Cuyahoga River

Cuyahoga River
The Cuyahoga River in Cleveland
Map of the Cuyahoga River drainage basin
Location
CountryUnited States
StateOhio
CountiesCuyahoga, Summit, Portage, Geauga[1]
CitiesCleveland, Akron, Cuyahoga Falls, Kent[1]
Physical characteristics
Source 
 • coordinates41°26′26″N 81°09′07″W / 41.44056°N 81.15194°W / 41.44056; -81.15194 (Cuyahoga River source)[4] Confluence of
East Branch Cuyahoga River[2] and
West Branch Cuyahoga River[3]
near Pond Road and Rapids Road, Burton, Geauga County, Ohio
 • elevation1,093 feet (333.1 m)[2][3]
Mouth 
 • location
Lake Erie at Cleveland,
Cuyahoga County, Ohio[4]
 • coordinates
41°30′13″N 81°42′44″W / 41.50361°N 81.71222°W / 41.50361; -81.71222 (Cuyahoga River mouth)
 • elevation
571 feet (174.0 m)[4]
Length84.9 miles (136.6 km)[5]
Basin size809 square miles (2,100 km2)[6]

The Cuyahoga River[7] (/ˌkaɪ.əˈhɒɡə/ KY-ə-HOG-ə or /ˌkaɪ.əˈhoʊɡə/ KY-ə-HOH-gə)[8][9] is a river located in Northeast Ohio that bisects the City of Cleveland and feeds into Lake Erie.

As Cleveland emerged as a major manufacturing center, the river became heavily affected by industrial pollution, so much so that it caught fire at least 14 times. When it did so on June 22, 1969, news coverage of the event helped to spur the American environmental movement.[10][11] Since then, the river has been extensively cleaned up through the efforts of Cleveland's city government and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (OEPA).[12] In 2019, the American Rivers conservation association named the Cuyahoga "River of the Year" in honor of "50 years of environmental resurgence".[13][14]

  1. ^ a b Glanville, Justin (January 22, 2015). "A River Runs Through It". Kent State University. Retrieved March 21, 2017.
  2. ^ a b "East Branch Cuyahoga River". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved May 3, 2009.
  3. ^ a b "West Branch Cuyahoga River". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved May 3, 2009.
  4. ^ a b c "Cuyahoga River". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved May 3, 2009.
  5. ^ "Upper Cuyahoga River Watershed TMDLs Figure 2. Schematic Representation of the Upper Cuyahoga Watershed" (PDF). Ohio EPA. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 12, 2009.
  6. ^ "Map of Ohio watersheds". Ohio Department of Natural Resources. Archived from the original (GIF) on March 11, 2007.
  7. ^ United States Geological Survey Hydrological Unit Code: 04-11-00-02
  8. ^ Siegel, Robert; Block, Melissa (June 23, 2009). "Letters: Cuyahoga River". All Things Considered. National Public Radio. Retrieved June 23, 2009.
  9. ^ McIntyre, Michael K. (June 28, 2009). "How to pronounce 'Cuyahoga' turns into a national debate: Tipoff". The Plain Dealer. Retrieved June 29, 2009.
  10. ^ "The Myth of the Cuyahoga River Fire, Podcast and transcript, Episode 241". Science History Institute. May 28, 2019. Retrieved August 27, 2019.
  11. ^ "51 Years Later, the Cuyahoga River Burns Again". Outside Magazine. August 28, 2020. Retrieved October 11, 2020.
  12. ^ Maag, Christopher (June 20, 2009). "From the Ashes of '69, Cleveland's Cuyahoga River Is Reborn". The New York Times. Retrieved July 25, 2019.
  13. ^ Johnston, Laura (April 16, 2019). "Cuyahoga named River of the Year". The Plain Dealer. Retrieved July 25, 2019.
  14. ^ Piepenburg, Erik (June 7, 2019). "A Cleveland River Once Oozed and Burned. It's Now a Hot Spot". The New York Times. Retrieved July 19, 2021.