The Chagrin River is located in

Northeast Ohio The region Northeast Ohio, in the US state of Ohio, in its most expansive usage contains six metropolitan areas ( Cleveland–Elyria, Akron, Canton–Massillon, Youngstown–Warren, Mansfield, and Weirton–Steubenville) along with eight m ...

. The river has two branches, the Aurora Branch and East Branch. Of three hypotheses as to the origin of the name, the most probable is that it is a corruption of the name of a Frenchman, Sieur de Seguin, who established a trading post on the river ca. 1742. The Chagrin River runs through suburban areas of Greater Cleveland in Cuyahoga, Geauga, and

Portage Portage or portaging (Canada: ; ) is the practice of carrying water craft or cargo over land, either around an obstacle in a river, or between two bodies of water. A path where items are regularly carried between bodies of water is also called a ...

counties, transects two Cleveland Metroparks reservations, and then meanders into nearby Lake County before emptying into Lake Erie. The East Branch begins in Geauga County, flows north then west through Lake County, largely in Kirtland, and Kirtland Hills, In these communities the East Branch transects the Holden Arboretum, before intersecting the main in Willoughby. The Aurora Branch begins in northwest Portage County, flowing northwest through Aurora and portions of Geauga and Cuyahoga Counties, intersecting the main branch west of Chagrin Falls. The Chagrin River was designated as a state scenic river in 1979.

Natural history

Along its banks and tributaries Berea sandstone, Bedford shale, Cleveland Shale, and Chagrin Shale bedrock, are exposed in layers. The river itself was cut through the Allegheny Plateau as glaciers receded in the area at the end of the Wisconsin glaciation. The lowest visible

bedrock In geology, bedrock is solid Rock (geology), rock that lies under loose material (regolith) within the crust (geology), crust of Earth or another terrestrial planet. Definition Bedrock is the solid rock that underlies looser surface mater ...

is Chagrin

shale Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock formed from mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4) and tiny fragments (silt-sized particles) of other minerals, especial ...

. Named for the river and easily found in the river valley. Chagrin shale, is blue gray in color, an offshore alluvial, silt shale of the

Devonian The Devonian ( ) is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic era, spanning 60.3 million years from the end of the Silurian, million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Carboniferous, Mya. It is named after Devon, England, whe ...

period. This layer is found below about msl. The next layer is Cleveland shale. This is a black shale that is an important source of local fossils. Cleveland Shale is found in the Chagrin River valley between 800 and msl. Bedford Shale is found above the Cleveland Shale layer. This material marks the uncertain transition between the Devonian and

Pennsylvanian Pennsylvanian may refer to: * A person or thing from Pennsylvania * Pennsylvanian (geology) The Pennsylvanian ( , also known as Upper Carboniferous or Late Carboniferous) is, in the International Commission on Stratigraphy, ICS geologic timesca ...

periods in the region and is also an important source of local fossils. This layer is found in the ravines that carry tributaries of the Chagrin River. Bedford shale is a sand shale and is characterized by its roughly 90° cleavage pattern. Pieces of Bedford shale can look as if they were cut by human hands and are found up to about msl. Berea sandstone is found from around msl to roughly msl. Berea sandstone, is an important local building material. In the nineteenth century it was quarried from the base of

Gildersleeve Mountain Gildersleeve Mountain is a summit located in Kirtland, Ohio, United States. Gildersleeve Mountain is interesting and important because it is within one of the largest and most densely populated metropolitan areas in the United States (regional p ...

(in the East Branch watershed). This material was used to build Kirtland Temple and other local structures. Berea sandstone is still used as a local building material According to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, more than 49 species of fish and 90 bird species live in the Chagrin River

watershed Watershed is a hydrological term, which has been adopted in other fields in a more or less figurative sense. It may refer to: Hydrology * Drainage divide, the line that separates neighbouring drainage basins * Drainage basin, called a "watershe ...

, including the

American brook lamprey ''Lethenteron appendix'', the American brook lamprey, is a common non-parasitic lamprey in North America. In adults their disc-like mouths contain poorly developed teeth, useless for attaching to a host. Description The eggs of the American broo ...

, which is relatively rare in Ohio.

Sports and recreation

Hiking is popular along many areas along the Chagrin River. Some area are also popular for fishing, and ESPN Outdoors recommends the Chagrin River for fishing, especially for finding steelhead. The Daniels Park Dam, a small lowhead dam, was their favorite spot. On December 31, 2004, the Daniels Park Dam failed due to excess pressure from ice and water. The Aurora branch of the Chagrin River is a class III-IV of whitewater, according to the American Whitewater Association. On the other hand, the Daniels Park section is rated a class I.

Channelization

In 2007, in violation of both state law and Federal Regulations, the of the East Branch of the river was channelized and diked to prevent flooding on agricultural land owned by the Village of Kirtland Hills. This activity was conducted by local developer Jerome Osborne who leases the land from the village. Both the village and Osborne have been cited for this illegal activity. This activity both threatened the riparian floodplain in the area of disruption, and increases the likelihood and severity of flooding in downstream the communities of Willoughby and

Eastlake Eastlake may refer to: Places ;Australia * Kingston, Australian Capital Territory, formerly called Eastlake ** Eastlake Football Club, an amateur Australian Rules Football Club named after that location ;United States * Eastlake, Lake County, C ...

. As of September 2007, a plan was being developed to restore the East Branch to its original condition, and further action against the cited parties is being considered.

Gallery

File:Chagrin_River_as_viewed_from_Hach-Otis_Sanctuary_(Willoughby_Hills,_Ohio).jpg, Viewed from Hach-Otis Sanctuary ( Willoughby Hills, Ohio) File:Chagrin_River_as_viewed_from_Cleveland_Metropolitan_Park.jpg, Viewed from Cleveland Metropolitan Park ( Willoughby Hills, Ohio) File:Chagrin_River_viewed_in_fall_under_some_leaves.jpg, Viewed in fall, from Cleveland Metropolitan Park ( Willoughby Hills, Ohio) File:Chagrin River viewed through leaves.jpg, Viewed in fall, from Willoughby Hills, Ohio File:A minor tributary feeding into the Chagrin River.jpg, A minor tributary flowing into the Chagrin River, viewed from Cleveland Metropolitan Park

References

External links