Blue Heron

Blue Heron, also called Mine 18, sits along the banks of the Big South Fork of the Cumberland River in McCreary County, Kentucky. It began as a coal mining community and operated as a working coal town before eventually being abandoned.

Today the site has been carefully recreated and is maintained as an interpretive history area within the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, giving visitors a chance to experience the story of the people and industry that once defined this riverside community. It is one of the more thoughtfully preserved ghost town experiences in the region, blending the natural setting of the river with the human history of coal town life.