Thornton Creek

Thornton Creek
Thornton Creek is located in Washington (state)
Thornton Creek
Location of the mouth of Thornton Creek in Washington
Thornton Creek is located in the United States
Thornton Creek
Thornton Creek (the United States)
Location
CountryUnited States
StateWashington
CountyKing
Physical characteristics
SourceJackson Park Golf Course
 • locationSeattle
 • coordinates47°43′45″N 122°19′13″W / 47.72917°N 122.32028°W / 47.72917; -122.32028[1]
MouthLake Washington
 • coordinates
47°41′42″N 122°16′17″W / 47.69500°N 122.27139°W / 47.69500; -122.27139[1]
Length18 mi (29 km)[2]
Basin size12.1 sq mi (31 km2)[3]
Discharge 
 • locationUSGS gage 12128000, river mile 0.25[3]
 • average11.3 cu ft/s (0.32 m3/s)[3]
 • minimum0.39 cu ft/s (0.011 m3/s)
 • maximum129 cu ft/s (3.7 m3/s)

Thornton Creek is 18 miles (29 km) of urban creeks and tributaries from southeast Shoreline through northeast Seattle to Lake Washington. Its 12-square-mile (31 km2) watershed, the largest in Seattle, exhibits relatively dense biodiversity for an urban setting;[4] it is home to frogs, newts, ducks, herons, and beavers, in addition to more than 75,000 people.[5] From west of Jackson Park Golf Course in Shoreline,[6] from Sunny Walter-Pillings Pond[7] in Licton Springs–North College Park,[8] and north Northgate[9] Thornton Creek flows through Maple Leaf and Lake City, including the Victory Heights, Meadowbrook, and Matthews Beach neighborhoods, and empties into the lake at Matthews Beach Park.

  1. ^ a b U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Thornton Creek
  2. ^ Includes all of Thornton Creek's tributaries.
  3. ^ a b c "Water Resources Data-Washington Water Year 2005; Lake Washington Basins" (PDF). USGS. Retrieved 3 August 2009.
  4. ^ Brokaw
  5. ^ "The Watershed | Thornton Creek Alliance". Retrieved 2022-09-18.
  6. ^ Hodson
  7. ^ Walter
  8. ^ Bowditch, Wang, & Wilson
  9. ^ Boyer