San Francisquito Creek

San Francisquito Creek
Arroyo de San Francisquito
El Palo Alto and the San Francisquito Creek
c. 1910
San Francisquito Creek watershed with named tributaries
San Francisquito Creek is located in California
San Francisquito Creek
Location of the mouth of San Francisquito Creek in California
EtymologySpanish language
Location
CountryUnited States
StateCalifornia
RegionNorthwestern Santa Clara County
and southeastern San Mateo County
CityPalo Alto, California
Physical characteristics
SourceConfluence of Bear Creek and Corte Madera Creek just below Searsville Lake (actually a reservoir)
 • locationJasper Ridge Biological Preserve
 • coordinates37°24′26″N 122°14′15″W / 37.40722°N 122.23750°W / 37.40722; -122.23750[1]
 • elevation351 ft (107 m)
MouthSouthwest San Francisco Bay
 • location
East Palo Alto, California
 • coordinates
37°27′58″N 122°06′55″W / 37.46611°N 122.11528°W / 37.46611; -122.11528[1]
 • elevation
0 ft (0 m)
Basin features
Tributaries 
 • leftBear Creek
 • rightCorte Madera Creek, Los Trancos Creek

San Francisquito Creek (Spanish for "Little San Francisco"—the "little" referring to size of the settlement compared to Mission San Francisco de Asís[2]) is a creek that flows into southwest San Francisco Bay in California, United States. Historically it was called the Arroyo de San Francisco by Juan Bautista de Anza in 1776.[3] San Francisquito Creek courses through the towns of Portola Valley and Woodside, as well as the cities of Menlo Park, Palo Alto, and East Palo Alto. The creek and its Los Trancos Creek tributary define the boundary between San Mateo and Santa Clara counties.

  1. ^ a b U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: San Francisquito Creek
  2. ^ Bright, William (1998). 1500 California Place Names. Berkeley, California: University of California Press. p. 130. ISBN 978-0-520-21271-8.
  3. ^ Durham, David L. (1998). Durham's Place Names of California's San Francisco Bay Area: Includes Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo, Contra Costa, Alameda, Solano & Santa Clara counties. Word Dancer Press, Sanger, California. p. 155. ISBN 978-1-884995-35-4.