Hopkinsville. Hopkinsville, the sixth largest city in Kentucky, is a thriving small
Photo courtesy of Pennyroyal Arts
community with a mall, movie theater, historic performance theater, baseball team (Hoptown Hoppers), dozens of restaurants, a golf course and driving range, and many other community amenities.
Photo courtesy of Kentucky New Era
The town’s legacy as a stop along the Trail of Tears is commemorated in a park along 9th Street on the Little River. Every September, the Trail of Tears Indian Pow-Wow comes to town, located at the Trail of Tears Park. There is a museum, a sunken amphitheater, a group of plaques explaining and commemorating the great uprooting and journey, and a burial ground, including two important Cherokee Chiefs who died during the removal – Fly Smith and Whitepath. It is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
The Pennyroyal Area Museum, established in October 1975, and opened on July 8, 1976, hosts a wide range of activities in its endeavor to preserve and interpret the past. Exhibits include the night riders of the Black Patch Tobacco Wars; Edgar Cayce, famed local clairvoyant; Jefferson Davis; period room settings; a pioneer bedroom; a miniature circus; antique quilts; black history; historic modes of transportation; as well as historical license plates from Kentucky. Every May, Hopkinsville hosts Little River Days, a 2-day family festival in Merchant Park downtown, involving road running, canoe racing, a bicycle tour, arts and crafts, food vendors and live entertainment. The museum also stages historical pilgrimages, reenactments, and programs across the year, at low or no cost.
Courtesy of Criptid Wiki
During the total solar eclipse on August 21, 2017, Hopkinsville was be the closest metropolitan area to the expected point of greatest eclipse, which occurred about 12 miles (19 km) northwest of the city center. Multiple activities, fairs, and festivals were scheduled leading up to this event. We’re looking forward to the next interstellar madness that comes our way!
Hopkinsville is located a short driving distance from Land Between the Lakes; Pennyrile Forest State Resort Park; Nashville, TN; Fort 
Campbell, KY; Paducah, KY; and Evansville, IN.
Nearby larger cities with a wide array of recreational choices:
Clarksville, TN
Nashville, TN
Evansville, IN
Click on the link below for a more in-depth look at Hopkinsville’s restaurant and entertainment offerings, compiled by 2017-2018 intern Michael Daniel:
PLEASE NOTE: DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC STATE OF EMERGENCY, ACCESS TO THESE AMENITIES MAY BE REDUCED OR RESTRICTED, BY ORDER OF LOCAL, STATE, AND FEDERAL HEALTH OFFICIALS.