Taylorsville Lake State Park

Taylorsville Lake State Park
Map showing the location of Taylorsville Lake State Park
Map showing the location of Taylorsville Lake State Park
Location in Kentucky
Map showing the location of Taylorsville Lake State Park
Map showing the location of Taylorsville Lake State Park
Taylorsville Lake State Park (the United States)
LocationSpencer, Kentucky, United States
Coordinates38°01′50″N 85°15′20″W / 38.03056°N 85.25556°W / 38.03056; -85.25556
Area1,200 acres (4.9 km2)
Established1983[1]
Governing bodyKentucky Department of Parks
WebsiteTaylorsville Lake State Park
U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Taylorsville Lake State Park

Taylorsville Lake State Park is a park encompassing 1,200 acres (490 ha) in Spencer County, Kentucky, roughly midway between Louisville and Lexington. Taylorsville Lake, its major feature, extends into parts of Anderson County and Nelson County.[2]

Taylorsville Lake gains its name from the nearby town, named for President Zachary Taylor's father, Richard Taylor, who donated 60 acres (24 ha) of his own land for creation of the town.[1] The lake was created when the United States Army Corps of Engineers chose to dam the Salt River, thereby creating the lake, with its public opening in January 1983. The dam, which measures a height of 163 feet (50 m) and a length of 1,280 feet (390 m), cost $28.8 million to build. The resulting lake is 3,050 acres (1,230 ha) in total area, has 75 miles (121 km) of shoreline, and is 18 miles (29 km) long.[3]

  1. ^ a b "History". Taylorsville Lake State Park. Kentucky Department of Parks. Retrieved September 12, 2013.
  2. ^ Kleber, John E., ed. (1992). "Parks, State". The Kentucky Encyclopedia. Associate editors: Thomas D. Clark, Lowell H. Harrison, and James C. Klotter. Lexington, Kentucky: The University Press of Kentucky. ISBN 0-8131-1772-0.
  3. ^ Bailey, Bill (January 1, 1995). Kentucky State Parks. Glovebox Guidebooks of America. pp. 299–304. ISBN 1881139131.