Recent News

By Eugenia Jones {Editor} [email protected] Work begins on steam engine for Big South Fork Railway In the not-too-distant future, steam locomotive Soo 2425 will find its home in Stearns, KY, as it returns to work, pulling up to twelve cars carrying tourists through the natural beauty that surrounds the Kentucky and Tennessee/Big South Fork Scenic…

By Eugenia Jones {Editor} [email protected] A former McCreary County Deputy Sheriff joins two other candidates who have announced their bids to be the next sheriff of McCreary County.  Jerry Meadows, with over twenty years of experience in law enforcement, announced to the Journal and on Facebook that his campaign as a Republican candidate has begun. Currently…

By Eugenia Jones {Editor} [email protected] Ronnie Bowling, the 34th Judicial Circuit Commonwealth’s Attorney representing McCreary and Whitley Counties, recently received the BRAVE Award, an honor recognizing those who go the extra mile in supporting survivors of sexual violence. The Kentucky Association of Sexual Assault Programs (KASAP) initiated the BRAVE award to commend those who demonstrate…

By Eugenia Jones {Editor} [email protected]   McCreary County Judge Executive Jimmie “Bevo” Greene represented McCreary County and the Lake Cumberland Area Development District (Lake Cumberland ADD) at the NADO conference in Washington, D.C.  Judge Greene, who sits on the regular ADD Board and is treasurer of the Executive ADD Board, was provided with all expenses…

By Eugenia Jones {Editor} [email protected] (The McCreary Journal reminds readers that an indictment does not indicate one’s guilt or innocence but represents that enough evidence exists in a case to pursue the matter in a court of law.  The McCreary Journal also notes the possibility of individuals having the same or similar names. Individuals are presumed…

By Eugenia Jones {Editor} [email protected] On Sunday, March 30, 2025, The Whitley County Sheriff’s Department responded to an emergency call regarding a gray Chevy Malibu stopped in the middle of the roadway at the intersection of KY Hwy 92 West and KY Hwy 2792.  The driver appeared to be passed out behind the wheel.  Whitley County Sheriff’s…

By Eugenia Jones {Editor} [email protected] On Friday, March 21, 2025, McCreary and Scott County officials notified the family of William “Will” Cross, a Scott County, TN man who went missing on May 18, 2018, that the partial remains discovered in a wooded area of Revelo, KY in October 2023 have finally been officially identified as…

By Eugenia Jones {Editor} [email protected] A prominent McCreary County figure, Lt. Colonel Sherril Owens, passed away on March 21, 2025. Owens was one of 14 children born to his coalminer father, Norman Phillip Owens and Zona (Worley) Owens of Smithtown, KY. Owens graduated from McCreary County High School in 1953 and in 1957 from Eastern…

By Eugenia Jones {Editor} [email protected] 51-year-old William H. Shadoan, the man accused of stabbing 87-year-old Roland Sumler to death while traveling with Sumler in the elderly man’s vehicle toward HWY 27 on the Barren Fork Road on March 16, was released from the University of Kentucky Medical Center on Monday, March 24, 2025, and immediately…

By Eugenia Jones {Editor} [email protected] Nevels announces 2026 candidacy for County Judge Executive Nathan Nevels II has submitted his state intent to run for McCreary County Judge Executive on the Republican ticket during the 2026 election cycle. Nevels, a retired alternative school principal in McCreary County and Somerset Independent School Districts for 13 years, is…