Mount Vernon is a home rule-class city[5] and the seat of Rockcastle County in southeastern Kentucky.

The settlement was named for George Washington's home, Mount Vernon.

The Wilderness Road was constructed to this town in 1792, and this was the principal settlement when Rockcastle Co. was created in 1810.

In 1883, an L&N spur was built through the town, connecting it by rail to Louisville and Knoxville.

The county's first newspaper, the Mount Vernon Signal, began publication in 1887.

Although it was still a largely rural town and county in the late 20th century, the construction of I-75 in the 1970s has drawn some industry to the area.

Mount Vernon is located within the Cumberland Plateau region of the state along Interstate 75 and U.S.