Perryville is a Boyle county town on the Chaplin River at the junction of US 68 and US 150. The first settlers, led by James Harberson, arrived in 1781 and the settlement was known as Harberson's Fort and later Harberson's Crossing. The town was laid out in 1815 and named Perryville for Oliver Hazard Perry. The Perryville post office opened in 1816. The population in 1990 was 815.

The largest Civil War battle fought in Kentucky was around Perryville on October 8, 1862 and the Perryville Battlefield State Historic Site is located there. The battle is also known as the Battle of Chaplin Hills.