Sunday Creek (Ohio)

Sunday Creek is a tributary of the Hocking River, 27.2 miles (43.8 km) long, in southeastern Ohio in the United States. Via the Hocking and Ohio Rivers, it is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River, draining 139 square miles (360 km²) in a mainly rural area of the Allegheny Plateau region.[7] Its name is locally said to derive from early white settlers who in 1802 reached the creek on a Sunday, and so named it after the day of their discovery.[8] (also see nearby Monday Creek.)

Sunday Creek
Sunday Creek in Glouster, Ohio in 2006
Location
CountryUnited States
StateOhio
CountiesPerry, Athens
Physical characteristics
Source 
 • locationPerry County, Ohio, approximately 5 mi (8.0 km) north of Corning[1]
 • coordinates39°40′28″N 82°05′37″W[2]
 • elevationApprox. 800 ft (240 m)[3]
Mouth 
 • location
Hocking River at Chauncey, Ohio
 • coordinates
39°23′32″N 82°07′24″W[2]
 • elevation
640 ft (200 m)[2]
Length27.2 mi (43.8 km)[4]
Basin size139 sq mi (360 km2)[5]
Discharge 
 • locationnear Millfield
 • average160.95 cu ft/s (4.558 m3/s), USGS water years 2003-2015[6]

Sunday Creek rises in southeastern Perry County and flows generally southwardly into northern Athens County, passing through the communities of Rendville, Corning, Glouster, Trimble, Jacksonville, and Millfield (site of the 1930 Millfield Mine disaster), to Chauncey, where it flows into the Hocking River.[1] In Athens County north of Glouster it collects the East Branch Sunday Creek,[9] 15.5 miles (25 km) long,[7] which rises in Perry County and passes through Morgan County. Tom Jenkins Dam, constructed on the East Branch in Athens County in 1950 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, forms Burr Oak Lake, the site of Burr Oak State Park.[1][10][11] In Glouster, Sunday Creek collects the West Branch Sunday Creek,[12] 14 miles (22.5 km) long,[7] which rises in Perry County and flows generally southwardly.[1]

Other significant Tributaries include Greens Run, Mud Fork, and Johnson Run, all perennial streams draining the area to the west of the creek.

Sunday Creek in Glouster in 2006

A predominant land use in the watershed of Sunday Creek has historically been coal mining, with both underground and surface mines in the area.[7] A 1997 study by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency identified the lowermost thirteen miles of Sunday Creek as having been "irretrievably damaged to the extent that no appreciable aquatic life can be supported" due to the creek's low pH, caused by acid mine drainage.[13] The lower areas of the creek are generally colored orange from the effects of acid-mine drainage during times of low water.

As of 2012, an organization called the Sunday Creek Watershed Group operates with the intention of addressing water quality and ecosystem-related matters in the watershed. It is sponsored by Rural Action, a non-profit organization in southeastern Ohio.[14]

See also

References
  1. DeLorme (1991). Ohio Atlas & Gazetteer. Yarmouth, Maine: DeLorme. ISBN 0-89933-233-1.
  2. "Geographic Names Information System entry for Sunday Creek". Retrieved 2007-01-08.
  3. U.S. Geological Survey. Deavertown quadrangle, Ohio. 1:24,000. 7.5 Minute Series. Washington D.C.: USGS, 1995.
  4. Ohio Department of Natural Resources. "Major Ohio Watersheds" (PDF). A Guide to Ohio Streams. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2006-12-09. Retrieved 2007-01-08.
  5. Ohio Department of Natural Resources. "Map of Ohio watersheds". Archived from the original on 2007-03-11. Retrieved 2007-01-08.
  6. "USGS Surface-Water Annual Statistics for Ohio: USGS 03159246 Sunday Creek below Millfield OH". waterdata.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2020-07-16.
  7. Sunday Creek Watershed Group (March 2003). "A Comprehensive Watershed Management Plan for the Sunday Creek Watershed" (PDF). pp. p.11. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-01-02. Retrieved 2007-01-08.
  8. Sunday Creek Watershed Group (March 2003). "A Comprehensive Watershed Management Plan for the Sunday Creek Watershed" (PDF). pp. p.45. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-01-02. Retrieved 2007-01-08.
  9. "Geographic Names Information System entry for East Branch Sunday Creek". Retrieved 2007-01-08.
  10. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Huntington District. "Tom Jenkins Dam". Retrieved 2007-01-08.
  11. Ohio Department of Natural Resources. "Burr Oak State Park". Archived from the original on 2006-12-09. Retrieved 2007-01-08.
  12. "Geographic Names Information System entry for West Branch Sunday Creek". Retrieved 2007-01-08.
  13. Sunday Creek Watershed Group (March 2003). "A Comprehensive Watershed Management Plan for the Sunday Creek Watershed" (PDF). pp. p.26. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-01-02. Retrieved 2007-01-08.
  14. "Sunday Creek Watershed Group website". Retrieved 2007-01-08.
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