Williamstown, Kentucky

Ark Encounter is a Christian theme park that opened in Williamstown, Kentucky, United States, in 2016. The centerpiece of the park is a large representation of Noah's Ark, based on the Genesis flood narrative contained in the Bible. It is 510 feet (155.4 m) long, 85 feet (25.9 m) wide, and 51 feet (15.5 m) high. Ark Encounter is operated by Answers in Genesis (AiG), a young Earth creationist organization that also operates the Creation Museum 45 miles (70 km) away in Petersburg, Kentucky. Australian creationist and CEO of AiG Ken Ham founded the park. The theme park promotes pseudoscientific young Earth creationist beliefs about the age of the universe, age of the Earth, and co-existence of humans and non-avian dinosaurs. After feasibility studies projected that the park would be a boon to the state's tourism industry, Ark Encounter received tax incentives from the city, county, and state to induce its construction. This drew criticism from groups concerned with the separation of church and state. A dispute over AiG's hiring practices was adjudicated in U.S. federal court, which found in 2016 that the organization could require Ark Encounter employees to sign a statement of faith as a condition of their employment, prompting criticism of the park's discriminatory hiring practices.

Grant County is a county located in the northern part of the U.S. commonwealth of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 24,941. Its county seat is Williamstown. The county was formed in 1820 and named for Colonel John Grant, who led a party of settlers in 1779 to establish Grant's Station, in today's Bourbon County, Kentucky. Grant County is included in the Cincinnati-Middletown, OH-KY-IN Metropolitan Statistical Area. Grant County residents voted to allow full alcohol sales in the county by a margin of 56% to 44% in a special election on December 22, 2015. In the 19th century, Grant County had multiple saloons. The Grant County News, established in 1906 and published in Williamstown, is preserved on microfilm by the University of Kentucky Libraries. The microfilm holdings are listed in a master negative database on the UK Libraries Preservation and Digital Programs website.

Dry Ridge is a home rule-class city in Grant County, Kentucky, in the United States. The population was 2,191 at the 2010 census, up from 1,995 at the 2000 census. From around 1910 to 1960, the city's economy was dominated by business related to its mineral water wells, purported to have healing properties.

Williamstown Lake is a public 365-acre (1.48 km2) recreational lake and water reservoir in Grant County, Kentucky. It was created in 1955 by impounding the South Fork of Grassy Creek in order to supply the community with water as the existing reservoir, now the centerpiece of nearby JB Miller Park was unable to keep up with demand. The lake officially opened for boating, fishing and swimming in 1957 by utilizing one access point adjacent the City of Dry Ridge and one adjacent to the City of Williamstown. With more than 365 surface acres of water including seasonable accessible tributaries, just over 7 miles from end to end and 28 miles of shoreline, the lake has attracted well over 300 summer cottages and year-round homes which line nearly every originally available plot on the lake. The lake is owned and operated by the City of Williamstown as they are charged with maintaining the structural source of the lake which is the Dam and Spillway located at the Eastern end. The city is the only entity legally allowed to remove and sell water from the lake to surrounding communities. There are two main boat ramps available for launch: The Williamstown Marina is a public access point with a modest launch fee which has fuel, a small convenience store, Dockside Pizza and Pub (seasonal) restaurant and another now known as Lemons Landing (formerly Ruby's Boat Dock) which is subscription based with no public parking. Issues surrounding Williamstown Lake include the continuous development of local properties, often concerning but closely monitored levels of sewage in the water due to improperly installed and "grandfathered" systems incapable of handling the new developments and additions, and the Williamstown Lake Expansion Project and nearby development of the Ark Encounter attraction. The Expansion Project has been stalled for more than three decades due to the project merging into adjacent Pendleton county and is/would be projected to triple the size of the lake in order to increase the supply of safe water in the surrounding areas but issues remain in water ownership and distribution rights, among other issues of property acquisition and protected native biological species. Restrictions imposed by Williamstown City Council in 2021 due to heavy recreational use of the lake are as follows: No person shall operate a personal watercraft or motorboat when towing a person on any conveyance behind the watercraft using a tow rope of 30 feet or less, as measured by the transom of the boat to the end of the top rope. No Wake Zones shall be marked in all designated areas of Williamstown Lake with buoys, signs and other visible markers marking designated areas or No Wake Zones in cove areas. While operating in these areas it is prohibited to operate any vehicle at a speed greater than five miles per hour and in no case create a white cap in a No Wake Zone. A 40 mile-per-hour speed limit. Wake Surfing is not permitted at any time on the lake but wake boarding is be permitted except with the use of a ballast/bladder system.

Mason is an unincorporated community in Grant County, Kentucky, United States. The community is located along U.S. Route 25 4.5 miles (7.2 km) south-southwest of Williamstown. Mason has a post office with ZIP code 41054, which opened on July 26, 1855.

Grant County High School is a public high school serving the ninth through twelfth grades in Grant County, Kentucky, USA. It is one of seven schools and the only high school in the Grant County Schools district.

Boltz Lake, located in Grant County, Kentucky, is a 92-acre (37 ha) reservoir.

The Sherman Tavern, near Sherman, Kentucky, was built in about 1840. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.It was deemed notable as "a good example of the popular version of a three-part Greek Revival composition featuring a recessed pedimented porch. The structure has historical interest in being one of the mid-19th century taverns on the Lexington-Covington Road, one of the first macadamized roads in Kentucky."The listing included three contributing buildings.The property is said to have had 10 slave cabins, which no longer exist.

Sherman is an unincorporated community in Grant County, Kentucky, in the United States.

Cordova is an unincorporated community in Grant County, in the U.S. state of Kentucky.

Crittenden is a home rule-class city in Grant and Kenton counties, Kentucky, in the United States. The population was 4,023 as of the 2020 Census, up from 3,815 as of the 2010 census, which was further up from 2,401 at the 2000 census.

Corinth is a home rule-class city mostly in Grant County with a small portion of land in Scott County in the U.S. state of Kentucky. The population was 232 as of the 2010 census, up from 181 at the 2000 census. The Grant County portion of Corinth is part of the Cincinnati-Middletown, OH–KY–IN Metropolitan Statistical Area, while the Scott County portion is part of the Lexington-Fayette Metropolitan Statistical Area.