The Cohansey River, also called Cohansey Creek, is a
[U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data]
The National Map
, accessed April 1, 2011 river
A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...
in southern
New Jersey
New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...
of the
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 ...
. It drains approximately of rural agricultural and forested lowlands on the north shore of
Delaware Bay
Delaware Bay is the estuary outlet of the Delaware River on the northeast seaboard of the United States, lying between the states of Delaware and New Jersey. It is approximately in area, the bay's freshwater mixes for many miles with the saltw ...
.
It rises in central
Salem County approximately southeast of
Woodstown, and flows south through rural
Cumberland County Cumberland County may refer to:
Australia
* Cumberland County, New South Wales
* the former name of Cumberland Land District, Tasmania, Australia
Canada
*Cumberland County, Nova Scotia
United Kingdom
* Cumberland, historic county
*Cumberl ...
. It flows through
Sunset Lake, which is also fed from
Mary Elmer Lake, both of which are located in the park system of the city of
Bridgeton.
At Bridgeton, the river becomes navigable, although very shallow at low tide: one-foot to a few inches coming through downtown Bridgeton. The city boat ramp downtown is unusable during low tide due to about of mud between the channel and the ramp. The river widens into a tidal
estuary
An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime enviro ...
, approximately long, that flows south, then west, entering Cohansey Cove on Delaware Bay, approximately southwest of Bridgeton. The mouth of the estuary is surrounded by extensive
wetlands
A wetland is a distinct semi-aquatic ecosystem whose groundcovers are flooded or saturated in water, either permanently, for years or decades, or only seasonally. Flooding results in oxygen-poor ( anoxic) processes taking place, especially ...
and
salt marsh
A salt marsh, saltmarsh or salting, also known as a coastal salt marsh or a tidal marsh, is a coastal ecosystem in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and open saltwater or brackish water that is regularly flooded by the tides. I ...
es.
In colonial times, the river provided an anchorage for vessels approaching
Philadelphia
Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
. In 1774, the small port village of
Greenwich
Greenwich ( , , ) is an List of areas of London, area in south-east London, England, within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London, east-south-east of Charing Cross.
Greenwich is notable for its maritime hi ...
on the river near its mouth was the scene of
an incident similar to the more famous
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party was a seminal American protest, political and Mercantilism, mercantile protest on December 16, 1773, during the American Revolution. Initiated by Sons of Liberty activists in Boston in Province of Massachusetts Bay, colo ...
in which imported
tea
Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of '' Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of south-western China and nor ...
was burned as a protest against taxation. The river was also known as the Cesaria River in colonial times.
Navigation and Coast pilot
The Cohansey River is in Region 3 of the US Coast Guard and NOAA Mapping system. The following information is reproduced from the US government coast pilot information. This is from the 39th edition and may be out of data, so please do not use this for navigation: Cohansey River, which empties into the northeast side of Delaware Bay 31 miles northwestward of Cape May Light, is used mostly by pleasure craft, although some petroleum is transported to Bridgeton. Cohansey Light (39°20'30"N., 75°21'41"W.), 42 feet above the water, is shown from a black skeleton tower with a white daymark on the south side near the natural entrance. A dredged cut through the narrow neck of land on which the light stands gives a more direct approach to the river; the cut, 0.3 mile northwest of Cohansey Light, is marked on its west side by lights at the inner and outer ends.
The river is unmarked above the dredged cut. In April 1990, the controlling depths were 5 feet to Fairton; thence in 1990-September 2003, shoaling to less than 1 foot to Bridgeton. The usual approach to Cohansey River is along the axis of the dredged cut, but the natural channel eastward of Cohansey Light is sometimes used; the latter has a controlling depth of about 7 feet, and unmarked shoals with depths of 4 to 6 feet must be avoided on either side. Local knowledge is advised when using this approach and in the dredged channel in the upper part of the river off Bridgeton.
[US Coast Pilot, 3rd District, 39th ed. (US Coast Guard/ NOAA publication]
See also
*
Bridgeton, New Jersey Flood of 1934
*
List of New Jersey rivers
This is a list of streams and rivers of the U.S. state of New Jersey.
The list of New Jersey rivers includes streams formally designated as rivers, as well as smaller streams such as branches, creeks, drains, forks, licks, runs, etc. found throu ...
*
Mahlon Williamson (barque)
References
External links
"Jersey Tea Party" on Cohansey CreekU.S. Geological Survey: NJ stream gaging stations
{{authority control
Rivers of Cumberland County, New Jersey
Rivers of New Jersey
Rivers of Salem County, New Jersey
Tributaries of Delaware Bay