Captina Creek

Captina Creek is a 35 miles (56 km) long creek located in southeastern Ohio, and a tributary of the Ohio River.[3] Captina Creek is an important creek to the region and home to about 56 species of fish.

Captina Creek
Location
CountryUnited States
StateOhio
RegionMidwest
DistrictSouthern Belmont County, Northern Monroe County
Physical characteristics
SourceNorth Fork Captina Creek
 • locationNear Barnesville, Belmont County, Ohio
MouthOhio River
 • location
Powhatan Point, Belmont County, Ohio
 • coordinates
39°51′36″N 80°48′03″W
Length35 mi (56 km)
Basin size227 sq mi (590 km2)
Discharge 
 • locationArmstrongs Mill
 • average163 cu ft/s (4.6 m3/s), USGS water years 1927-1935 and 1959-2002[1]
Discharge 
 • locationmouth
 • average226.72 cu ft/s (6.420 m3/s) (estimate) [2]

History

In April 1774, the frontiersman Michael Cresap was accused of killing two Indians at the mouth of Captina Creek in revenge for the murder of a white trader earlier that month. He was later exonerated, but this and the subsequent Yellow Creek Massacre were the sole causes of Lord Dunmore's War.[4] There is a plaque located inside a gazebo on the Powhatan Point village fair grounds dedicated to George Washington at the mouth of the creek. The plaque states that Washington had set camp for a night at the mouth of Captina creek while exploring the Ohio Valley.

The gas industry has a heavy presence in Belmont County, and has caused several spills that may have damaged the ecosystem around Captina Creek.[5]

Ecology

Captina Creek is home to some 56 known species of fish. The surrounding area is also home to many diverse plant life and rare and endangered species such as the bobcat and the Eastern Hellbender.[6]

Geography

Captina Creek is located in the southeastern part of Ohio. The creek is paralleled by State Route 148, which runs from the mouth at the Ohio river, past the source near Barnesville. Chestnut Creek and Barnesville Reservoir Number Two are the main sources for the creek, which flows southeast towards the Ohio River.

See also

References
  1. "USGS 03114000 Captina Creek at Armstrongs Mills OH". waterdata.usgs.gov. Archived from the original on 2020-08-07. Retrieved 2020-08-07.
  2. United States Environmental Protection Agency. "Watershed Report: Captina Creek". watersgeo.epa.gov. Archived from the original on 2020-08-07. Retrieved 2020-08-07.
  3. "Captina Creek". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
  4. Albach, James R (1858), Annals of the West: embracing a concise account of principal events which have occurred in the Western States and Territories from the discovery of the Mississippi Valley to the Year Eighteen Hundred and Fifty-Seven compiled from the most authentic sources and published by James R. Albach; Pittsburgh: W.S. Haven, Book and Job Printer, pp 217-219.
  5. Burger, Seth. "Fracking". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
  6. "2009 Water Quality Monitoring Central Ohio River Tributaries and Watersheds". Ohio Environmental Protection Agency. Archived from the original on 27 December 2010. Retrieved 26 March 2011.
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