Shickshinny Creek

Shickshinny Creek
Shickohinna
Shickshinny Creek in Shickshinny
Etymologypossibly a corruption of Schigi-hanna, which itself means "fine creek"
Physical characteristics
Source 
 • locationvalley northwest of Sylvan Lake in Ross Township, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania
 • elevationbetween 1,200 and 1,220 feet (370 and 370 m)
Mouth 
 • location
Susquehanna River in Shickshinny, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania
 • coordinates
41°09′05″N 76°08′48″W / 41.1514°N 76.1468°W / 41.1514; -76.1468
 • elevation
499 ft (152 m)
Length10.1 mi (16.3 km)
Basin size35.0 sq mi (91 km2)
Basin features
ProgressionSusquehanna River → Chesapeake Bay
Tributaries 
 • leftReyburn Creek
 • rightCulver Creek, Little Shickshinny Creek

Shickshinny Creek (historically known as Shickohinna) is a tributary of the Susquehanna River in the Wyoming Valley in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately 10.1 miles (16.3 km) long and flows through Ross Township, Union Township, and Shickshinny.[1] Its watershed has an area of 35.0 square miles (91 km2) and its tributaries include Culver Creek, Reyburn Creek, and Little Shickshinny Creek. The creek is designated as a Coldwater Fishery and a Migratory Fishery. A sawmill and a gristmill were built on the creek in 1802 and 1804, respectively. Several bridges have also been constructed over it. The creek was historically polluted by culm near its mouth, but agriculture was the main industry in the watershed in the early 1900s. It was historically used as a water supply.

The surficial geology near Shickshinny Creek mainly consists of urban land, fill, alluvium, alluvial terrace, alluvial fan, Wisconsinan Ice-Contact Stratified Drift, Wisconsinan Ice-Contact Delta, Wisconsinan Bouldery Till, Wisconsinan Till, lakes, and wetlands. The lower reaches of the creek are in a water gap between Huntington Mountain and Shickshinny Mountain. A lake known as Shickshinny Lake is in the watershed and is dammed by the Shickshinny Lake Dam.

  1. ^ United States Geological Survey, The National Map Viewer, retrieved March 8, 2015