[2] Two of its three major tributaries are the forks at its head, the Red Bird River and Goose Creek, whose confluence is at Oneida.

[1][2] Before the 19th century, Goose Creek also incorporated what is today known as South Fork Kentucky River.

[citation needed] Several largely ineffective attempts were made in the 19th century to make South Fork navigable all of the way upstream to the Goose Creek Salt Works.

[6] The Kentucky River basin, including South Fork and its tributaries, suffered a major flood in January and February 1957, although that did not exceed the highest on record for South Fork specifically, as Goose Creek's record at that point had been the flood of June and July 1947.

[9] 25 homes and 34 commercial buildings were flooded in Manchester; with an estimate cost of the damage exceeding US$200,000 (equivalent to $2,169,668 in 2023).