Ohio County occupies the central part of western Kentucky, with Hartford and Beaver Dam forming the clearest settlement references and Fordsville, McHenry, Centertown, and Rockport marking other parts of the county. Routes 62, 69, 70, 85, 136, 231, 505, 878, and 919 connect a wide area of river lowlands, rolling uplands, and rural communities. The physical maps highlight the Rough River, Green River, Caney Creek, Barrett Creek, South Fork Panther Creek, and several small lakes. The original high-resolution JPG maps can also be downloaded together in one ZIP archive for printing, classroom work, presentations, or offline reference. High-resolution map files are available for download in the section below.
Kentucky.gov describes Ohio County as being in the central portion of western Kentucky and notes that the Green River forms much of the southern and western borders. Its official City of Hartford profile identifies Hartford as the county seat. The elevation map shows an actual range of about 69 to 242 meters with a mean near 147 meters, with low river corridors separated by higher eastern and northeastern ridges.
Table of Contents
Hartford and Beaver Dam anchor the central road network
The general county map makes Hartford and Beaver Dam the easiest places to begin. Hartford lies near routes 69 and 231, while Beaver Dam sits around routes 62 and 70. Centertown is west of Hartford, with McHenry and Rockport farther south and southwest. The concentration of roads in this area makes the central-southern part of the county easy to identify.
Fordsville provides the strongest northern settlement reference near route 54. Routes 919 and 878 help organize the north-central and northeastern interior, while routes 762 and 764 cross the northwest. Route 136 reaches toward the western boundary through a more rural landscape where creeks and smaller roads dominate.
In the southeast, routes 505 and 231 continue toward the county edge, while routes 269 and 369 reach the long southern extension. Rosine appears along route 62 east of the central cities. Outside the county, Owensboro, Central City, and Morgantown provide useful orientation toward Daviess, Muhlenberg, and Butler counties.
This map is intended for geographic orientation rather than live navigation. It does not show current construction, temporary closures, bridge restrictions, or travel times. Roads around the Rough River and smaller creek valleys can curve substantially, making actual driving routes longer than direct map distances.
Beaver Dam and Hartford lead a six-city distribution
The city-distribution map ranks six major cities. Beaver Dam is listed first with 3,524 residents, Hartford second with 2,649, Fordsville third with 453, McHenry fourth with 385, Centertown fifth with 371, and Rockport sixth with 233. These are the values printed on the supplied map and are most useful for comparing the relative scale of the mapped settlements.
Beaver Dam and Hartford sit close together in the central-southern county, while McHenry lies farther south and Centertown is to the west. Rockport occupies the southwestern edge, and Fordsville stands apart in the north. That distribution shows that Ohio County’s named communities are spread across a broad area rather than concentrated in one compact cluster.
Neighboring county labels include Daviess to the north, Breckinridge to the northeast, Grayson to the east, McLean to the southeast, and Hancock, Muhlenberg, and Butler around the west and southwest. The city map therefore provides useful regional context as well as settlement ranking.
The simplified city view removes much of the smaller-road detail, so the relative location of the six communities is easier to see. The general county map is the better choice for Rosine, local road numbers, the airport marker, and smaller geographic references. Using both maps together also makes the distinction between county-seat Hartford and larger city marker Beaver Dam clear.
Rough River and Green River frame a broad network of creeks and lakes
The Rough River is the strongest inland water feature on the terrain-and-water map. It winds across the central county through a broad low corridor and receives numerous small tributaries from the surrounding hills. The Green River provides the larger southern boundary reference, consistent with the Kentucky.gov county profile describing it as part of the county’s southern and western border.
South Fork Panther Creek and Adams Fork are useful northern drainage references, while Barrett Creek occupies a long western valley. Maple Leaf Lake provides a small northwestern landmark, and Washburn Lake sits closer to the county’s center north of the Rough River. These features make it easier to divide the large county into smaller physical sections.
Caney Creek is prominent in the east, while Halls Creek and Muddy Creek occupy valleys closer to the Rough River. Smaller unnamed tributaries are widespread across the southern and western interior. The density of those waterways shows that Ohio County is not simply a flat western Kentucky plain; it contains repeated low creek bottoms and rolling ridges.
A practical reading order is to locate the Rough River first, then the Green River, followed by South Fork Panther Creek and Adams Fork in the north, Barrett Creek in the west, and Caney Creek in the east. This is a geographic reference map rather than a flood, navigation, water-depth, fishing-regulation, or property-access product. Current conditions should be checked with the responsible agencies.
Elevation from 69 to 242 meters rises from river bottoms to eastern ridges
The elevation map reports an actual county range of about 69 to 242 meters and a mean near 147 meters. The lowest dark-green terrain follows the Rough River, Green River, and major creek valleys. Higher yellow, orange, and brown ridges become more common in the east and northeast, creating the strongest local relief in those parts of the county.
The central-western and southwestern sections contain broad areas of low green terrain. Rough River tributaries and other creek bottoms create relatively gentle corridors around Hartford, Centertown, and the western interior. Short ridges still break up those lowlands, so the landscape is rolling rather than completely flat.
Elevation changes become more pronounced toward the east and northeast. Caney Creek and Adams Fork remain in lower green corridors, but adjacent ridges rise quickly into darker colors. The southeastern side around routes 231 and 505 shows a similar mix of narrow valleys and higher uplands.
The elevation surface is intended for county-scale comparison rather than parcel-level measurement. It is useful for distinguishing river lowlands from uplands and ridges, but it should not be treated as survey-grade elevation for a road, structure, property, or engineering project. Exact site work should rely on current source data or professional surveying.
Following Ohio County from Hartford to Fordsville and the Green River side
Hartford and Beaver Dam provide the simplest starting points for comparing the map views. On the road map, locate routes 62, 69, 70, and 231, then identify Centertown to the west and McHenry and Rockport farther south. On the physical map, the Rough River provides the main central water reference.
For the north, use Fordsville with routes 54, 919, and 878 before locating South Fork Panther Creek and Adams Fork. Maple Leaf Lake provides an additional reference in the northwest. The elevation map shows lower creek corridors surrounded by more strongly ridged terrain than the central-western lowlands.
For the south and east, routes 231, 505, 269, and 369 help divide the county into smaller sections. The Green River and Caney Creek then provide physical references, while the elevation map shows how low waterways are separated by increasingly higher uplands toward the eastern side.
Choosing the best Ohio County map for print, class, or reference
Use the general county map when Hartford, Beaver Dam, Fordsville, McHenry, Centertown, Rockport, numbered roads, and the full boundary need to appear together. The city-distribution map is cleaner when the main question is how the six ranked cities compare in location and relative size.
Choose the terrain-and-water map for the Rough River, Green River, Caney Creek, Barrett Creek, South Fork Panther Creek, Maple Leaf Lake, and Washburn Lake. The elevation map is the strongest view for explaining the contrast between lower river corridors and the higher eastern and northeastern ridges. Comparing water and elevation together makes the county’s terrain much easier to understand.
The WebP images in the article are optimized for browser viewing. The downloadable ZIP contains the original JPG maps at 2,572×3,638 pixels each, which is better suited to printing, classroom worksheets, presentations, and offline reference. These maps are general geographic resources rather than legal boundary records, flood studies, parcel surveys, navigation products, or engineering plans.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Hartford or Beaver Dam the county seat?
Hartford is the county seat. Kentucky.gov’s official City of Hartford profile identifies Hartford as the seat of Ohio County. Beaver Dam is the largest city marker on the supplied city-distribution map, so the administrative center and the largest mapped city are different places.
Which map best shows the Rough River and Green River together?
The terrain-and-water map is the best choice. It shows the Rough River, Green River, South Fork Panther Creek, Adams Fork, Barrett Creek, Caney Creek, Maple Leaf Lake, Washburn Lake, and many smaller tributaries in one view.
Can the 69–242 meter elevation range be used as an exact property elevation?
No. The range summarizes the actual countywide elevations shown on the supplied map, with a mean near 147 meters. It is useful for comparing river lowlands with higher ridges, but exact site elevations should come from current source data or professional surveying.
Map File Information
The ZIP archive contains the original high-resolution JPG versions of the Ohio County road-and-boundary map, city-distribution map, terrain-and-water map, and elevation map. Each image is 2,572×3,638 pixels for printing, classroom work, presentations, and offline reference.
- File Type: 4 JPG files inside one ZIP archive
Related Maps
Sources and references
County and Hartford information is available from the Kentucky.gov Ohio County profile and the Kentucky.gov City of Hartford profile. For underlying geographic data, see the U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line Shapefiles for boundaries and roads, USGS National Hydrography for rivers, lakes, and streams, and the USGS 3D Elevation Program for elevation data.
These maps are intended for geographic explanation, printing, and general reference. Legal boundary decisions, live traffic, flood and water-safety questions, property surveying, and engineering work should rely on the latest authoritative information from the responsible public agency.
Green Map creates custom-edited map images using open geographic data sources such as geoBoundaries, Natural Earth, OpenStreetMap, and government open data. These maps are edited visual materials, not raw data files, and are provided for education, documents, presentations, and graphic reference.
