Swatara Creek (nicknamed the Swatty) is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data
The National Map
accessed August 8, 2011

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

Susquehanna River The Susquehanna River ( ; Unami language, Lenape: ) is a major river located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, crossing three lower Northeastern United States, Northeast states (New York, Pennsylvani ...

in east-central

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

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 ...

. It rises in the

Appalachian Mountains The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, are a mountain range in eastern to northeastern North America. The term "Appalachian" refers to several different regions associated with the mountain range, and its surrounding terrain ...

in central Schuylkill County and passes through northwest Lebanon County before draining into the Susquehanna at Middletown in Dauphin County. The name "Swatara" is said to derive from a

Susquehannock The Susquehannock, also known as the Conestoga, Minquas, and Andaste, were an Iroquoian Peoples, Iroquoian people who lived in the lower Susquehanna River watershed in what is now Pennsylvania. Their name means “people of the muddy river.” T ...

word, ''Swahadowry'' or ''Schaha-dawa'', which means "where we feed on eels". Ancient Native Americans built dozens of eel-

weir A weir or low-head dam is a barrier across the width of a river that alters the flow characteristics of water and usually results in a change in the height of the water level. Weirs are also used to control the flow of water for outlets of l ...

s, V-shaped rock barriers designed to funnel eels to facilitate capture, on the Susquehanna and its tributaries.

Geography

Swatara Creek rises in the

in central Schuylkill County, on Broad Mountain north of the Sharp Mountain ridge, approximately west of Minersville. It flows southwest in a winding course, passing south of Tremont, then cutting south through the ridges of Sharp Mountain and Second Mountain. It passes through Swatara State Park then turns south to pass through Swatara Gap in the Blue Mountain ridge northwest of

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

. After emerging from the ridge the creek flows southwest, north of

Hershey Hershey may refer to: People * Hershey (name), a list of people with the surname, given name or nickname Places * Hershey, Nebraska, a village * Hershey, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community, home to the chocolate company * Hershey, Cuba ...

, past Hummelstown, and joins the Susquehanna at Royalton, in Middletown. It receives Quittapahilla Creek from the east north of

Palmyra Palmyra ( ; Palmyrene dialect, Palmyrene: (), romanized: ''Tadmor''; ) is an ancient city in central Syria. It is located in the eastern part of the Levant, and archaeological finds date back to the Neolithic period, and documents first menti ...

History

The creek was a significant transportation route in the colonial period of

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

up through the late 19th century. A canal linking the Susquehanna and

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...

valleys in southeastern Pennsylvania was first proposed in 1690 by

William Penn William Penn ( – ) was an English writer, religious thinker, and influential Quakers, Quaker who founded the Province of Pennsylvania during the British colonization of the Americas, British colonial era. An advocate of democracy and religi ...

, the founder of the Pennsylvania Colony. Nearly a century passed before a route for the canal was surveyed by

David Rittenhouse David Rittenhouse (April 8, 1732 – June 26, 1796) was an American astronomer, inventor, clockmaker, mathematician, surveyor, scientific instrument craftsman, and public official. Rittenhouse was a member of the American Philosophical Society an ...

and William Smith between 1762 and 1770, the first canal ever surveyed in the United States. Spurred by the 1791 discovery of

anthracite Anthracite, also known as hard coal and black coal, is a hard, compact variety of coal that has a lustre (mineralogy)#Submetallic lustre, submetallic lustre. It has the highest carbon content, the fewest impurities, and the highest energy densit ...

in the upper Susquehanna Valley, the

Pennsylvania General Assembly The Pennsylvania General Assembly is the legislature of the U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The legislature convenes in the State Capitol building in Harrisburg. In colonial times (1682–1776), the legislature was known as the Pennsylvani ...

chartered two companies to undertake the project: the Schuylkill and Susquehanna Navigation Company and the Delaware and Schuylkill Navigation Company. At the time of the initial construction in 1792,

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 ...

was involved in an intense rivalry with

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, for supremacy as a shipping port. The canal was backed by Philadelphia businessmen as a means to divert commercial traffic from following the Susquehanna downriver to the

Chesapeake Bay The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula, including parts of the Ea ...

, its more natural destination. Although the Schuylkill and Susquehanna Navigation Company project failed for lack of funds, the project was restarted and ultimately completed by its successor company, the Union Canal in 1828. From west to east, the route of the Schuylkill and Susquehanna Navigation Company canal in 1792 was to follow Swatara Creek upstream from Middletown to Quittapahilla Creek, which it then followed upstream past

and Myerstown to its headwaters. It then crossed overland to Clarks Run at the headwaters of Tulpehocken Creek, following Tulpehocken Creek downstream to

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of symbols, often specifically those of a written language, by means of Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifacete ...

on the Schuylkill River. It was to follow the Schuylkill downriver to the

Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and is the longest free-flowing (undammed) river in the Eastern United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock, New York, the river flows for a ...

at Philadelphia. The route of the Union Canal followed the same route up Swatara Creek and continued up the creek to Union Water Works. The canal then went up Clarks Run to the summit and thence by a tunnel over to

. The upper course above Union Water Works into the mountains provided the route of a feeder to the main canal, as well as providing a route to ship anthracite from the mountains to Philadelphia. On September 8, 2011, the creek reached a record height of near Hershey, following devastating rains from Tropical Storm Lee and remnants of

Hurricane Irene Hurricane Irene was a large and destructive tropical cyclone which affected much of the Caribbean and East Coast of the United States during late August 2011. The ninth tropical cyclone naming, named storm, first hurricane, and first major ...

, the highest since measurements began in 1975. Farther upstream at the Harpers Tavern gauge, was recorded, making it the worst flooding since 1889. The flooding caused thousands of people to be evacuated from their homes throughout central Pennsylvania, and at least one death. Several

covered bridge A covered bridge is a timber-truss bridge with a roof, decking, and siding, which in most covered bridges create an almost complete enclosure. The purpose of the covering is to protect the wooden structural members from the weather. Uncovered woo ...

s once crossed Swatara Creek, including the Fiddler's Elbow Covered Bridge, built 1862, near Hummelstown and Clifton Covered Bridge, built 1870, near Middletown, both destroyed by

Hurricane Agnes Hurricane Agnes was the List of costliest Atlantic hurricanes, costliest hurricane to hit the United States at the time, causing an estimated $2.1 billion in damage. The hurricane's death toll was 128. The effects of Agnes were widespread, ...

in 1972. The Sand Beach Covered Bridge burned down in 1966 by arson.

Recreation

Today, Swatara Creek is part of a national and statewide water trail system, providing outdoor recreation for families canoeing and kayaking a segment that connects to the Susquehanna River and Captain John Smith water trails.

Drinking water

Three water companies — Suez Water Pennsylvania, American Water, and the Lebanon Water Authority — draw drinking water for hundreds of thousands of residents of the Swatara watershed.

Tributaries

* Iron Run * Beaver Creek *

Spring Creek A spring creek is a type of free flowing river whose name derives from its origin: an underground Spring (hydrology), spring or set of springs which produces sufficient water to consistently feed a unique river. The water flowing in a spring cree ...

* Manada Creek * Quittapahilla Creek * Brandywine Creek * Bow Creek * Indiantown Run * Little Swatara Creek * Lower Little Swatara Creek * Upper Little Swatara Creek * Good Spring Creek

Ships

Two ships in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

have been named USS ''Swatara'' after the creek: * The first USS ''Swatara'' (1865) was a wooden,

screw sloop A screw sloop is a propeller-driven sloop-of-war. They were popularized in the mid-19th century, during the introduction of the steam engine and the transition of fleets to this new technology. The sailing sloop The British sloop in the Age o ...

, launched in 1865 and dismantled in 1872 to become the second ship of this name. * The second USS ''Swatara'' (1873) was a screw sloop, launched in 1873 and decommissioned in 1891.

References

External links

Manada Conservancy - Swatara Greenway Stewardship Program

U.S. Geological Survey: PA stream gaging stations

Canal Museum: Union Canal

Swatara Creek Greenway

Northern Swatara Creek Watershed Association

Fred Yenerall Collection - includes Fiddler's Elbow, Clifton and Sand Beach Covered Bridge
{{authority control Rivers of Pennsylvania Tributaries of Swatara Creek Rivers of Dauphin County, Pennsylvania Rivers of Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania Rivers of Lebanon County, Pennsylvania