Creelsboro is an historic town in Russell County, Kentucky, United States. The declining town was thriving some sixteen years before Russell County was formed. It was named for Elijah Creel, an early settler. Creelsboro was a trade center along the Cumberland River in the 19th century although its population was only about 50. It was once the busiest river port on the river between Nashville, Tennessee, and Burnside, Kentucky. The town hosted a bank, a school, three stores and an inn for steam boat passengers. Construction of modern highways in the 1930s took commercial traffic away from steamboats and Creelsboro lost its primary revenue stream. Creelsboro's current population is involved in agriculture. Visitors access the Cumberland River for trout fishing and view Rockhouse natural arch five miles downstream from town and through which the ancient Cumberland River once flowed. External links Creelsboro History References Ghost towns in Kentucky Geography of Russell County, Kentucky