Double Pipe Creek, sometimes called Pipe 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

Monocacy River The Monocacy River () is a free-flowing left tributary to the Potomac River, which empties into the Atlantic Ocean via the Chesapeake Bay. The river is long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data ...

in Carroll County and Frederick County in

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

, located several miles north and west of

Westminster Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...

. The creek is only long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data
The National Map
, accessed August 15, 2011 but is formed by the confluence of two much longer streams, Big Pipe Creek and Little Pipe Creek.

Course

The creek's watershed extends as far east as

Manchester, Maryland Manchester is a small incorporated town in northeastern Carroll County, Maryland, United States, located just south of the Pennsylvania state line and north of Baltimore. The population was 4,808 at the 2010 census. Manchester was incorporated in ...

, and includes the towns of Union Bridge, Taneytown, New Windsor and Westminster. The main stem of the creek is formed from the

confluence In geography, a confluence (also ''conflux'') occurs where two or more watercourses join to form a single channel (geography), channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river (main ...

of Big Pipe Creek, long, with headwaters near Manchester; and Little Pipe Creek, long, with headwaters in Westminster. From the confluence, near Detour, Maryland (), Double Pipe flows west for to its mouth at the Monocacy, which drains to the

Potomac River The Potomac River () is in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and flows from the Potomac Highlands in West Virginia to Chesapeake Bay in Maryland. It is long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography D ...

. The

watershed Watershed may refer to: Hydrology * Drainage divide, the line that separates neighbouring drainage basins * Drainage basin, an area of land where surface water converges (North American usage) Music * Watershed Music Festival, an annual country ...

area of Double Pipe Creek is . Tributaries include Bear Branch, Big Pipe Creek, Little Pipe Creek, Meadow Branch and Sam's Creek. Double Pipe Creek, the portion of Little Pipe Creek west of Union Bridge, and the western section of Sam's Creek form part of the legal boundary between Frederick County and Carroll County.

Pollution

The

Maryland Department of the Environment The Maryland Department of the EnvironmentMDE is a government agency in the state of Maryland that implements and enforces environmental protection laws and programs. The agency's stated vision is "Healthy, vibrant and sustainable communities and ...

(MDE) has identified

water quality Water quality refers to the chemical, physical, and biological characteristics of water based on the standards of its usage. It is most frequently used by reference to a set of standards against which compliance, generally achieved through tr ...

violations for Double Pipe Creek and tributaries, specifically for

sediment Sediment is a solid material that is transported to a new location where it is deposited. It occurs naturally and, through the processes of weathering and erosion, is broken down and subsequently sediment transport, transported by the action of ...

, nutrients (

nitrogen Nitrogen is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol N and atomic number 7. Nitrogen is a Nonmetal (chemistry), nonmetal and the lightest member of pnictogen, group 15 of the periodic table, often called the Pnictogen, pnictogens. ...

and

phosphorus Phosphorus is a chemical element; it has Chemical symbol, symbol P and atomic number 15. All elemental forms of phosphorus are highly Reactivity (chemistry), reactive and are therefore never found in nature. They can nevertheless be prepared ar ...

), and

bacteria Bacteria (; : bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one Cell (biology), biological cell. They constitute a large domain (biology), domain of Prokaryote, prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micr ...

. The principal sources of bacteria appear to be failing

septic tank A septic tank is an underground chamber made of concrete, fiberglass, or plastic through which domestic wastewater (sewage) flows for basic sewage treatment. Settling and anaerobic digestion processes reduce solids and organics, but the treatment ...

s from residences and/or businesses, pet waste and waste from farm animals (

livestock Livestock are the Domestication, domesticated animals that are raised in an Agriculture, agricultural setting to provide labour and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, Egg as food, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The t ...

). The pollution sources for sediment include

agricultural runoff Agricultural pollution refers to biotic and abiotic byproducts of farming practices that result in contamination or degradation of the environment and surrounding ecosystems, and/or cause injury to humans and their economic interests. The po ...

and

urban runoff Urban runoff is surface runoff of rainwater, landscape irrigation, and car washing created by urbanization. Impervious surfaces (roads, parking lots and sidewalks) are constructed during land development. During rain, storms, and other Precipitati ...

.MDE
“Total Maximum Daily Load of Sediment in the Double Pipe Creek Watershed, Frederick and Carroll Counties, Maryland.”
September 2008. (Although agriculture is the predominant land use in the watershed, tributaries of Double Pipe Creek flow through portions of Westminster, Taneytown, New Windsor and Union Bridge.)

Proposed Union Mills Reservoir

''See Union Mills Reservoir'' Since the 1970s, Carroll County commissioners have been proposing a dam or reservoir, defeated in 1976 by petition and raised again under the title of a proposed Union Mills Reservoir.

History

Before the battle broke out at Gettysburg, General Meade had planned a defensive position for the

Army of the Potomac The Army of the Potomac was the primary field army of the Union army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was created in July 1861 shortly after the First Battle of Bull Run and was disbanded in June 1865 following the Battle of ...

at Pipe Creek, making use of its broad slopes and open fields of fire. In the

alternate history Alternate history (also referred to as alternative history, allohistory, althist, or simply A.H.) is a subgenre of speculative fiction in which one or more historical events have occurred but are resolved differently than in actual history. As ...

'' Gettysburg'', by Gingrich and Forstchen, General Lee seizes Pipe Creek as ''his'' defensive line.

References

External links

* {{authority control Rivers of Carroll County, Maryland Rivers of Frederick County, Maryland Rivers of Maryland Tributaries of the Monocacy River