Lusk's Ferry was a place where pioneers crossed the Ohio River from Kentucky into Illinois.

In his conquest of Illinois in 1778, George Rogers Clark crossed the Ohio River at Fort Massac.

He then marched north a short distance to the Lusk's Ferry Road, and from there to Fort Kaskaskia.

In 1817, the Western Gazetteer listed two places to cross the Ohio River and make the overland journey to the Territorial Capital at Kaskaskia, Illinois.

From 1838 to 1839, thousands of Cherokee were forced to cross the Ohio at Lusk's Ferry on the Trail of Tears.