Clifty Creek crosses U.S. Highway 62 and the P & L railroad several miles to the southwest of Big Clifty. It is said that travelers named the town due to the limestone cliffs that arose on the sides of Clifty Creek. Accounts of residents from the past report that Big Clifty was a "boom town" that at one time had a post office, bank, feed mill, several dry goods stores and restaurants. The Ben Goodman school was the local "country school" and the town had numerous churches. In yesteryear nearby Clarkson was a tourist destination due to the numerous hotels near Grayson Springs, which were visited by guests who wished to experience the sulphur water's curative properties. Big Clifty benefited from the traffic going to Clarkson. Spurrier Mill was a grist mill on the Nolin River, several miles from Big Clifty which was a benefit to the economy. Like many rural Kentucky communities, as passenger rail-use decreased and transportation and commercial shipping routes changed, Big Clifty's boom town status disappeared. Big Clifty was also the site of tar bitumen oil mines, or “ black rock mines” as they were known in the 20's. One such mining site was at the end of Crown Rock Road, inside the Big Clifty limits. The mines produced tar from the bituminous sandstone common to the area.
History
Clifty Creek crosses U.S. Highway 62 and the P & L railroad several miles to the southwest of Big Clifty. It is said that travelers named the town due to the sandstone cliffs that arose on the sides of Clifty Creek. Accounts of residents from the past report that Big Clifty was a "boom town" that at one time had a post office, bank, feed mill, several dry goods stores and restaurants. The Ben Goodman school was the local "country school" and the town had numerous churches. In the early 1900s nearby Clarkson was a tourist destination due to the numerous hotels near Grayson Springs, which were visited by guests who wished to experience the sulphur water's curative properties. Big Clifty benefited from the traffic going to Clarkson, the railhead for Grayson Springs. Spurrier Mill was a grist mill on the Nolin River, several miles from Big Clifty which was a benefit to the economy. Like many rural Kentucky communities, as passenger rail-use decreased and transportation and commercial shipping routes changed, Big Clifty's boom town status disappeared. It dis-incorporated around 1980. The Skees family of Big Clifty, owned several former businesses in the town, including the Jas H. Skees General Store, local funeral home, and railway shipping station and several area farms.
Notable Persons
Big Clifty is also the hometown of TV and film star, actor and comedian Tim Skees. Many of the stories and persons used in Tim Skees’ comedy routines are derived from actual residents of the town, during his youth. Skees often makes cameo appearances in music videos, TV shows and movies, sometimes appearing as himself or as special characters, ranging from police and fire rescue, thug and gangster roles, to comedy character roles. Also a talented musician, he has played music since age 12, often with the southern gospel group The Howards and in various other genres of music.
