Green and the Tradewater, rise in the west. The considerable extent of water thus available for navigation has lately been increased by a system of river improvements. Besides these natural highways of commerce Kentucky has 2800 miles of railroad. Southward from the Ohio River extends a semicircular tract of land of Silurian formation ; here the soil is produced by the disintegration of the fossiliferous blue limestone, and its fertility is unrivalled. This section is the famous Blue Grass (q.v.) country, in which the most exhausting crops, such as toliacco and hemp, may be raised continuously for a series of years without materially impairing the productive value of the soil, the constant crumbling of the fossiliferous shales restoring those constituents which have been withdrawn bv the rich growth of vegetation. Surrounding the blue-grass country is a somewhat narrow belt of Devonian shale; its "oil is also very fertile, and the lower strata contain petroleum. In the southern and southeastern Cof the state there are other tracts of Devonian , iits, some of which yield heavy lubricating oils. The eastern, the western, and the southern portions of Kentucky belong mainly to the Carboniferous age, and the structure consists of subcarboniferous limestone, or of true carboniferous deposits, with extensive coalfields. Tlie coalmeasures are the result of several alternate ex|w»nres and submersions, and average at least ten good lieds of coal. Through the central part of the «tate is a strip of land which appears to have remained permanently raised almve the sea during the I'lirlmniferous period, and thus forms a divide Iwtween the eastern and the western coal-areas. The eastern coalfield is a prolongation of the Appalachian deposits, and is about 10,000 sq. m. in 'ttent. The western belongs to the Illinois tract, »nd measures about 4000 sq. m. The coal is '■ituniinous, and some excellent cannol occurs. Next in importance to coal are the iron ores, which are of excellent quality, and ore found throughout a district of 20,000 sq. m. in extent. Neither the coal nor the iron deposits are worked as thoroughly a» their quality and their abundance would seem "" justifv, but the output is increasing. Catena i» found in some sections ; valuable building-stones occur almost everywhere; and salt is obtained by boring in the coal and the oil regions.

Through the limestone formations the streams

have cut deep gorges, and within a region of about 6000 so. m. in the Bub-carboniferous structure, much of the drainage is subterranean. The surface topography is peculiar, as there are many round or oval-shaped 'sinks' through which the water reaches the underground streams. The long-continued erosive action of the water has undermined a large part of this region, and produced the numerous and often extensive caverns which form one of the remarkable physical features of this state. Of these the best known, though possibly not the largest, is the Mammoth Cave (q.v.).

Kentucky is densely wooded, except in those places that are under cultivation ; at present about two-thirds of the state is covered with virgin forests. Among the prevailing species of trees are the blue ash, the black walnut, various kinds of oak, the pine, the maple, the tulip-tree, and the sweet gum. Notwithstanding this large proportion of forest land, Kentucky has always been one of the leading agricultural states, and its products are noted for their variety. It is the principal toliaccoproducing state in the union. The state has always been a centre for rearing domestic animals, and for breeding the finest grades of stock. A very large percentage of the successful racehorses of the United States have been bred in Kentucky. The peculiar advantages for stock-raising are due in part to the excellent quality of the grass, and in part to the mild salubrious climate, which permits the cattle to remain unhoused in the pastures during the greater part of the winter. Kentucky's principal manufacture is whisky, which is made in large quantities in the central section. The smelting and working of iron are the only other manufacturing industries of any considerable importance.

Kentucky is divided into 117 counties, and contains 19 cities and over 300 towns and villages. The most important cities are Louisville, Covington, Newport, Lexington, and Frankfort, the capital. The governor and the 38 state senators serve for four years, the 100 representatives for two. Besides two senators, Kentucky sends eleven representatives to congress. The state is practically out of debt, and has a permanent school fund of $1,799,447. The enrolment of pupils in the common schools exceeds 300,000. There are several important colleges and schools of higher education, some of them affiliated with the Kentucky L'niversity at Lexington. Pop. of the state (1860) 1,155,684; (1880) 1,648,690 ; (1890) 1,858,635.

History.—Numerous remains indicate that the mound-builders lived herein considerable numliere; but at the time of its first occupation by the whites this region seems to have been a hunting-ground visited by both the northern and the southern tribes of Indians, anil not permanently occupied by settlements. The name Kentucky, signifying ' the dark and bloody ground,' is supposed to commemorate the conflicts between the various warlike tribes. One of the earliest pioneers was Daniel Boone (q.v.). This whole territory was included in the original grant to the colony of Virginia, and in 1776 received the name of Kentucky county. In 1790 it was mode a separate territory of the United States, and in 1792 was admitted as a state. Kentucky did not secede during the civil war, and several campaigns were waged within its borders.

Ke'oktlk, a city of Iowa, is situated almost at the south-east extremity of the state, on the Mississippi Hiver (bore crossed by a railroad bridge), 161 miles by rail KSK. of Des Moines. Keokuk lias a large trade, nine lines of railway touching the town. The largest steamboats could always come up to Keokuk, and the ' Des Moines rapids,' immediately above, are now passed by a great canal, 11