The Historic Pope Lick Railroad Trestle and The Pope Lick Monster, Fisherville, Kentucky

Built in 1925 by the Southern Railway, the Pope Lick Creek Viaduct is 810 feet long and spans Pope Lick Creek and South Pope Lick Road 90 feet below.

This is a beautiful railroad trestle that you need to visit if you’re in the area. Several trains a day use this line so your chances of seeing one are fairly good!

I did a lot of research on the bridge but couldn’t find anything or anyone who could tell me about the origin of the name “Pope Lick Creek”. If you know, leave a comment below.The Pope Lick Monster

However, I found oodles of information, stories and pictures of a creature called the Pope Lick Monster which like my winning lottery ticket, I’m guessing probably doesn’t really exist.

Many teenagers in this area have perpetuated the myth of a monster, part man and part goat who lives under the trestle. According to Wikipedia: legends hold that the monster is a human-goat hybrid, and that it was a circus freak who escaped after a train derailed on the trestle in the 1930s. The Goatman vowed revenge after being mistreated in the circus. Another version commonly told by locals of the area claims that the monster is really an old farmer who sacrificed goats in exchange for Satanic powers. Somehow he became part Goat himself. Some stories claim the monster jumps down from the trestle onto the roofs of cars passing beneath it.

Another more believable story is one revolving around Georgia resident Charles McCartney also known as the “Goat Man”. McCartney had always been fond of goats since his days on the family farm, and he came up with the idea of using a goat cart to travel with his family and work as a preacher. His wife did not like the idea, and soon6left. One account says that McCartney traded his wife to another farmer for an unspecified amount of goats. Either way, McCartney took to the road with his goats preaching the gospel. He traveled throughout the south and one of his trips brought hm to the Pope Lick Trestle where he camped underneath for several days.

McCartney once said he hadn’t taken a shower in years and between him and his goats, the smell was said to be overwhelming. In an attempt to scare their children from the railroad tracks, parents in this area warned their children not to go near the Pope Lick Trestle or the “Goat Man” would get them. This is probably how the Goat Man legend first began.

Unfortunately, over a dozen teenagers have been killed and injured while trying to walk across this trestle looking for the mythical monster only to be surprised by an oncoming freight train that can’t stop in time. Stay off the trestle people! It’s private property. Besides, the Pope Lick Monster isn’t there anymore.

I spoke to quite a few people who live in the area and they said that the Pope Lick Monster no longer frequents the trestle but has relocated to a more remote location a couple of miles away. One person who has taken a picture of the Pope Lick Monster gave me these GPS Coordinates for it’s new hideout: 38°08’47.4″N 85°30’37.5”W.

Let me know if you find him at his new site!

GPS Location: 38°11’31.0″N 85°29’15.8″W