Cumberland Falls, sometimes called the Little Niagara, the Niagara of the South, or the Great Falls, is a waterfall on the Cumberland River in southeastern Kentucky. Spanning the river at the border of McCreary and Whitley counties, the waterfall is the central feature of Cumberland Falls State Resort Park and is part of the Office of Kentucky Nature Preserves designated Wild River System.
It is believed the current falls formed as the result of erosion from its original starting place at an escarpment far downstream. The site of the falls was occupied in pre-modern times by a variety of indigenous peoples, and more recently has passed through multiple private owners until eventually being donated, along with surrounding land to Kentucky in 1933.
A moonbow is regularly visible at this site.
History
Formation
thumb|upright=1.5|Detail of a [[USGS topographical map showing Cumberland Falls, the wide plunge pool immediately downstream (northward), as well as Eagle Falls on the west bank, and the rapids of Center Rock further downstream]]
It is believed that Cumberland Falls originated at the Pottsville Escarpment, near modern-day Burnside, Kentucky, and retreated to its current location approximately upstream. In its retreat, the falls cut what is now the Cumberland River gorge, reaching depths in places of up to . At its original location, the falls was taller than it is currently, and has lost height due to erosion as it moved upstream. It also carried a greater volume of water originally, because two major tributaries, the Laurel River and the Rockcastle River, both lie between the modern day location and the escarpment. By 1650, the area had been visited by those from the Shawnee, Cherokee, Chickasaw, and the Creek peoples. The Cumberland, as well as the nearby Eagle Falls, were both considered sacred by many. Walton and Shepard surveyed the land in 1814, and were issued a land patent in 1828.
thumb|upright|left|Illustration of the falls from the King's Hand-book of the United States, 1891
In 1927 the Kiwanis Club sponsored a trail to be built from nearby Corbin, Kentucky, and dedicated to Kentucky governor William J. Fields.</blockquote>
In 1928, a proposal to accept the falls as a park was brought to the floor of the Kentucky Senate but was defeated. In 1930, following his death, the family of du Pont made the decision to donate the to the state.
Moonbow
During or near a full moon on clear nights, a lunar rainbow or moonbow is sometimes formed by the water of the falls. The formation of a moonbow at Cumberland Falls is aided by a combination of steep gorge walls, which reduce dissipation of the waterfall's mist by wind, and a wide gorge which allows increased levels of moonlight. and the Kentucky Department of Parks publishes schedules for visitors.