Elkhorn City is a small town located in Pike County, Kentucky near the Virginia state line, and sits at the mouth of the fabulous "Breaks of the Big Sandy." Elkhorn City consists of approximately 800 residents in the city limits. Mayor Hank Salyer oversees a City Council that works on behalf of the City.
Founded in 1825 by William Ramey, Elkhorn City grew very slowly with only about 50 families until 1890 when the railroad boom hit. On August 27, 1881, General John Thomas Wilder came to Elkhorn city buying property. He dealt in real estate all over the area. Wilder saw great possibilities in Elkhorn City for a huge sawmill to be operated by water. A ditch, one quarter of a mile long was dug to run the water into the mill. This mill, the likes of which had never been seen in the mountains, took two years to complete. Due to a flood it was destroyed and Wilder returned to Tennessee.
Elkhorn City sits at the Kentucky gateway to the Breaks Interstate Park, on the Kentucky-Virginia border, which features the largest canyon east of the Mississippi-five miles long, 1,600 feet deep and 250 million years old. Sometimes called the "Grand Canyon of the South," the gorge was carved by the Russell Fork River, a tributary of the Big Sandy. The spectacular beauty of the park is showcased with twelve miles of hiking trails and four scenic overlooks.
The Pike Mountain Trail State Park, proposed to extend 120 miles through the Appalachian Mountains, begins at Elkhorn City. Enacted in 2002 by Governor Patton, it will connect to Cumberland Gap National Military Park on the border of Virginia and Kentucky and eventually connect to the Cumberland Trail in Tennessee. At current time, 28 miles of the trail are on the ground.
At the Breaks, the Russell Fork River that runs through Elkhorn City approaches its connection with the Levisa Fork River. The Levisa Fork River runs into the Big Sandy River many miles north at Louisa, Kentucky, and eventually into the Ohio River much further north. Those who have attempted these rapids rate the Russell Fork Class IV through Class VI. During October the incredible chasm with its gigantic vertical walls and pounding whitewater defines the Kentucky-Virginia border for approximately six miles before plunging out of the mountains near Elkhorn city.
Festivals include the Apple Blossom Festival in May 4th of July Celebration, the White water Festival in October, Christmas in the City and Fishing Tournaments.
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