Little Kanawha River
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Little Kanawha River | |
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| Origin | Upshur County, West Virginia |
| Mouth | Ohio River, Parkersburg, West Virginia |
| Basin countries | United States |
| Length | 169 mi (269 km) |
| Basin area | 2,320 mi² (6,009 km²) |
The Little Kanawha River is a tributary of the Ohio River, 169 mi (269 km) long,[1] in western West Virginia in the United States. Via the Ohio, it is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River, draining an area of 2,320 mi² (6,009 km²)[2] on the unglaciated portion of the Allegheny Plateau. It served as an important commercial water route in the early history of West Virginia, particularly in the logging and petroleum industries.[1][3]
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[edit] Course
The Little Kanawha rises in southern Upshur County, approximately 20 mi (32 km) south of Buckhannon. It follows a meandering course generally west-northwestwardly, through Lewis, Braxton, Gilmer, Calhoun, Wirt and Wood Counties, past the towns of Burnsville, Sand Fork, Glenville, Grantsville, Palestine and Elizabeth, to its mouth at the Ohio River in Parkersburg.[4]
About 3 mi (5 km) upstream of Burnsville[5], a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers dam causes the river to form Burnsville Lake, which was completed in 1976 at a cost of $56.2 million.[6]
[edit] Tributaries
The Little Kanawha's largest tributary[1] is the Hughes River, which flows into it near the Wirt County community of Newark,[4] approximately 12 mi (19 km) southeast of Parkersburg.[7] Other tributaries include the headwaters stream Right Fork Little Kanawha River,[8] which flows along the boundaries of Upshur, Lewis and Webster Counties.[4]; and the West Fork Little Kanawha River,[9] which rises in southern Calhoun County and flows northwestwardly along the boundary of Roane County to the Wirt County community of Creston.[4] Additionally, a minor tributary near Grantsville is known as the Bull River; despite being named as a "river," it is no larger than dozens of other small streams that flow into the Little Kanawha.[4]
[edit] Variant names
According to the Geographic Names Information System, the Little Kanawha River has also been known as:[10]
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[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- United States Environmental Protection Agency, watershed profile for Little Kanawha River
- Local Little Kanawha River history on rootsweb.com
[edit] References
- ^ a b c Gilchrist-Stalnaker, Joy Gregoire. 2006. "Little Kanawha River." The West Virginia Encyclopedia. Ken Sullivan, editor. Charleston, WV: West Virginia Humanities Council. ISBN 0-9778498-0-5.
- ^ Willis, Todd C. (ed.) 1987. "Length of rivers and watershed areas in West Virginia." West Virginia Blue Book. Vol. 71.
- ^ "Little Kanawha once was vital transportation link," Parkersburg News & Sentinel website
- ^ a b c d e DeLorme (1997). West Virginia Atlas & Gazetteer. Yarmouth, Maine: DeLorme. ISBN 0-89933-246-3.
- ^ Burnsville Lake website, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
- ^ Hohmann, George. "Lock offered combination for growth." Charleston Daily Mail. 15 June 1999.
- ^ Columbia Gazetteer of North America entry for Little Kanawha River
- ^ Geographic Names Inormation System entry for Right Fork Little Kanawha River
- ^ Geographic Names Information System entry for West Fork Little Kanawha River
- ^ Geographic Names Information System entry for Little Kanawha River
