Molly Ann Brook
Molly Ann Brook Molly Ann's Brook | |
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Location | |
Country | United States |
State | New Jersey |
Counties | Passaic, Bergen |
Physical characteristics | |
Source | |
• location | Franklin Lakes, Bergen County, New Jersey, United States |
• coordinates | 40°59′34.37″N 74°11′34.15″W / 40.9928806°N 74.1928194°W |
• elevation | 495 ft (151 m) |
Mouth | Passaic River |
• location | Paterson, Passaic County, New Jersey, United States |
• coordinates | 40°54′47.26″N 74°11′18.60″W / 40.9131278°N 74.1885000°W |
• elevation | 117 ft (36 m) |
Length | 6.75 mi (10.86 km) |
Basin features | |
Tributaries | |
• left | Squaw Brook |
Molly Ann Brook (sometimes Molly Ann's Brook) is a tributary of the
History
Molly Ann Brook, like its neighboring Passaic River tributaries, played host to
In the late 18th century, the area of Westside Park, at the mouth of the brook in Paterson, was home to Dirck and Molly Van Houten and their children, one of the original pioneer families to settle the area. Adreyean, the ninth child of the family, distinguished himself from other Van Houtens in the area by calling himself Molly's Yawn (Dutch), or Molly's son. Living at his parents' homestead, the brook running through the property came to be known as Molly Yawn's Brook, which was later corrupted to the current Molly Ann's Brook.[2]
In the early 20th century, the brook became well known for its intense floods, particularly a massive flood affecting four towns in July, 1945. As a response, overflow tunnels were proposed in the late 1950s.[3] Ultimately, in 1999 the United States Army Corps of Engineers, Philadelphia District completed a flood control project in the lower reaches of the brook to protect against 50-year storm events. The project significantly deepened and widened the brook through the construction of concrete and rock-lined channels.[4]
Description
Molly Ann Brook rises south of Franklin Ave in Franklin Lakes, about two thousand feet west of Goffle Pond, where the headwaters of the neighboring Goffle Brook are located. After flowing through High Mountain Golf Club, Molly Ann Brook joins two smaller tributaries to form Haledon Reservoir, an approximately three thousand foot by one thousand foot artificial lake. A second man made lake, Lower Basin Pond, exists directly below Haledon Reservoir, followed by a swimming hole about two thousand feet downstream.
In
Beyond Oldham Pond, Molly Ann Brook is quickly joined by one other tributary flowing east off
See also
References
- ^ John Austin Stevens, et al. The Magazine of American history with Notes and Queries. A. S. Barnes., 1879. See Page 490. Available via Google Books
- ^ William Nelson, Charles Anthony Shriner. History of Paterson and Its Environs (the Silk City): Historical - Genealogical - Biographical. Lewis Historical Pub. Co., 1920. See Page 57, Pioneer Families. Available via Google Books
- ^ William Lawrence Saunders. Taming the Molly Ann. Compressed Air Magazine. Pg. 360. 1957.
- ^ Anthony J. DePasquale, Douglas Leatherman, & Randy Thomas. Molly Ann's Brook: Channel Protection for High-Velocity Urban Stormwater Runoff. Stormwater: The Journal for Surface Water Quality Professionals. Jan/Feb, 2001. Available online