The Clear Fork is a 42.8 miles (68.9 km) tributary of the Cumberland River

Cumberland River

The Cumberland River is a waterway in the Southern United States. It is long. It starts in Harlan County in far southeastern Kentucky between Pine and Cumberland mountains, flows through southern Kentucky, crosses into northern Tennessee, and then curves back up into western Kentucky before...

 in Kentucky

Kentucky

The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...

 and Tennessee

Tennessee

Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...

. By the Cumberland and Ohio

Ohio River

The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...

 rivers, it is part of the Mississippi River

Mississippi River

The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...

 watershed.

The Clear Fork rises in Bell County, Kentucky

Bell County, Kentucky

Bell County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It was formed August 1, 1867, from parts of Knox and Harlan Counties and augmented from Knox County in 1872. As of 2010 the population was 69,060. Its county seat is Pineville...

, just north of the Tennessee state line. It flows west-southwest, crossing into Claiborne County, Tennessee, and passing the village of Clairfield

Clairfield, Tennessee

Clairfield is a small unincorporated rural community in Claiborne County, Tennessee, United States, located in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains in northeastern Tennessee...

. Turning more to the northwest, it crosses into Whitley County, Kentucky

Whitley County, Kentucky

Whitley County is a county located in the state of Kentucky. 2005 census projections list its population at 38,029 . The county seat is at Williamsburg, though the largest city is Corbin, and the county's District Court sits in both cities...

, and continues to the Cumberland River just east of Williamsburg

Williamsburg, Kentucky

As of the census of 2000, there were 5,143 people, 1,928 households, and 1,127 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,102.5 people per square mile . There were 2,118 housing units at an average density of 454.0 per square mile...

.

The river is paralleled by Tennessee State Route 90 for much of its upper course, then by U.S. Route 25W and Tennessee State Route 9

Tennessee State Route 9

State Route 9 is a west-to-east highway in the U.S. state of Tennessee that is 117 miles long. It begins in Campbell County and ends in Cocke County. State Route 9 is little-known by the general public by this designation as it is overlain by U.S. Route 25W and U.S...

 to the Kentucky border. In Kentucky, the river valley is used by U.S. Route 25W and Interstate 75

Interstate 75

Interstate 75 is a major north–south Interstate Highway in the Great Lakes and Southeastern regions of the United States. It travels from State Road 826 and State Road 924 in Hialeah, Florida to Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, at the Ontario, Canada, border...

.