Compton Creek is a major

tributary A tributary, or an ''affluent'', is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream (''main stem'' or ''"parent"''), river, or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries, and the main stem river into which they ...

of the

Los Angeles River The Los Angeles River (), historically known as by the Tongva and the by the Spanish, is a major river in Los Angeles County, California. Its headwaters are in the Simi Hills and Santa Susana Mountains, and it flows nearly from Canoga Park ...

in and surrounding Compton in

Los Angeles County Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles and sometimes abbreviated as LA County, is the most populous county in the United States, with 9,663,345 residents estimated in 2023. Its population is greater than that of 40 individua ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. The stream drains a watershed of . and is the last major tributary to enter the

before it reaches the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

. The stream begins just east of South Main Street between 107th and 108th Streets in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. Compton Creek passes through Willowbrook and runs in total. Most of its route is encased in a

concrete Concrete is a composite material composed of aggregate bound together with a fluid cement that cures to a solid over time. It is the second-most-used substance (after water), the most–widely used building material, and the most-manufactur ...

flood control channel Flood control channels are large and empty basins where surface water can flow through but is not retained (except during flooding), or dry channels that run below the street levels of some larger cities, so that if a flash flood occurs the excess ...

. Shortly after it passes under West Greenleaf Boulevard, it changes to an earth-bottom section with

riprap Riprap (in North American English), also known as rip rap, rip-rap, shot rock, rock armour (in British English) or rubble, is human-placed rock or other material used to protect shoreline structures against scour and water, wave, or ice erosion. ...

banks. Joined near its end by East Compton Creek, the creek ultimately empties into the Los Angeles River just south of Del Amo Boulevard.

Crossings and tributaries

From mouth to source (year built in parentheses):

Compton Creek

*Branches from the

* - Long Beach Freeway (1953) *East Del Amo Boulevard (1954) *South Santa Fe Avenue (1950) *East Compton Creek branches *Railroad *South Hanson Street (now South Alameda Street) (1937) * - Gardena Freeway (formerly Redondo Beach Freeway) (1974) *East Artesia Boulevard (1956) *South Auto Drive - twin bridges (1980) *Emily Berreth Memorial Parking Lot (1969) *North Auto Drive (1980) * Metro Blue Line (1989) *West Gulliver Boulevard (now West Greenleaf Boulevard) (1963) *South Acacia Avenue (former or planned crossing) *West Caldwell Street edestrian Bridge*South Oleander Avenue (1938) *West Raymond Street (former or planned crossing) *North Dean Darrah Boulevard (1994) *West Alondra Boulevard (1938) *West Compton Boulevard (1938) *North Wilmington Avenue (1938) *West Bartlett Street edestrian Bridge *North Kemp Avenue (former or planned crossing) *West Rosecrans Avenue (1938) *West Cressey Street *East Hopeless Street *North Parmelee Avenue/North Slater Avenue edestrian Bridge*West El Segundo Boulevard (1948) *West Billy Bergen Boulevard (1997) *East 120th Street (formerly McElroy Lane, 1996) (1953) *Helman de la Stephen's Pedestrian Avenue (1960) *East 118th Street (1984) * - Glen Anderson Freeway including Metro C Line and ramps (1988) *South Central Avenue & East Imperial Highway (1952) *East 114th Street (1951) *East Erik Uri Crosswalk (1994) *East Lanzit Avenue (1953) *Fedele Railroad Line (1989) *Clovis Avenue (1999) *McKinley Avenue (1952) *

Avalon Boulevard Avalon Boulevard is a north-south street in Los Angeles County. Geography Avalon Boulevard emerges southward as a fifth roadbed out of the intersection of San Pedro Street and Jefferson Boulevard. It passes through the southern Los Angeles ...

& East 108th Street (1950) *South San Pedro Street (1952) *Disappears Underground

East Compton Creek

*Branches from Compton Creek *Railroad Spur * - Gardena Freeway (formerly Redondo Beach Freeway) (1974) *East Artesia Boulevard and Santa Fe Avenue (1956) *South Tartar Lane (????) *East Greenleaf Boulevard (1963) *Disappears underground

Recreation

Compton Creek Bike Path and Compton Creek Natural Park are associated recreational facilities for the community.

Environmental catastrophe

A 2009 study conducted at the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...

's Dornsife School's Department of Earth Sciences noted Compton Creek's marked water contamination and unprecedented quantity and variety of pollutants. Professor Ryan Millsap was quoted in the study's abstract, "I can state unequivocally hat Compton Creekwas, during the 1950s, the most polluted creek ever to be studied by the U.S.

Department of the Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the management and conservation of most federal lands and natural resources. It also administers programs relatin ...

." A seminal study at the intersection of Earth Sciences and Critical Studies, Professor Gustafson reports that the

Watts riots The Watts riots, sometimes referred to as the Watts Rebellion or Watts Uprising, took place in the Watts neighborhood and its surrounding areas of Los Angeles from August 11 to 16, 1965. The riots were motivated by anger at the racist and abus ...

of 1965 came in part as a response to oppressed people's inability to find housing outside of polluted areas, whence the creek was cited as a prime example.

Trivia

*West Poplar Street was renamed West Bartlett Street in 2007 after a fire burned down an animal shelter. The street was renamed in the honor of a fireman who saved more than 10 dogs and 6 cats during the emergency.

References

External links

Maps from the Council for Watershed Health:
Compton Creek Watershed Topography

Soils in the Compton Creek Watershed

Zipcodes in the Compton Creek Watershed

Maintenance Jurisdictions in Compton Creek

Dominguez and Compton Creek Watersheds

Brownfields in the Compton Creek Partial Watershed
{{Authority control Rivers of Los Angeles County, California Tributaries of the Los Angeles River Compton, California Rivers of Southern California