Choctawhatchee River
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The Choctawhatchee River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. The National Map , accessed 15 April 2011 river in the southern
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, flowing through southeast
Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...
and the Panhandle of
Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
before emptying into
Choctawhatchee Bay Choctawhatchee Bay is a bay in the Emerald Coast region of the Florida Panhandle. The bay, located within Okaloosa and Walton counties, is an inlet of the Gulf of Mexico and has a surface area of . It connects to Santa Rosa Sound in Fort Wal ...
in Okaloosa and
Walton Walton may refer to: People * Walton (given name) * Walton (surname) * Susana, Lady Walton (1926–2010), Argentine writer Places Canada * Walton, Nova Scotia, a community ** Walton River (Nova Scotia) *Walton, Ontario, a hamlet United Kingd ...
counties. The river, the bay and their adjacent watersheds collectively drain .


Overview

The Choctawhatchee originates as two separate forks (East Fork and West Fork) in
Barbour County, Alabama Barbour County is a county in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Alabama. As of the 2020 census, the population was 25,223. Its county seat is Clayton. Its largest city is Eufaula. Its name is in honor of James Barbour, who served ...
; the East Fork flows through Henry County and joins the West Fork in eastern Dale County about four miles (6 km) above
Newton Newton most commonly refers to: * Isaac Newton (1642–1726/1727), English scientist * Newton (unit), SI unit of force named after Isaac Newton Newton may also refer to: People * Newton (surname), including a list of people with the surname * ...
. The unified river then flows southwest through Dale and
Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...
counties into Florida, collecting
tributaries 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 the ...
along the way: the Little Choctawhatchee River in Dale County, and the
Pea River The Pea River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 15, 2011 tributary of the Choctawhatchee River near Geneva, Alabama, United States. It is a popular destinatio ...
near
Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...
. It then flows south into
Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
, terminating at
Choctawhatchee Bay Choctawhatchee Bay is a bay in the Emerald Coast region of the Florida Panhandle. The bay, located within Okaloosa and Walton counties, is an inlet of the Gulf of Mexico and has a surface area of . It connects to Santa Rosa Sound in Fort Wal ...
. Other Alabama tributaries are Claybank Creek and Tight Eye Creek. Once in Florida, the river continues southwesterly through
Holmes Holmes may refer to: People and fictional characters * Holmes (surname), a list of people and fictional characters ** Sherlock Holmes, a fictional detective * Holmes (given name), a list of people * Gordon Holmes, a penname used by Louis Trac ...
, Walton and
Bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a ''gulf'', ''sea'', ''sound'', or ''bight''. A ''cove'' is a small, ci ...
counties until reaching its namesake bay. Major tributaries in Florida include
Holmes Holmes may refer to: People and fictional characters * Holmes (surname), a list of people and fictional characters ** Sherlock Holmes, a fictional detective * Holmes (given name), a list of people * Gordon Holmes, a penname used by Louis Trac ...
, Wright, Sandy, Pine Log, Seven Run and Bruce creeks. Choctawhatchee Bay empties into the
Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico () is an oceanic basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, mostly surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States; on the southw ...
at East Pass near
Destin, Florida Destin is a city located in Okaloosa County, Florida, United States. It is a principal city of the Crestview–Fort Walton Beach–Destin, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 13,931 at the 2020 census, up from 12,305 at th ...
.


Flora and fauna

The Choctawhatchee contains several species of fish, including several species of sunfish,
channel catfish The channel catfish (''Ictalurus punctatus''), known informally as the "channel cat", is a species of catfish native to North America. They are North America's most abundant catfish species, and the official state fish of Kansas, Missouri, Nebra ...
and
spotted bass The spotted bass (''Micropterus punctulatus''), also called spotty, or spots in various fishing communities, is a species of North American freshwater fish belonging to the sunfish family (biology), family (Centrarchidae) of the order (biology), ...
; other species include Redhorse suckers and carpsuckers.
Gulf Sturgeon The Gulf sturgeon (''Acipenser desotoi'') is a species of sturgeon endemic to the southeastern United States. An anadromous fish, it inhabits the Gulf of Mexico and spawns in a number of rivers that drain into it, from southern Florida west to east ...
,
Alabama Shad The Alabama shad (''Alosa alabamae'') is an anadromous species of alosid fish endemic to the United States where it breeds in medium to large flowing rivers from the Mississippi River drainage to the Suwannee River, Florida, as well as some othe ...
, and
Skipjack Shad The skipjack herring (''Alosa chrysochloris'') is a North American, migratory, fresh- and brackish water fish species in the herring family Alosidae. The name skipjack shad comes from the fact that it is commonly seen leaping out of the water whi ...
use the river for spawning activities; the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service even collected 522 different sturgeon during a study conducted in October and November 2008; sizes ranging from 1 to 160 pounds. Scientists report sighting sturgeon as far upriver as Newton; they appear to prefer the limestone bottoms for laying their eggs. As recently as the 1920s, sturgeon fishing was a thriving industry in Geneva, with many large fish being caught, packed in barrels, and shipped north. Twenty-one Aquatic
Snail A snail is a shelled gastropod. The name is most often applied to land snails, terrestrial molluscs, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod molluscs. However, the common name ''snail'' is also used for most of the members of the molluscan class Gas ...
s and Freshwater
Mussel Mussel () is the common name used for members of several families of bivalve molluscs, from saltwater and Freshwater bivalve, freshwater habitats. These groups have in common a shell whose outline is elongated and asymmetrical compared with other ...
species exist in the Choctawhatchee, with one of the former and two of the latter found only in this particular river. Researchers from
Auburn University Auburn University (AU or Auburn) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Auburn, Alabama, United States. With more than 26,800 undergraduate students, over 6,100 post-graduate students, and a tota ...
and the
University of Windsor The University of Windsor (UWindsor, U of W, or UWin) is a public university, public research university in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's southernmost university. It has approximately 17,500 students. The university was incorporated by ...
,
Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...
, reported possible sightings in 2005 and 2006 of
ivory-billed woodpecker The ivory-billed woodpecker (''Campephilus principalis'') is a woodpecker native to the Southern United States and Cuba. Habitat destruction and hunting have reduced populations so severely that the last universally accepted sighting in the Uni ...
s along the Choctawhatchee River. 70% of the Choctawhatchee's watershed is forested; the remainder is mostly croplands and pasture. Trees found along the Choctawhatchee include southern pine,
beech Beech (genus ''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to subtropical (accessory forest element) and temperate (as dominant element of Mesophyte, mesophytic forests) Eurasia and North America. There are 14 accepted ...
,
magnolia ''Magnolia'' is a large genus of about 210 to 340The number of species in the genus ''Magnolia'' depends on the taxonomic view that one takes up. Recent molecular and morphological research shows that former genera ''Talauma'', ''Dugandiodendr ...
, laurel oak,
basswood ''Tilia americana'' is a species of tree in the family Malvaceae, native to eastern North America, from southeast Manitoba east to New Brunswick, southwest to northeast Oklahoma, southeast to South Carolina, and west along the Niobrara River to ...
, Florida maple and
American holly ''Ilex opaca'', the American holly, is a species of holly, native to the eastern and south-central United States, from coastal Massachusetts south to central Florida, and west to southeastern Missouri and eastern Texas. Description ''Ilex opaca ...
. The lower Choctawhatchee contains "pitcher-plant bog" and other swamp habitat, including
cypress Cypress is a common name for various coniferous trees or shrubs from the ''Cupressus'' genus of the '' Cupressaceae'' family, typically found in temperate climates and subtropical regions of Asia, Europe, and North America. The word ''cypress'' ...
trees draped with Spanish moss. Alligators are found in the river's lower reaches.


Water quality

The Choctawhatchee has little industry along its banks; consequently it has rather clean water, except for excess turbidity, usually due to runoff from unpaved county roads. The Choctawhatchee, Pea and Yellow Rivers Watershed Management District was instrumental in getting a grant to place gravel on many county roads, which reduced the average turbidity. Illegal dumping of household garbage and animal carcasses is a problem, but not enough of one to seriously affect water quality in the Alabama portion of the river, where water quality is described as "good to very good"."Rivers of Alabama"
, riversofalabama.org; accessed June 17, 2020.
This changes somewhat in the Florida section of the river, due to the presence of several wastewater treatment plants, animal-waste sites, and erosion. Three of the river's Florida tributaries are described as "polluted" with "waste water effluent".


Flooding

The Choctawhatchee has not always been on good behavior, having flooded Geneva in the so-called "Lincoln Freshet" of 1865, and the Hoover Flood of 1929. The Lincoln Freshet induced many of the townspeople to move to higher ground approximately a half-mile north, while the Hoover Flood swept away most of the remnants of Old Town Geneva. Damage from subsequent floods has been limited by a WPA-project levee. Areas outside the levee did not fare so well, and were purchased by
FEMA The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), initially created under President Jimmy Carter by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1978 and implemented by two Exec ...
after three floods during the 1990s. The March 1990 flood caused over $88 million in damages. Similar flooding occurred in
Caryville, Florida Caryville is a town in Washington County, Florida, United States located along the Choctawhatchee River. The Caryville is part of the Florida Panhandle in North Florida. The population was 301 at the 2020 census, down from 411 at the 2010 cens ...
in July 1994, in which the river rose to 29 feet, submerging most of the town. A federal
FEMA The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), initially created under President Jimmy Carter by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1978 and implemented by two Exec ...
'buyout' program was implemented, allowing many residents to leave. As a result, the population dropped from 1500 to under 200.


Historical anecdotes

A natural inland waterway connects Choctawhatchee Bay to Pensacola Bay, making it possible for keelboats and later steamboats to navigate between
Pensacola, Florida Pensacola ( ) is a city in the Florida panhandle in the United States. It is the county seat and only incorporated city, city in Escambia County, Florida, Escambia County. The population was 54,312 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. ...
and Geneva, Alabama, and as far upstream as Newton. Before that, the river was a supply route and avenue of commerce for thousands of years to the indigenous peoples of the area.
Sam Story Sam Story, also named Timpoochee Kinnard, was Chief of the Walton County, Florida, band of Euchee (Yuchi) Indians in the early 19th century, who occupied the lands on and to the west of the Choctawhatchee River. His parents were Timothy Kinnard, a ...
, also known as ''Timpoochee Kinnard,'' was chief of a band of Euchee (
Yuchi The Yuchi people are a Native American tribe based in Oklahoma, though their original homeland was in the southeastern United States. In the 16th century, the Yuchi lived in the eastern Tennessee River valley. By the late 17th century, they had ...
) Indians in the early 19th century in present-day Walton County. They occupied lands on and to the west of the Choctawhatchee River. His parents were a Yuchi woman, whose name is not known, and Timothy Kinnard, a white man of Scottish descent, who had come to the area as a trader. According to the matrilineal system of the Yuchi, Sam was considered born to his mother's people and he was raised as Yuchi. The chief became a well-known figure in the
Florida Panhandle The Florida panhandle (also known as West Florida and Northwest Florida) is the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Florida. It is a Salient (geography), salient roughly long, bordered by Alabama on the west and north, Georgia (U.S. state ...
and was highly respected by whites. Following the United States' acquisition of this territory in 1821 from
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
, European Americans entered the panhandle in greater numbers, encroaching on Euchee and Creek territory. In 1814
Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before Presidency of Andrew Jackson, his presidency, he rose to fame as a general in the U.S. Army and served in both houses ...
built a stockade called the "Block House" at the confluence of the East and West forks of the Chocktawhatchee, near Newton. European-American settlers also used the river in their time, from the years of the earliest land patents around Geneva (1841) until the late 1930s. The ''Bloomer'', a 130-ton side-wheeler with high-pressure engines, navigated the route between Geneva and Pensacola in 1857, as did the ''Brooklyn'', a steamboat built in Geneva. During the American Civil War, the Confederate steamboat ''Bloomer'' was the object of an 1862 raid by 25 Union soldiers of the 91st New York State Volunteers, who were stationed at
Fort Pickens Fort Pickens is a historic pentagonal United States military fort on Santa Rosa Island in the Pensacola, Florida, area. It is named after American Revolutionary War hero Andrew Pickens. It is the largest of four forts built to defend Pensacol ...
near Pensacola. This attack was led by Lt. James H. Stewart, assisted by Acting Master Elias D. Bruner, of the '' USS Charlotte (1862)'', along with Acting Ensign Edward Crissey. They seized the steamboat in Geneva without firing a shot, and sailed it down the Choctawhatchee to the Bay.


Recreation

The Choctawhatchee is a popular river with canoeists, although access to the upper portions is difficult. The Canoe-Camping website named the Choctawhatchee "an undiscovered gem" and "a beauty", heartily recommending it to canoeists. Several public access points and camping sites make the river accessible for recreation.


Crossings


Alabama


Florida


See also

*
South Atlantic-Gulf Water Resource Region South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþaz ...


References


External links

*
Choctawhatchee River information
{{authority control Rivers of Alabama Rivers of Florida Outstanding Florida Waters Bodies of water of Okaloosa County, Florida Bodies of water of Walton County, Florida Bodies of water of Barbour County, Alabama Bodies of water of Henry County, Alabama Bodies of water of Dale County, Alabama Bodies of water of Geneva County, Alabama Bodies of water of Holmes County, Florida Bodies of water of Bay County, Florida Alabama placenames of Native American origin Florida placenames of Native American origin