Sunday Creek is a

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

Hocking River The Hocking River (formerly the Hockhocking River) is a right tributary of the Ohio River in southeastern Ohio in the United States. The Hocking flows mostly on the unglaciated Allegheny Plateau, but its headwaters are in a glaciated region. ...

, 27.2 miles (43.8 km) long, in southeastern

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

in 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 ...

. Via the Hocking and

Rivers, it is part of 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 ...

of the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

, draining 139 square miles (360 km²) in a mainly rural area of the

Allegheny Plateau The Allegheny Plateau ( ) is a large dissected plateau area of the Appalachian Mountains in western and central New York, northern and western Pennsylvania, northern and western West Virginia, and eastern Ohio. It is divided into the unglacia ...

region. Its name is locally said to derive from early white settlers who in 1802 reached the creek on a Sunday, and so named it after the day of their discovery. (also see nearby

Monday Creek Monday Creek is a tributary of the Hocking River, long, in southeastern Ohio in the United States. Via the Hocking and Ohio Rivers, it is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River, draining an area of on the unglaciated portion of the Alle ...

.) Sunday Creek rises in southeastern

Perry County Perry County may refer to: United States *Perry County, Alabama *Perry County, Arkansas *Perry County, Illinois *Perry County, Indiana *Perry County, Kentucky *Perry County, Mississippi *Perry County, Missouri *Perry County, Ohio * Perry Cou ...

and flows generally southwardly into northern

Athens County Athens County is a county in southeastern Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 62,431. Its county seat and largest city is Athens. The county was formed in 1805 from Washington County. Because Ohio's first state university, Ohio ...

, passing through the communities of Rendville, Corning, Glouster, Trimble,

Jacksonville Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...

, and

Millfield Millfield is a public school (English fee-charging boarding and day school for pupils aged 13–18) located in Street, Somerset, England. It was founded in 1935. Millfield is a registered charity and is the largest co-educational boarding ...

(site of the 1930 Millfield Mine disaster), to Chauncey, where it flows into the Hocking River. In Athens County north of Glouster it collects the East Branch Sunday Creek, 15.5 miles (25 km) long, which rises in Perry County and passes through Morgan County. Tom Jenkins Dam, constructed on the East Branch in Athens County in 1950 by the

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is the military engineering branch of the United States Army. A direct reporting unit (DRU), it has three primary mission areas: Engineer Regiment, military construction, and civil wor ...

, forms Burr Oak Lake, the site of

Burr Oak State Park Burr Oak State Park is a public recreation area located northeast of Glouster in the U.S. state of Ohio. The park sits mostly in Morgan County, with part extending into Athens County. The state park is centered at Burr Oak Lake. The dam for t ...

. In Glouster, Sunday Creek collects the West Branch Sunday Creek, 14 miles (22.5 km) long, which rises in Perry County and flows generally southwardly. Other significant Tributaries include Greens Run, Mud Fork, and Johnson Run, all perennial streams draining the area to the west of the creek. A predominant land use in the watershed of Sunday Creek has historically been

coal mining Coal mining is the process of resource extraction, extracting coal from the ground or from a mine. Coal is valued for its Energy value of coal, energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to Electricity generation, generate electr ...

, with both underground and

surface A surface, as the term is most generally used, is the outermost or uppermost layer of a physical object or space. It is the portion or region of the object that can first be perceived by an observer using the senses of sight and touch, and is ...

mines in the area. A 1997 study by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency identified the lowermost thirteen miles of Sunday Creek as having been "irretrievably damaged to the extent that no appreciable aquatic life can be supported" due to the creek's low pH, caused by

acid mine drainage Acid mine drainage, acid and metalliferous drainage (AMD), or acid rock drainage (ARD) is the outflow of acidic water from metal mines and coal mines. Acid rock drainage occurs naturally within some environments as part of the rock weatherin ...

. The lower areas of the creek are generally colored orange from the effects of acid-mine drainage during times of low water. , an organization called the Sunday Creek Watershed Group operates with the intention of addressing water quality and ecosystem-related matters in the watershed. It is sponsored by Rural Action, a non-profit organization in southeastern Ohio. True Pigments is a social enterprise founded in 2019 as part of Rural Action, in collaboration with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources and Ohio University. The initiative aims to develop innovative technologies that transform acid mine drainage (AMD) from the Truetown Mine Disaster into marketable pigments. These pigments are intended for production and sale in the wholesale market, contributing to environmental sustainability by addressing water pollution issues caused by AMD.

References

{{authority control Rivers of Ohio Rivers of Athens County, Ohio Rivers of Morgan County, Ohio Rivers of Perry County, Ohio

See also

References