Mud Creek (Chillisquaque Creek tributary)
Mud Creek | |
---|---|
Etymology | named for its muddiness |
Physical characteristics | |
Source | |
• location | Madison Township, Columbia County, Pennsylvania |
• elevation | 760 ft (230 m) |
Mouth | |
• location | Chillisquaque Creek in Derry Township, Montour County, Pennsylvania |
• coordinates | 41°02′48″N 76°40′33″W / 41.04673°N 76.67570°W |
• elevation | 502 ft (153 m) |
Length | 8.3 mi (13.4 km) |
Basin size | 17.70 sq mi (45.8 km2) |
Discharge | |
• average | 5.8 cu ft/s (0.16 m3/s) |
Basin features | |
Progression | Chillisquaque Creek → West Branch Susquehanna River → Susquehanna River → Chesapeake Bay |
Mud Creek is a tributary of Chillisquaque Creek in Columbia County and Montour County in Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately 8.3 miles (13.4 km) long and flows through Madison Township, Columbia County and Derry Township, Montour County.[1] The main tributaries of the creek are unnamed tributaries. The creek's watershed has an area of 17.70 square miles and is in West Hemlock Township, Montour County as well as the two townships it flows through. The watershed is mostly agricultural and forested and the main developed areas are Washingtonville and Jerseytown.
As of 2011, the daily load of
Mud Creek is named for its muddiness. An area near it was settled as early as 1772 and several bridges were built across it and its tributaries in the 20th century. The creek is designated as a warm-water fishery.
Course
Mud Creek begins in central Madison Township, Columbia County. It flows south for a short distance before turning southwest and passing through Jerseytown, where it crosses Pennsylvania Route 44. The creek then continues to flow southwest, parallel to Pennsylvania Route 254. Over the next several miles, its direction gradually changes from southwest to west and it exits Madison Township.[2] Mud Creek then enters Derry Township, Montour County. It turns southwest again, continuing to follow Pennsylvania Route 254. Over the next few miles, the creek receives several unnamed tributaries. It then crosses Pennsylvania Route 54 and enters Chillisquaque Creek 16.79 miles (27.02 km) upstream of its mouth, immediately south of Washingtonville.[3][4]
Hydrology
As of 2011, a total of 54.78 miles (88.16 km) of streams in the watershed of Mud Creek were affected by
The daily load of sediment in Mud Creek was 24,165 pounds (10,961 kg) as of 2011, but the
As of 2011, the load of
The
A United States Geological Survey report in the 1960s measured the concentration of bicarbonate in Mud Creek to range from 41 to 109 milligrams per liter, but there were no carbonates in the water. The creek's nitrate concentration ranged from 3.3 to 6.3 milligrams per liter for filtered water and the concentration of sulfates ranged from 23 to 29 milligrams per liter, again for filtered water. The concentration of chlorides in the creek's filtered waters ranged from 7 to 23 milligrams per liter. The calcium and magnesium concentrations in filtered water were 20 to 44 and 4.4 to 6 milligrams per liter, respectively.[7]
Mud Creek experiences nonpoint source pollution. The Montour County Natural Areas Inventory recommended remedying this pollution.[8]
Geography, geology, and climate
The elevation near the mouth of Mud Creek is 502 feet (153 m) above
The main rock type in the watershed is
The Lower Helderberg
The most common soil series in the watershed of Mud Creek is the Watson-Berks-Alvira series. It is a shaly silt loam that mostly occurs in the watershed's plains and highlands. Other soil series in the watershed include the Berks-Weikert-Bedington series and the Chenango-Pope-Holly series. The Chenango-Pope-Holly occupies areas near the creek itself in its lower reaches and the Berks-Weikert-Bedington series occurs throughout most of the southern edge of the watershed. All other parts of the watershed lie over soil of the Berks-Weikert-Bedington series. 80 percent of the soil is of the Watson-Berks-Alvira series, 12 percent is of the Berks-Weikert-Bedington series, and 8 percent is of the Chenango-Pope-Holly series.[5] The Holly-Monogahela-Basher soil association is found in the floodplain of the creek.[12]
On average, 44.5 inches (113 cm) of precipitation fall in the watershed of Mud Creek annually. The annual level of runoff in the watershed is 0.13 inches (0.33 cm) on average.[5]
Watershed
The watershed of Mud Creek has an area of 17.70 square miles.[4] It is mainly in Madison Township, Columbia County and Derry Township, Montour County, but a small part of it is in West Hemlock Township, Montour County. The watershed of the creek is in the Washingtonville and Millville United States Geological Survey 7.5 minute quadrangles.[5] It is on the eastern edge of the West Branch Susquehanna River watershed. The creek's major tributaries include several unnamed tributaries.[5]
The main land use in the watershed of Mud Creek is agricultural land, which accounts for 62.97 percent of the total area. 31.49 percent of the watershed is forested and 5.54 percent is developed land. Most of the forested land is on the watershed's southern and eastern edges, but there are some patches of it elsewhere, most of which are fairly small. Most of the developed land is near Jerseytown and Washingtonville, but there are several other small areas of development in the watershed's lower reaches and a few other areas in its upper reaches.[5]
The major communities in the Mud Creek watershed are Jerseytown and Washingtonville. Major roads in the watershed include Pennsylvania Route 254. There are also a number of
History and etymology
An early settler in the area was George Whitmoyer, who built a cabin in the valley of Mud Creek at Jerseytown in 1772.
John Gosse Freeze gives the name Mud Creek as the east branch of Chillisquaque Creek in his 1888 book A History of Columbia County, Pennsylvania: From the Earliest Times, but adds that the creek's name is more correctly the East Branch of the Chillisquaque.[16] Mud Creek is named for its muddiness, which is especially pronounced following storms.[17]
Biology
There are few or no
See also
- Beaver Run (Chillisquaque Creek), next tributary of Chillisquaque Creek going downstream
- West Branch Chillisquaque Creek, next tributary of Chillisquaque Creek going upstream
- List of rivers of Pennsylvania
Notes
- ^ An impaired stream is one that fails to meet the water quality standards for its designated use.[6]
References
- ^ United States Geological Survey, The National Map Viewer, retrieved July 11, 2014
- ^ United States Geological Survey (1979), madison.jpg, archived from the original on February 1, 2014, retrieved June 30, 2014
- ^ United States Geological Survey (1989), derry.jpg, archived from the original on July 2, 2014, retrieved July 1, 2014
- ^ a b Pennsylvania Gazetteer of Streams (PDF), July 1, 2001, p. 101, retrieved June 27, 2014
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (May 6, 2011), MUD CREEK WATERSHED TMDL Columbia and Montour Counties (PDF), retrieved July 1, 2014
- ^ "Impaired Streams in Bedford County". Bedford County Conservation District. Bedford County Conservation District. Retrieved January 17, 2015.
- ^ a b c United States Geological Survey (1960s), USGS 01553800 Mud Creek at Washingtonville, PA, retrieved July 2, 2014
- ^ a b Pennsylvania Science Office of The Nature Conservancy (2005), MONTOUR COUNTY NATURAL AREAS INVENTORY 2005 (PDF), retrieved July 1, 2014
- ^ Topographic Map Stream Features in Montour County, Pennsylvania, archived from the original on July 14, 2014, retrieved July 1, 2014
- ^ The National Map Viewer, retrieved July 1, 2014
- ^ Geological Survey of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania. State Geologist (1874-1890), Pennsylvania. Board of Commissioners for the Second Geological Survey (1883), Report of Progress
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: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ Executive Summary (PDF), archived from the original (PDF) on January 28, 2015, retrieved July 2, 2014
- ^ William M. Ballie, The Whitmoyer Saga (PDF), retrieved June 1, 2014
- ^ Mud Creek Bridge, retrieved July 1, 2014
- ^ Montour County, uglybridges.com, retrieved July 2, 2014
- ^ John Gosse Freeze (1888), A History of Columbia County, Pennsylvania: From the Earliest Times
- ISBN 9780880230285, retrieved July 2, 2014
- ^ Columbia County, Pennsylvania CHESAPEAKE BAY TRIBUTARY STRATEGY (PDF), March 2013, archived from the original (PDF) on July 14, 2014, retrieved July 2, 2014