| Sparkill Creek | |
|---|---|
 Sparkill Creek viewed from Ferdon Ave. | |
| Location | |
| Country | United States |
| State | New York, New Jersey |
| Counties | Rockland, Bergen |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | |
| • location | Clausland Mountain in Orangetown, Rockland County, New York, United States |
| • coordinates | 41°03′50″N 73°56′40″W / 41.06389°N 73.94444°W |
| • elevation | 230 ft (70 m) |
| Mouth | Hudson River |
• location | Piermont, Rockland County, New York, United States |
• coordinates | 41°02′18″N 73°54′26″W / 41.03833°N 73.90722°W |
• elevation | 0 ft (0 m) |
| Length | 8 mi (13 km) |
| Basin features | |
| Tributaries | |
| • right | Sparkill Brook |
Sparkill Creek is a tributary of the Hudson River in Rockland County, New York and Bergen County, New Jersey in the United States. It flows through the Sparkill Gap in the Hudson Palisades, which was created by a fault line which provided the only sea-level break in the Palisades.[1]
Sparkill Creek is 8 miles (13 km) long and drains 11.1 square miles (29 km2) of watershed. It begins from runoff from Clausland Mountain in Orangetown, New York. Small tributaries feed the creek as it flows through the hamlets of Blauvelt, Orangeburg, and Tappan, New York, the borough of Northvale, New Jersey, the hamlets of Palisades and Sparkill, and finally the village of Piermont, New York before emptying into the Hudson River at Piermont Marsh.
The creek is spanned in its tidal section by the Sparkill Creek Drawbridge, which was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985.[2]
The creek is rich in history, beauty and ecological significance,[3] however its watershed has faced threats from Rockland County's population boom following the construction of the Tappan Zee Bridge[4] which have affected the health of the creek. The creek's flooding, as well as the pollution run off have caused problems for the areas through which it flows.[5] Fear of damage to a number of important historic sites from flooding has prompted some state aid to address the problem.[6]
The same fault line which allows Sparkill Creek to flow through the Palisades, also enabled the New York and Erie Railroad to construct a line down to the river, where it built a 1-mile (1.6 km) long pier at Piermont. There, goods from its trains were offloaded onto barges and floated down the river to New York City.
- ^ "Piermont Pier and Marsh" Rockland Aubudubon Society
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
- ^ Gumucio, Ron X (2002-12-23). "Exhibit to Focus on Sparkill Creek". The Journal News. Archived from the original on November 6, 2012. Retrieved 2011-05-29.
- ^ "Rockland History". The Journal News. 2008-06-03. Archived from the original on November 6, 2012. Retrieved 2011-05-29.
- ^ "Jaffee Announces $1.2 Million for Sparkill Creek". 2008-06-02. Retrieved 2011-05-29.
- ^ Adely, Hannan (2008-06-03). "Orangetown gets $1.2 million to ease flooding along Sparkill Creek". The Journal News. p. A3. Archived from the original on November 6, 2012. Retrieved 2011-05-29.