Spencer Run

Last updated
Spencer Run
Other name(s) Spencer's Run
Physical characteristics
Main source valley just south of Waller in Jackson Township, Columbia County, Pennsylvania
between 1,180 and 1,200 feet (360 and 370 m)
River mouth West Creek in Benton Township, Columbia County, Pennsylvania
778 ft (237 m)
41°12′19″N76°23′20″W / 41.2052°N 76.3889°W / 41.2052; -76.3889 Coordinates: 41°12′19″N76°23′20″W / 41.2052°N 76.3889°W / 41.2052; -76.3889
Length 2.1 mi (3.4 km)
Basin features
Progression West Creek → Fishing Creek → Susquehanna River → Chesapeake Bay
Basin size 2.07 sq mi (5.4 km2)
Tributaries
  • Right:
    one unnamed tributary

Spencer Run (also known as Spencer's Run) [1] is a tributary of West Creek in Columbia County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately 2.1 miles (3.4 km) long and flows through Jackson Township and Benton Township. [2] The watershed of the stream has an area of 2.07 square miles (5.4 km2). Wild trout naturally reproduce in the stream. The surficial geology in the area mainly features Illinoian Till, Illinoian Leg, alluvium, colluvium, and bedrock.

Tributary stream or river that flows into a main stem river or lake

A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage basin of its surface water and groundwater, leading the water out into an ocean.

West Creek (Pennsylvania) tributary of Fishing Creek in Columbia County, Pennsylvania

West Creek is a tributary of Fishing Creek, in Columbia County and Sullivan County, in Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is 9.1 miles (14.6 km) long and flows through Davidson Township in Sullivan County and Jackson Township, Sugarloaf Township, Benton Township, and Benton in Columbia County. The water temperature of the creek ranges from 0 °C (32 °F) to 25 °C (77 °F). The discharge ranges from 0 to nearly 10 cubic meters per second. Rock formations in the watershed include the Trimmers Rock Formation, the Catskill Formation, and the Huntley Mountain Formation. The creek's watershed has an area of 16.6 square miles, most of which is agricultural, forested, or urban land. A small number of dams, mills, and schoolhouses were built on West Creek in the 19th and early 20th century. West Creek has the highest level of biodiversity of any stream in the upper Fishing Creek watershed.

Columbia County, Pennsylvania county in Pennsylvania, United States

Columbia County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 census, the population was 67,295. Its county seat is Bloomsburg. The county was created on March 22, 1813, from part of Northumberland County and named for Columbia, a poetic name for the United States that alludes to Christopher Columbus.

Contents

Course

Spencer Run begins in a valley just south of Waller, in Jackson Township. It flows east and enters Benton Township after several hundred feet. The stream then turns southeast for several tenths of a mile, as its valley becomes deeper. It then turns south-southeast for several tenths of a mile before turning south, crossing Waller Drive, and receiving an unnamed tributary from the right. It then turns southeast for a few tenths of a mile before reaching its confluence with West Creek not far from the northwestern corner of Benton. [2]

Waller, Pennsylvania Census-designated place in Pennsylvania, United States

Waller is a census-designated place (CDP) in Columbia County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 48 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Bloomsburg–Berwick Micropolitan Statistical Area.

Benton, Columbia County, Pennsylvania Borough in Pennsylvania, United States

Benton is a borough in Columbia County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 824 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Bloomsburg–Berwick Micropolitan Statistical Area.

Spencer Run joins West Creek 1.48 miles (2.38 km) upstream of its mouth. [3]

Geography and geology

The elevation near the mouth of Spencer Run is 778 feet (237 m) above sea level. [4] The elevation of the stream's source is between 1,180 and 1,200 feet (360 and 370 m) above sea level. [2]

River mouth end of a river

A river mouth is the part of a river where the river debouches into another river, a lake, a reservoir, a sea, or an ocean.

Sea level Average level for the surface of the ocean at any given geographical position on the planetary surface

Mean sea level (MSL) is an average level of the surface of one or more of Earth's oceans from which heights such as elevation may be measured. MSL is a type of vertical datum – a standardised geodetic datum – that is used, for example, as a chart datum in cartography and marine navigation, or, in aviation, as the standard sea level at which atmospheric pressure is measured to calibrate altitude and, consequently, aircraft flight levels. A common and relatively straightforward mean sea-level standard is the midpoint between a mean low and mean high tide at a particular location.

River source The starting point of a river

The source or headwaters of a river or stream is the furthest place in that river or stream from its estuary or confluence with another river, as measured along the course of the river.

The surficial geology in the vicinity of Spencer Run mainly consists of colluvium and a till known as Illinoian Till, which contains silt and clay. However, at the headwaters of the stream, there is some Illinoian Lag. The sides of the stream's valley have surficial geology featuring bedrock consisting of sandstone and shale. [5]

Colluvium

Colluvium is a general name for loose, unconsolidated sediments that have been deposited at the base of hillslopes by either rainwash, sheetwash, slow continuous downslope creep, or a variable combination of these processes. Colluvium is typically composed of a heterogeneous range of rock types and sediments ranging from silt to rock fragments of various sizes. This term is also used to specifically refer to sediment deposited at the base of a hillslope by unconcentrated surface runoff or sheet erosion.

Till Unsorted glacial sediment

Till or glacial till is unsorted glacial sediment.

Silt is granular material of a size between sand and clay, whose mineral origin is quartz and feldspar. Silt may occur as a soil or as sediment mixed in suspension with water and soil in a body of water such as a river. It may also exist as soil deposited at the bottom of a water body, like mudflows from landslides. Silt has a moderate specific area with a typically non-sticky, plastic feel. Silt usually has a floury feel when dry, and a slippery feel when wet. Silt can be visually observed with a hand lens, exhibiting a sparkly appearance. It also can be felt by the tongue as granular when placed on the front teeth.

Watershed

The watershed of Spencer Run has an area of 2.07 square miles (5.4 km2). [3] The stream is entirely within the United States Geological Survey quadrangle of Benton. [4]

Drainage basin Area of land where precipitation collects and drains off into a common outlet

A drainage basin is any area of land where precipitation collects and drains off into a common outlet, such as into a river, bay, or other body of water. The drainage basin includes all the surface water from rain runoff, snowmelt, and nearby streams that run downslope towards the shared outlet, as well as the groundwater underneath the earth's surface. Drainage basins connect into other drainage basins at lower elevations in a hierarchical pattern, with smaller sub-drainage basins, which in turn drain into another common outlet.

United States Geological Survey scientific agency of the United States government

The United States Geological Survey is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and the natural hazards that threaten it. The organization has four major science disciplines, concerning biology, geography, geology, and hydrology. The USGS is a fact-finding research organization with no regulatory responsibility.

History

Spencer Run was entered into the Geographic Names Information System on August 2, 1979. Its identifier in the Geographic Names Information System is 1188165. [4]

Spencer Run was historically a direct tributary of Fishing Creek, instead of being a tributary of West Creek. [1]

Biology

Wild trout naturally reproduce in Spencer Run from its headwaters downstream to its mouth. [6]

In 2004, the Columbia County Natural Areas Inventory recommended protecting Spencer Run. [7]

See also

Related Research Articles

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Davis Hollow river in the United States of America

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Bee Sellers Hollow river in the United States of America

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Roaring Run (Bowman Creek tributary) river in the United States of America

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South Branch Roaring Run is a tributary of Roaring Run in Wyoming County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately 2.0 miles (3.2 km) long and flows through Noxen Township and Forkston Township. The watershed of the stream has an area of 3.31 square miles (8.6 km2). The surficial geology in its vicinity consists of bedrock, Wisconsinan Till, Wisconsinan Bouldery Till, Wisconsinan Ice-Contact Stratified Drift, and alluvium. South Branch Roaring Run is classified as Class A Wild Trout Waters.

Windfall Run is a tributary of Baker Run in Wyoming County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately 1.6 miles (2.6 km) long and flows through Noxen Township. The watershed of the stream has an area of 1.68 square miles (4.4 km2). The stream itself is classified as Class A Wild Trout Waters by the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission. The surficial geology in its vicinity includes Wisconsinan Till and bedrock.

Brish Run is a tributary of Pine Creek in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately 1.5 miles (2.4 km) long and flows through Fairmount Township. The watershed of the stream has an area of 0.66 square miles (1.7 km2). The stream has one unnamed tributary. The surficial geology in the vicinity of Brish Run mostly consists of Wisconsinan Till, but there is alluvium near its mouth and also bedrock in the area. The stream is being considered for wild trout designation.

West Branch Little Muncy Creek

West Branch Little Muncy Creek is a tributary of Little Muncy Creek in Sullivan County and Lycoming County, in Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately 3.5 miles (5.6 km) long and flows through Davidson Township in Sullivan County and Franklin Township and Jordan Township in Lycoming County. The watershed of the creek has an area of 4.33 square miles (11.2 km2). The creek has one named tributary, which is known as West Creek. The surficial geology in the vicinity of West Branch Little Muncy Creek includes alluvium, bedrock, fill, Wisconsinan and Reworked Illinoian Till, Wisconsinan Till, Wisconsinan Flow-Till, Wisconsinan Till Moraine, and Boulder Colluvium. The creek designated as a Coldwater Fishery and a Migratory Fishery and is being considered for addition to the wild trout waters list of the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission.

References

  1. 1 2 John Gosse Freeze (1888), A History of Columbia County, Pennsylvania: From the Earliest Times, p. 49
  2. 1 2 3 United States Geological Survey, The National Map Viewer (PDF), retrieved March 3, 2015
  3. 1 2 Pennsylvania Gazetteer of Streams (PDF), November 2, 2001, p. 133, retrieved March 3, 2015
  4. 1 2 3 Geographic Names Information System, Feature Detail Report for: Spencer Run , retrieved March 3, 2015
  5. ↑ Duane D. Braun (2012), Surficial geology of the Benton 7.5-Minute Quadrangle, Columbia and Lycoming Counties, Pennsylvania, p. 16, retrieved March 3, 2015
  6. ↑ Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (January 2015), Pennsylvania Wild Trout Waters (Natural Reproduction) (PDF), p. 30, retrieved March 3, 2015
  7. ↑ The Pennsylvania Science Office of The Nature Conservancy (2004), Columbia County Natural Areas Inventory 2004 (PDF), p. 57, retrieved March 3, 2015
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