Sparta is located on the Gallatin and Owen county boundary on Eagle Creek. The site was settled around 1800 on the Owen county side of the creek. It was known as Ross's Mill by 1805 for the mill of David Ross and after 1818 as Brock's Station for a later mill owner. The Sparta post office opened in 1853, probably named for Sparta Mill. In 1869 the Louisville, Cincinnati, and Lexington Railroad placed a station on the north side of the creek and a Sparta Station post office opened there in 1870. The community shifted to the Gallatin side of the creek and the Sparta post office closed the same year. (The south side of the creek became known as Old Sparta.) The Sparta Station post office was renamed Sparta in 1881. The population in 1990 was 133, with most on the Gallatin county side of the creek.

The Sparta Post Office in 1997.