{{Short description|River in Kentucky, United States}} {{Use American English|date=February 2025}} thumb|Nolin River Lake, impounded by Nolin River Dam in Edmonson County The '''Nolin River''' is a {{convert|104|mi|km|adj=mid|-long}}<ref name=NHD>U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. [http://viewer.nationalmap.gov/viewer/ The National Map], accessed June 13, 2011</ref> tributary of the Green River in central Kentucky in the United States.<ref name=Columbia>[http://www.bartleby.com/69/48/N04148.html Columbia Gazetteer of North America entry]</ref> Via the Green and Ohio rivers, it is a part of the watershed of the Mississippi River.

According to legend, Nolin River was so named when a group of hunters camped on a knoll near the river and a member of the hunting party, Benjamin Lynn, became lost. The story continues the rest of the party returned to the knoll where someone said "Here is the knoll, but no Lynn!" The lost hunter was later found alive and well camped out at nearby Lynn Camp Creek.<ref>{{cite book|last=Collins|first=Lewis|title=History of Kentucky|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=F5FQAQAAIAAJ&pg=PA457|year=1877|page=457|isbn=9780722249208}}</ref> The United States Board on Geographic Names settled on "Nolin River" as the stream's name in 1933.<ref>{{Gnis|499512|Nolin River}}</ref> As a child, Abraham Lincoln swam there.<ref>Stories About Abraham Lincoln to Read Aloud</ref>

The Nolin River is formed in western LaRue County by the confluence of its short North<ref>{{Gnis|499559|North Fork Nolin River}}</ref> and South<ref>{{Gnis|503938|South Fork Nolin River}}</ref> Forks, both of which flow for their entire lengths in LaRue County; the North Fork flows past Hodgenville. The Nolin then flows generally southwestwardly through or along the boundaries of Hardin, Grayson, Hart and Edmonson counties. It joins the Green River in the western part of Mammoth Cave National Park, about {{convert|2|mi|0}} northeast of Brownsville.<ref>DeLorme (2005). ''Kentucky Atlas & Gazetteer''. Yarmouth, Maine: DeLorme. {{ISBN|0-89933-340-0}}</ref>

The Nolin River at Kyrock, Kentucky measures approximately 989 cubic feet per second on average.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://waterdata.usgs.gov/ky/nwis/annual/?format=sites_selection_links&search_site_no=03311000&agency_cd=USGS&amp;referred_module=sw|title = USGS Surface Water data for Kentucky: USGS Surface-Water Annual Statistics}}</ref>

In Edmonson County, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers dam causes the river to form Nolin River Lake.

==See also== *List of Kentucky rivers

==References== <!--See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Footnotes for an explanation of how to generate footnotes using the <ref(erences/)> tags--> {{Reflist}} {{commons category}}

{{coord|37.2153255|-86.2496971|type:river|display=title}}

{{authority control}}

Category:Rivers of Kentucky Category:Rivers of Edmonson County, Kentucky Category:Rivers of Grayson County, Kentucky Category:Rivers of Hardin County, Kentucky Category:Rivers of Hart County, Kentucky Category:Rivers of LaRue County, Kentucky Category:Green River (Kentucky)

{{Kentucky-river-stub}}