Free Kentucky Lake Vector. SVG, PDF, EPS, DXF, GeoJSON, Shapefile, High-Res PNG.
Every Kentucky Lake vector file you'll ever need. Every reasonable format, every reasonable color combination, no signup, no watermark, no paywall. Just the files.
About Kentucky Lake
Kentucky Lake is the largest TVA reservoir at 160,300 acres, and one of the largest man-made lakes in the world by surface area. Formed by Kentucky Dam (1944) on the Tennessee River, it stretches 184 miles upstream from the dam in western Kentucky south through Tennessee to Pickwick Landing Dam, with 2,300 miles of shoreline.
Quick downloads
Most people want one of these four. If your use case isn’t obvious from the names, scroll to the use-case sections or the full variants list below.
SVG
Vector for the web, modern design tools, Cricut.
Universal vector. Opens in Illustrator, Affinity, Inkscape, every print shop.
Pick by use case
Web designers and developers
SVG is what you want. The simplified version is about 10× smaller than the full file and looks identical at typical screen sizes.
Print, illustration, and Adobe / Affinity / Inkscape
PDF is the universal vector format. The 8192-pixel PNG is more than enough for poster-size printing at 300 DPI.
Laser cutters, CNC, vinyl, Cricut, Silhouette
DXF is the standard for hardware. For Cricut and Silhouette vinyl cutters, use the silhouette SVG (solid black on transparent).
GIS and mapping
The full GIS bundle. Shapefile is the GIS lingua franca. KML/KMZ open in Google Earth. GeoJSON is the easiest format to script against.
Color and style variants
Every reasonable combination. Each row links to a vector (SVG plus PDF or EPS where it makes sense) and four PNG resolutions: 1024, 2048, 4096, and 8192 pixels wide.
Frequently asked about Kentucky Lake
Is the Kentucky Lake outline really free?
Yes. The renderings are CC0 / public domain. The Kentucky Lake outline data comes from OpenStreetMap, and OSM asks for one thing: wherever you end up using these files publicly, credit OpenStreetMap somewhere a person could find it. Technically, the credit just needs to exist somewhere. How you do that, or if you do that, is up to you.
Can I sell Kentucky Lake t-shirts, mugs, or signage made from this?
Yes. The renderings are CC0, so you can screen-print, embroider, laser-cut, frame, embed, or sell anything you make from the Kentucky Lake files. The only ask: include a line crediting OpenStreetMap somewhere on the finished product or the listing. On Etsy, a sentence in the description works. On a printed sign, a small line on the back works. The exact placement is up to you.
What file format do I need for a Cricut or laser cutter?
For Cricut and Silhouette vinyl cutters, use the Kentucky Lake silhouette SVG (solid black on transparent). For laser cutters, CNC routers, AutoCAD, or Fusion 360, use the DXF. If your software chokes on the full geometry, the simplified SVG is about 10× smaller and looks identical at typical cutting sizes.
Do you have files for other lakes nearby?
Yes. The same workflow that produced the Kentucky Lake files works for any reservoir on the Tennessee River system. We’ve published files for Pickwick Lake and Watts Bar Lake (plus the rest of the chain). The full directory is at /free-lake-vectors/.
What if I need a Kentucky Lake variant that isn’t here?
If we missed a color, format, or size, drop a note and we’ll add it. We’d rather take five minutes to add a variant than have anyone go pay a stock-vector site for what is, ultimately, a polygon traced from public-domain map data.
License
The renderings are released to the public domain under CC0 1.0. Paint it on a boat. Screen-print it on t-shirts and sell those t-shirts. Frame it on your wall. Embed it on your website. Laser-cut it into wooden coasters. Ship it as part of a software product. None of that requires asking us or paying us.
The lake-outline geometry comes from OpenStreetMap (the underlying database is licensed under the ODbL). OSM asks for one thing: wherever you end up using these files publicly, credit OpenStreetMap somewhere a person could find it.
If you sell lake shirts on Etsy, a line in your listing description like “Lake outline © OpenStreetMap contributors” covers it. If you laser-cut a sign for your dock, the credit can sit on the back. If you embed it on your own website, a small note in the footer works. Technically, the credit just needs to exist somewhere a person could find it. How you do that, or if you do that, is up to you.
Other Tennessee River lakes
Same workflow, same license, same files. See the full directory →