Santiago Creek
Santiago Creek Cañada de Madera | |
---|---|
Location | |
Country | United States |
State | California |
County | Orange |
District | Cleveland National Forest |
Municipality | Orange |
Physical characteristics | |
Source | Santiago Peak |
• location | Cleveland National Forest |
• coordinates | 33°42′58″N 117°32′21″W / 33.71611°N 117.53917°W[1] |
• elevation | 4,870 ft (1,480 m) |
Mouth | Santa Ana River |
• location | Santa Ana |
• coordinates | 33°46′11″N 117°53′27″W / 33.76972°N 117.89083°W[1] |
• elevation | 108 ft (33 m) |
Length | 34 mi (55 km) |
Basin size | 100.6 sq mi (261 km2) |
Discharge | |
• location | Villa Park |
• average | 6.3 cu ft/s (0.18 m3/s) |
• minimum | 0 cu ft/s (0 m3/s) |
• maximum | 11,000 cu ft/s (310 m3/s) |
Basin features | |
Tributaries | |
• left | Limestone Canyon, Handy Creek |
• right | Silverado Canyon, Harding Canyon, Baker Canyon, Black Star Canyon, Fremont Canyon (Orange County, California), Weir Canyon |
Santiago Creek is a major watercourse in Orange County in the U.S. state of California. About 34 miles (55 km) long, it drains most of the northern Santa Ana Mountains and is a tributary to the Santa Ana River. It is one of the longest watercourses entirely within the county.[2] The creek shares its name with Santiago Peak, at 5,687 ft (1,733 m) the highest point in Orange County, on whose slopes its headwaters rise.
The Santiago Creek watershed covers about 100.6 square miles (261 km2) in northern Orange County. The upper part of the creek is free-flowing, while the lower section is urbanized and includes parts of the cities of Tustin, Orange, and Santa Ana. Below the Villa Park Dam the creek is mostly channelized and flows only during heavy winter storms.
Historically the Santiago Creek provided water for the
Course
Santiago Creek rises in the
The creek then empties into Irvine Lake, which is also fed by Limestone Canyon, a left-bank tributary. The 700-acre (280 ha)
Watershed
The Santiago Creek watershed occupies much of the northwestern end of the Santa Ana Mountains, and is located generally north of the city of
Elevations in the watershed range from 5,687 feet (1,733 m) at Santiago Peak to 108 feet (33 m) at the Santa Ana River confluence. Although only tiny parts of the Santiago Creek watershed do not lie within Orange County, it closely borders
The major tributary watersheds, in order of their appearance from southeast to northwest (roughly in downstream order) are: Harding Canyon, Williams Canyon, Silverado Canyon, Ladd Canyon (tributary of Silverado Canyon), Baker Canyon, Black Star Canyon, Fremont Canyon, Blind Canyon, and Weir Canyon on the right bank; and Limestone Canyon and Handy Creek on the left bank. Of the right bank tributaries, the Silverado Canyon, Ladd Canyon and Fremont Canyon sub-watersheds each extend a little into Riverside County. The Silverado/Ladd Canyon subwatershed is the largest, and Williams Canyon is the smallest.[4]
Tributaries
Santiago Creek has 10 major tributaries along its course, most of which come in while the creek flows through Santiago Canyon. Fremont Canyon is the longest, while Silverado Canyon is by area the largest. The largest sub-tributary watershed is Ladd Canyon, a tributary of Silverado Canyon. Many of the upper tributaries are spring-fed and perennial. An uppercase R stands for right bank, and L is for left bank.
Tributary name | Length | Size | |
---|---|---|---|
Denomination | Miles | Kilometers | Rank |
Headwaters | |||
Harding Canyon (R) | 3.5 | 5.6 | 6 |
Williams Canyon (R) | 1.3 | 2.1 | 10 |
Silverado Canyon (R) | 10.8 | 17.3 | 1 |
Ladd Canyon (Silverado Canyon tributary) (R) |
4.2 | 6.7 | 4 |
Baker Canyon (R) | 5.5 | 8.9 | 8 |
Black Star Canyon (R) | 8.5 | 13.7 | 3 |
Lake Irvine
| |||
Limestone Canyon (L) | 8.7 | 14.0 | 5 |
Santiago Creek Dam | |||
Fremont Canyon (R) | 12.0 | 19.3 | 2 |
Blind Canyon (R) | 2.4 | 3.9 | 11 |
Weir Canyon (R) | 4.6 | 7.4 | 9 |
Handy Creek (L) | 6.0 | 9.65 | 7 |
Confluence with the Santa Ana River |
Geology
The dominant geological feature in the Santiago Creek watershed are the Santa Ana Mountains. The northern portion of the mountains, which Santiago Creek drains, is composed of rocks from the pre-Triassic to the Quaternary (251–2.6 MYA).[8] These rocks consist primarily of slate, sandstone, conglomerate, limestone, and other sedimentary rocks.[9] The uplift of the Santa Ana Mountains began approximately 5.5 million years ago along the Elsinore Fault Zone, which extends north from near its namesake Lake Elsinore area.[10]
History
Pre-19th century
Before the latter 19th century, Santiago Creek and its tributaries were free flowing perennial streams spilling out of Santa Ana Mountains canyons onto the broad, alluvial
Native Americans
Most of the creek originally lay in the territory of the
These first inhabitants of the Santiago Creek Canyon lived in semi-permanent villages close to running water. The upper canyon was in the Acjachemen homelands, while the lower (northwestern) part of the watershed, likely downstream of present-day Irvine Lake, was in the Tongva homelands. The Native Americans had been drawn to the area by the abundant riparian zone found along Santiago Creek and some of its perennial tributaries. They subsisted on a diet of primarily acorns, using the ground acorn powder to form a type of porridge known as atole. They ground the acorns in stone mortars carved into large boulders and rock formations, with some remaining in the creek's canyon areas.[12]
Spanish colonization
In 1769 the Spanish
Later Spaniards named the creek's canyon Cañada de Madera (timber canyon). The mountain whose southwestern flank is the creek's
The Spanish left accounts mentioning the
One of the first settlers in the Santiago Creek watershed was Jose Pablo Grijalva, a former Spanish soldier, who arrived in 1784. He and his son-in-law, José Antonio Yorba, began grazing cattle in Santiago Creek Canyon in the 1790s. He built an adobe house beside Santiago Creek in 1796. Later settlers included the Peraltas and Sepúlvedas.[15]
- Ranchos
Three adjoining ranchos were granted within the creek's drainage. The Spanish era Rancho Santiago de Santa Ana (1810), extending from the Santa Ana River to the Santa Ana Mountains, was 25-mile (40 km)-long, 2.5-to-6.5-mile (4.0 to 10.5 km). The later Mexican era land grants were Rancho San Joaquin (1837) and Rancho Lomas de Santiago (1846). Portions of all later became part of the Irvine Ranch.[6]
A well-known massacre of Native Americans occurred in 1831, in present-day
American era
- Mining
In 1877, two prospectors, Hank Smith and William Curry, discovered silver in present-day Silverado Canyon. Several mines immediately sprang up in the area, the largest of which was known as the Blue Light Mine. During this period, the town of Silverado rose at the confluence of Silverado Creek and Santiago Creek and the boom continued for over three years.[17] Although the height of the mining was in the three or four years following the discovery of silver, smaller-scale mining continued for decades after the initial boom had ended. The last commercial operations at the Blue Light Mine ceased in the 1940s. The mine has continued to issue small amounts of toxic tailings, including arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury, remediation for which the Trabuco Ranger District of the Cleveland National Forest began toxic cleanup in 2008.[18]
- Modjeska House
In 1883 Polish actress
Water supply infrastructure
- Santiago Dam
By the 1920s, the Orange/Anaheim/Villa Park area was a prospering agricultural region that depended on water from the Santa Ana River and Santiago Creek. Santiago Creek would unleash seasonal floods in the winter and then while becoming a trickle or completely dry in the summer, making irrigation difficult. The Serrano
- Villa Park Dam
The Villa Park Dam, forming the Villa Park Reservoir further downstream on Santiago Creek, was completed in 1963 also by the Serrano Irrigation District, which by that time, had changed its name to the Serrano Water District. The lower course of Santiago Creek ended up being channelized in the mid-20th century after the passage of the Orange County Flood Control Act of 1927. The dam is now owned by the Orange County Flood Control Division.[21]
Biology
This section needs expansion with: further information about birds, fish, amphibians, and large mammals. You can help by adding to it. (December 2009) |
Historically, Santiago Creek supported a rich riparian community along its shores. The Santa Ana Mountains supported a large population of
Recreation
Recreation along Santiago Creek, in its watershed, and at its reservoirs includes:
- Lake Irvine
- Irvine Regional Park
Irvine Regional Park, created in 1897, now occupies much of the lowermost Santiago Creek Canyon, between Santiago Creek Dam and Villa Park Reservoir. The park was created officially on October 5 of that year as "Orange County Park", and originally it consisted of 160 acres (0.65 km2) of woodland along the riparian course of Santiago Creek.[27] At first, Santiago Creek flowed freely through the park, but with the completion of Santiago Dam in 1931, that was no longer possible. A boating pond constructed in 1913 then had to be filled with water piped in from Lake Irvine. The park was expanded to its current size of 477 acres (1.93 km2) in 1971, and has hiking, fishing, boating, and a small zoo.[6]
- Cleveland National Forest
The upper Santiago Creek watershed lies within the Trabuco Ranger District of the Cleveland National Forest. The Cleveland National Forest was created in 1908, and expanded to 424,000 acres (1,720 km2) by 1925.[28] Several hiking trails run up the steep canyons in the upper Santiago Creek watershed, leading up tributaries such as Black Star Canyon and Silverado Canyon. The Joplin Trail leads up the canyon above the town of Modjeska to the summit of Modjeska Peak.
- Other recreational areas
Other parks, nature reserves, recreational areas, and historic sites within the Santiago Creek area include:
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Crossings
From mouth to source:[39]
- North Bristol Street
- [Pedestrian Bridge]
- North Flower Street
- I-5 - Santa Ana Freeway
- North Broadway
- Main Street
- [Pedestrian Bridge]
- Santiago Street [Pedestrian Bridge]
- Railroad
- Eastbound California 22 exit to Glassell Street and Grand Avenue
- SR 22 - Garden Grove Freeway
- Entrance to westbound California 22 from Glassell Street and Grand Avenue
- [Pedestrian Bridge]
- Glassell Street
- South Cambridge Street
- East Rock Creek Drive
- South Tustin Street
- SR 55 - Costa Mesa Freeway
- CR S25- East Chapman Avenue
- East Collins Avenue
- CR S18- Villa Park Road
- Cannon Street
SR 241 Toll - Eastern Transportation Corridor (toll road)- CR S18- Santiago Canyon Road (two crossings)
References
- ^ a b U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Santiago Creek. Retrieved on 9 October 2008.
- ^ San Juan Creek is approximately the same length, and the Santa Ana River is not entirely within Orange County.
- ^ "Cultural Resources Inventory and Evaluation for the Proposed Aliso Creek Inn and Golf Course Project, City of Laguna Beach, Orange County, California" (PDF). SWCA Environmental Consultants. October 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 30, 2007. Retrieved 2009-09-09.
- ^ a b c d e "Santiago Creek Watershed: County of Orange, California" (PDF) (Map). County of Orange; Watershed and Coastal Resources Division of Orange County. www.ocwatersheds.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-11-07. Retrieved 2009-09-09.
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- ^ a b c d "Santa Ana River - Watercourses and Elevation Ranges". Watershed and Coastal Resources Division of Orange County. www.ocwatersheds.com. Archived from the original on 2009-04-27. Retrieved 2009-09-09.
- ^ a b c "Irvine Regional Park History". OC Parks. www.ocparks.com. Archived from the original on 2009-06-01. Retrieved 2009-09-11.
- ^ "Santa Ana River-City/County Jurisdiction". Watershed and Coastal Resources Division of Orange County. www.ocwatersheds.com. Archived from the original on 2009-04-27. Retrieved 2009-09-09.
- ^ Stadum, Carol J. "The Geologic History of Orange County". Irvine Valley College. www.ivc.edu. Archived from the original on 2008-11-21. Retrieved 2009-09-12.
- ^ Lewis, Lloyd A. (1941-01-01). "Geology of the northern part of the Santa Ana Mountains, Orange County, California". Caltech Electronic Theses. Archived from the original on 2007-08-06. Retrieved 2009-09-09.
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: External link in
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- ^ "Santa Ana River Watershed Geology". Santa Ana Watershed Project Authority. www.sawpa.org. Archived from the original on 2011-02-21. Retrieved 2009-09-12.
- ^ Cameron, Constance. "Determining Tribal Boundaries Through Potsherds - An Archaeological Perspective" (PDF). Pacific Coast Archaeological Society. PCAS Quarterly, 35 (2 & 3), Spring and Summer 1999. Retrieved 2009-09-11.
- ^ "Canyon History". Canyon Land Conservation Fund. www.canyonland.org. Retrieved 2009-09-10.
- ^ Bolton, Herbert E. (1927). Fray Juan Crespi: Missionary Explorer on the Pacific Coast, 1769-1774. HathiTrust Digital Library. pp. 140–141. Retrieved April 3, 2014.
- ^ a b "Santiago Peak". Angeles Chapter Sierra Club. Hundred Peaks Section. Retrieved 2009-09-11.
- ^ Marsh, Diann (September 21, 2008). "Rancho Santiago de Santa Ana: The Grijalva, Yorba, Peralta and Sepulveda Families". Excerpt from 'Santa Ana: An Illustrated History'. website. www.santaanahistory.com. Retrieved 2009-09-11.
- ^ McKinley, David. "Escaping OC: Black Star's Indian Village". The Hornet. Retrieved 2009-09-11.
- ^ a b Hoover and Kyle, p. 256
- U.S. Forest Service. www.fs.fed.us. September 3, 2008. Retrieved 2009-09-11.
- ^ "Urban Water Management Plan: Water Shortage Contingency Plan, Serrano Water District". Serrano Water District. California Environmental Resources Evaluation System. November 1995. pp. 2–3. Retrieved 2009-09-11.
- Orange County Register. Archived from the originalon August 22, 2009. Retrieved 2009-09-11.
- ^ "Neighborhood Flood Control Introduction". Orange County Flood Control Division. www.ocflood.com. Archived from the original on 2009-09-23. Retrieved 2009-09-11.
- ^ "State Route 22/West Orange County Connection Section 4.3: Biology" (PDF). California Department of Transportation. www.dot.ca.gov. August 2001. Retrieved 2009-09-11.
- S2CID 32490944.
- ^ "Steelhead/rainbow trout resources of Orange County" (PDF). Center for Ecosystem Management and Restoration. www.cemar.org. pp. 375–376. Retrieved 2009-09-10.
- ^ "Irvine Lake". Irvine Water District. www.irwd.com. Archived from the original on August 30, 2009. Retrieved 2009-09-11.
- ^ "The Lake that Wants for You to Catch Fish". WONews.com. Archived from the original on 2011-07-18. Retrieved 2009-09-11.
- ^ "Spotlight: Irvine Regional Park". Los Angeles Times. May 7, 1988. Retrieved 2009-09-11.
- U.S. Forest Service. www.fs.fed.us. Retrieved 2009-09-11.
- ^ Santiago Oaks Regional Park — Homepage
- ^ Santiago Oaks Regional Park — creek, canyon and park history
- ^ Barham Ranch Regional Park
- ^ Modjeska Canyon & Tucker Wildlife Sanctuary
- ^ Irvine Ranch Open Space — Homepage
- ^ The Nature Conservancy: Irvine Ranch Land Reserve
- ^ El Modena Open Space
- ^ Yorba Regional Park
- ^ - City of Orange: Grijalva Park at Santiago Creek
- ^ Wo Hart Memorial Park (701 South Glassell St, Orange, CA 92866)
- ^ "USGS Feature Details (Coyote Creek)". Retrieved 2022-09-09.
Works cited
- Hoover, Mildred Brooke; Kyle, Douglas E. (1990). Historic spots in California. Stanford University Press. ISBN 0-8047-1734-6.