Poesten Kill

Poesten Kill
Poesten Kill adjacent to New York Route 2 in Brunswick
Watershed of the Poesten Kill and its tributaries
Location
CountryUnited States
StateNew York
RegionRensselaer County
Physical characteristics
SourceDyken Pond
 • locationBerlin, New York, United States
 • coordinates42°43′2.74″N 73°25′40.58″W / 42.7174278°N 73.4279389°W / 42.7174278; -73.4279389
 • elevation1,624 ft (495 m)
MouthHudson River
 • location
Troy, New York, United States
 • coordinates
42°43′14.49″N 73°41′54″W / 42.7206917°N 73.69833°W / 42.7206917; -73.69833
 • elevation
0 ft (0 m)
Length26.2 mi (42.2 km)
Basin size89.4 sq mi (232 km2)
Discharge 
 • average130 cu ft/s (3.7 m3/s)
 • maximum2,897 cu ft/s (82.0 m3/s)
Basin features
River systemHudson River Watershed
Tributaries 
 • leftNewfoundland Creek
 • rightBonesteel Creek, Quacken Kill, Sweet Milk Creek

The Poesten Kill is a 26.2-mile-long (42.2 km)[1] creek in Rensselaer County, Upstate New York. It flows westerly from its source at Dyken Pond, located in the town of Berlin, to its mouth at the Hudson River in the city of Troy. The creek was historically used as a source of water for the local farmers and residents. During the Industrial Revolution, the creek became an important source of water power, and many mills and factories sprung up along its banks.[2]

The name of the creek is derived from a local farmer and miller, Jan Barensten Wemple, who lived near it in the 1660s. He was known by the nickname "Poest"; kille was a Dutch word for "waterway".[3]

  1. ^ U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. The National Map, accessed October 3, 2011
  2. ^ Warren, Jhon (2021-09-26). "The Poestenkill: Mountains, Waterfalls and Waterworks - New York Almanack". New York Almanac. Retrieved 2023-05-01.
  3. ^ Potts, Blyden (2022). "STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESS: Kills – What's in a name?". The Shippensburg Chronicle. Retrieved 7 July 2023.