Solomon River (Alaska)

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Solomon River is a waterway in the U.S. state of Alaska, near Nome.

Waterway Any navigable body of water

A waterway is any navigable body of water. Broad distinctions are useful to avoid ambiguity, and disambiguation will be of varying importance depending on the nuance of the equivalent word in other languages. A first distinction is necessary between maritime shipping routes and waterways used by inland water craft. Maritime shipping routes cross oceans and seas, and some lakes, where navigability is assumed, and no engineering is required, except to provide the draft for deep-sea shipping to approach seaports (channels), or to provide a short cut across an isthmus; this is the function of ship canals. Dredged channels in the sea are not usually described as waterways. There is an exception to this initial distinction, essentially for legal purposes, see under international waters.

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Alaska State of the United States of America

Alaska is a U.S. state in the northwest extremity of North America, just across the Bering Strait from Asia. The Canadian province of British Columbia and territory of Yukon border the state to the east, its most extreme western part is Attu Island, and it has a maritime border with Russia to the west across the Bering Strait. To the north are the Chukchi and Beaufort seas—southern parts of the Arctic Ocean. The Pacific Ocean lies to the south and southwest. It is the largest state in the United States by area and the seventh largest subnational division in the world. In addition, it is the 3rd least populous and the most sparsely populated of the 50 United States; nevertheless, it is by far the most populous territory located mostly north of the 60th parallel in North America: its population—estimated at 738,432 by the United States Census Bureau in 2015— is more than quadruple the combined populations of Northern Canada and Greenland. Approximately half of Alaska's residents live within the Anchorage metropolitan area. Alaska's economy is dominated by the fishing, natural gas, and oil industries, resources which it has in abundance. Military bases and tourism are also a significant part of the economy.

Contents

Geography

It heads close to the Casadepaga River, from which it is separated by a low divide, and, flowing southward for 20 miles (32 km), empties into Port Safety Lagoon about 30 miles (48 km) east of Nome. The placer mines of the region are accessible from the settlements of Solomon and Dickson, at the mouth of the river. Dickson is the terminus of the Council City and Solomon River Railroad. Solomon River discharges into the inlet of Port Safety Lagoon. For 5 miles (8.0 km) above its mouth, Solomon River flows across the coastal plain in a broad trench. Its gradient here probably does not exceed 6–8 feet (1.8–2.4 m) to the mile. Above the coastal plain, the river occupies a comparatively broad valley and the gradient increases to at least 50 feet (15 m) to the mile. In the floor of this valley, the river is entrenched, leaving a system of gravel terraces from 20–50 feet (6.1–15.2 m) above the water. Gravel bars from 100–500 feet (30–152 m) wide, only partially covered at ordinary stages of the water, fill the river bed. [1] The 180 feet (55 m) long wooden bridge, IRR:Nome-Council over Solomon River Bridge, which is owned by the State Highway Agency, crosses the river at Mile Point 41.0. [2]

Casadepaga River river in the United States of America

Casadepaga River is a waterway in the U.S. state of Alaska, near Nome. It is the largest southern branch of the Niukluk River. It has a length of about 30 miles (48 km) and a general northeasterly course.

Nome, Alaska City in Alaska, United States

Nome is a city in the Nome Census Area in the Unorganized Borough of the Alaska, United States. The city is located on the southern Seward Peninsula coast on Norton Sound of the Bering Sea. In 2016 the population was estimated at 3,797, a rise from the 3,598 recorded in the 2010 Census, up from 3,505 in 2000. Nome was incorporated on April 9, 1901, and was once the most-populous city in Alaska. Nome lies within the region of the Bering Straits Native Corporation, which is headquartered in Nome.

Solomon, Alaska Former mining camp in Alaska, United States

Solomon is an unincorporated community in the Nome Census Area of the Unorganized Borough of Alaska. As of the 2010 census, the population was zero (uninhabited), down from four in 2000.

History

The river was named by Pierce Thomas, who staked Discovery claim in June, 1899. In the same season, the river and its tributaries were prospected, and in 1900 probably $10,000 worth of gold was mined in this district. [1] The successful operation of a large dredge on Solomon River in 1905 furnished the final proof that dredges were to play an important part in the mining industry of Seward Peninsula; other dredges had been tried with more or less success, but this was the first to be operated in a large way. [3]

Tributaries

Its more important tributaries, Shovel Creek, Big Hurrah Creek, East Fork, and Coal Creek, enter at right angles and flow approximately east or west. Nugget Creek, a tributary of Solomon River, contained no trace of either gold or silver. Jerome and Manila creeks are two short western tributaries of Solomon River within a few miles of the coast, heading within the coastal plain. Shovel Creek flows into Solomon River from the west about 4 miles from the coast; mining operations in the Shovel Creek basin were confined to three small tributaries—Mystery, West, and Kasson creeks. [1]

Shovel Creek is a waterway in the U.S. state of Alaska, near Nome. It flows into Solomon River from the west about 4 miles (6 km) from the coast. It heads in a divide about 2 miles (3 km) from the Casadepaga River and flows nearly southward to its junction with Solomon River. Although not a very long stream, it has a large drainage area and carries during ordinary seasons about 500 inches (1,300 cm) of water. It has a gradient of about 100 feet per mile (19 m/km). Through the greater part of its course, it spreads over wide gravel bars. The bed rock of the Shovel Creek basin consists for the most part of limestones and calcareous mica schists. Near the head of the creek, there are some intrusions of greenstone. Mining operations in the Shovel Creek basin occurred at three small tributaries—Mystery, West, and Kasson creeks.

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Nome River river in the United States of America

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Council City and Solomon River Railroad

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Dickson was a settlement in the U.S. state of Alaska. Situated in the Nome Census Area on the Seward Peninsula, it was located directly opposite Solomon, on the east bank of the Solomon River. It was the coastal terminus of the Council City and Solomon River Railroad. All of its industries and inhabitants were connected with the railroad. Established in 1903, it was named for T. Warren Dickson, general manager of the Western Alaska Construction Company, which built the railroad. By 1910, its population was approximately 50 residents.

Bluestone River (Alaska) waterway located on the Seward Peninsula in Alaska, U.S.

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The Miocene Ditch is one of three historic ditches located along the west side of the Nome River, on the Seward Peninsula, Alaska. It and the other two, the Seward and Pioneer ditches, were built to provide water to early placer mining operations near Nome. The Miocene is the oldest and longest of the three ditches, and the highest in elevation. From suitable locations along the Nome-Taylor Road the ditches form distinct parallel lines crossing tundra promontories west of the river.

Kuskulana River river in the United States of America

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Paige, Sidney; Knopf, Adolph (1907). Geologic Reconnaissance in the Matanuska and Talkeetna Basins, Alaska (Public domain ed.). U.S. Government Printing Office. pp. 222–. Retrieved 28 March 2013.
  2. ↑ "IRR:NOME-COUNCIL over SOLOMON RIVER Nome Census Area, Alaska". Uglybridges.com.
  3. ↑ Paige (1907), p. 36

Coordinates: 64°39′06″N164°19′24″W / 64.65167°N 164.32333°W / 64.65167; -164.32333

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