tributary
A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or 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 drain the surrounding drainag ...
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 environm ...
of the lower Hackensack and of the adjacent
wetland
A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...
region known as the New Jersey Meadowlands.
The upper creek flows through suburban communities west of
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...
. The creek rises in Tenafly, on the west side of the Palisades, approximately from the
Hudson River
The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between Ne ...
Overpeck County Park
Overpeck County Park is an county park in Bergen County, New Jersey, with major sections in Leonia, Palisades Park, Ridgefield Park, and Teaneck, surrounding Overpeck Creek, a tributary of the Hackensack River.
The Overpeck Creek flows to the ...
. It joins the Hackensack on the south side of
Ridgefield Park
Ridgefield Park is a village in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States census, the village's population was 12,729,Little Ferry.
In colonial times, the creek was called "Tantaqua" and was the site of a Hackensack village. An attempted European settlement,
Achter Col
Achter Kol (or Achter Col) was the name given to the region around the Newark Bay and Hackensack River in northeastern New Jersey by the first European settlers to it and was part of the 17th century province of New Netherland, originally admin ...
, in 1642 was aborted after
Lenape
The Lenape (, , or Lenape , del, Lënapeyok) also called the Leni Lenape, Lenni Lenape and Delaware people, are an indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands, who live in the United States and Canada. Their historical territory inclu ...
retaliations for the Pavonia Massacre. Later 17th and 18th century settlements were collectively known as the English Neighborhood. The creek lay along the main land route west of the Hudson and provided a consistently difficult barrier for transportation in the area until the construction of modern roads and bridges in the 19th century. Development of the region was facilitated by the New Jersey Midland Railway, the
West Shore Railroad
The West Shore Railroad was the final name of a railroad that ran from Weehawken, New Jersey, on the west bank of the Hudson River opposite New York City, north to Albany, New York, and then west to Buffalo. It was organized as a competitor ...
, and the Erie Railroad's Northern Branch, the latter of which partially runs parallel to the creek. Restoration of rail service is the object of the
Northern Branch Corridor Project
The Northern Branch Corridor Project is a proposed extension of the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail (HBLR) from its northern terminus into eastern Bergen County, New Jersey, initially proposed in 2001. If built, the new service would use the right-of- ...
and the
Passaic–Bergen–Hudson Transit Project
The Passaic–Bergen–Hudson Transit Project is a project under study by NJ Transit to reintroduce passenger service on a portion of the New York, Susquehanna and Western Railway (NYSW) right-of-way (ROW) in Passaic, Bergen and Hudson counties c ...
.
Although the creek is theoretically navigable, the mouth of the creek is blocked by the two bridges of the CSX River Line and NYS&W railroads. Federal law requires that these bridges be opened to water traffic on 24 hours' notice. The NYS&W bridge can still be opened manually, but the CSX bridge has been inoperable since being rebuilt in 2002, rendering the owning railroad liable to a fine of $25,000 per incident. Work to replace the bridge was funded in 2017 and work was scheduled to begin in 2018. The bridge collapsed under a train in August 2018.
Like the other tributaries of the Hackensack in the Meadowlands, the creek has suffered from severe
pollution
Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into the natural environment that cause adverse change. Pollution can take the form of any substance (solid, liquid, or gas) or energy (such as radioactivity, heat, sound, or light). Pollutants, the ...
in the 20th century during the era of heavy industrialization. During the 1950s, tide gates were installed on the creek that largely cut off the tidal flow into the surrounding wetlands. The restoration of the surrounding wetlands has been an ongoing project of several state and private agencies.
Bergen Generating Station
Bergen Generating Station is a gas-fired power plant owned and operated by Public Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE&G).http://www.pjm.com/pub/planning/project-queues/facilities/a05_fac.pdf It located on the banks of Overpeck Creek near its ...
*
List of rivers of New Jersey
This is a list of streams and rivers of the U.S. state of New Jersey.
List of New Jersey rivers includes streams formally designated as rivers. There are also smaller streams (''i.e.,'' branches, creeks, drains, forks, licks, runs, etc.) in t ...