Clinch River
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| Clinch River | |
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| Origin | Tazewell County, Virginia |
| Mouth | Tennessee River |
| Basin countries | USA |
| Length | 300 mi (483 km) |
The Clinch River rises in southwestern Virginia and flows southwest through the Great Appalachian Valley, gathering various tributaries including the Powell River before joining the Tennessee River in East Tennessee.
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[edit] Course
The Clinch River is dammed twice: by Norris Dam, the first dam built by the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA); and by Melton Hill Dam, the only TVA dam with a lock not located on the main channel of the Tennessee River. It empties into the Tennessee River at Kingston, Tennessee.
An important tributary of the Clinch River is the Powell River. The Clinch and Powell River drainage basins are separated by Powell Mountain.
[edit] History
A peninsula located at the mouth of the Clinch River, called Southwest Point, was the site of an early frontier fort which has been recently reconstructed. The site was important to Native Americans. A treaty between the Cherokee and settlers was signed at Southwest Point, allowing the capital of Tennessee to be moved there. The Tennessee General Assembly technically fulfilled this requirement by meeting in Kingston for one day and voting to move the state capital elsewhere.
The river was once called "Clinch's River" and "Pelisipi River" (and variant spellings such as "Pelisippi").
[edit] Natural History
The Clinch river above Clinton, Tennessee (tailwaters of Norris Dam) is stocked with rainbow trout and brown trout by the Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency. This stretch of river is among the best trout fishing in Tennessee. The stocked fish are able to spawn here. The river is fished by wading fisherman when Norris Dam is not producing electricity and the water levels are low. Fisherman use small boats to fish for brown trout when the water is high.
Before being dammed, the Clinch River was a major producer of freshwater mussels and pearls. The rivers of the southern Appalachians are still notable for their unusually rich mussel biodiversity. The mussels were an important food source for Native Americans and were later used by settlers as bait and hog feed. The freshwater pearl industry thrived throughout the southern Appalachians in the late 19th century and early 20th century. The Clinch River and the Emory River were considered the economic heart of the pearl industry, and the state of Tennessee was one of the top six states in the United States for pearl production. The mussel-based industries began to decline in the early 20th century and were effectively eliminated by the dams built by the TVA. The first major Tennessee River dam was Wilson Dam, built at a site known as Muscle Shoals, referring to the freshwater mussels of the region. Norris Dam on the Clinch River flooded one of the other famous mussel areas near Young's Island (Davis, pg. 190-191).
[edit] References
- Davis, Donald Edward. "Where There Are Mountains, An Environmental History of the Southern Appalachians". University of Georgia Press: 2005.
[edit] External links
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