Owsley County Kentucky

History Daniel Boone

According to Joyce Wilson's book, "A Romantic History of Owsley County", Daniel Boone made his way to Owsley County on a two-year hunt from 1769-1771. In 1784 he returned and surveyed some 50,000 acres for James Moore and Col. John Donelson. Boone used a huge rock at the mouth of Sexton's Creek, on which he carved his initials, as his starting point in these surveys. This rock, known as "Boone Rock" or "Goose Rock" is still there, located approximately nine miles south of Booneville on Highway 11 South. However, due to changes in the course of the stream throughout time, the initials are under water and cannot be seen, even during dry seasons. Boone was impressed with this area and called it "a place where peace crowns the sylvan shade." He owned his own land of which a portion remained in the family until 1819, when Daniel Boone, Jr. transferred the last 1,000 acre tract on Meadow Creek to William Strong. Daniel Boone's favorite camping spot, known as the "old encampment", is located a half a mile south of Booneville between the highway and the river just below the area known as the "Sag". In later life, Daniel Boone learned that many claims he had to land were invalid because someone else had made official claims before he did. Daniel Boone's granddaughter, Leah Schull Newman, and other Boone decendents, are buried in the Newman Cemetery located in the Pebworth area on Highway 11 North.

For more information contact: Susan Wilder · Executive Director Booneville/Owsley County Industrial Authority P.O. Box 637 · Booneville, KY 41314 Phone: 606-593-7296 · Fax: 606-593-7781 Email: swilder@owsleycountykentucky.org