Red Clay Creek

Red Clay Creek
Tributary to White Clay Creek
Location of Red Clay Creek mouth
Location of Red Clay Creek mouth
Location of Red Clay Creek mouth
Location of Red Clay Creek mouth
Location of Red Clay Creek mouth
Red Clay Creek (the United States)
Location
CountryUnited States
StateDelaware
CountyNew Castle
Physical characteristics
Sourceconfluence of East and West Branches of Red Clay Creek
 • locationSouthridge, Pennsylvania
 • coordinates39°49′04″N 075°41′33″W / 39.81778°N 75.69250°W / 39.81778; -75.69250[1]
 • elevation200 ft (61 m)[2]
MouthWhite Clay Creek
 • location
Stanton, Delaware
 • coordinates
39°42′29″N 075°38′45″W / 39.70806°N 75.64583°W / 39.70806; -75.64583[1]
 • elevation
0 ft (0 m)[2]
Length12.7 mi (20.4 km)[3]
Basin size54.53 square miles (141.2 km2)[4]
Discharge 
 • average74.57 cu ft/s (2.112 m3/s) at mouth with White Clay Creek[4]
Basin features
ProgressionWhite Clay Creek → Christina River → Delaware River → Delaware Bay → Atlantic Ocean[3]
River systemChristina River
LandmarksMount Cuba
Tributaries 
 • leftEast Branch Red Clay Creek
Burrows Run
 • rightWest Branch Red Clay Creek
Hyde Run

Red Clay Creek is a 12.7-mile-long (20.4 km) tributary of White Clay Creek, running through southeastern Pennsylvania and northern Delaware in the United States.[5][6] As of 2000, portions of the creek are under wildlife habitat protection.

Course

The East and West branches both rise in West Marlborough Township, Pennsylvania, near the hamlet of Upland, and flow south through Kennett Square before uniting just north of the Delaware border. The stream enters Delaware near the town of Yorklyn and flows southward through New Castle County, passing through Marshallton. Red Clay Creek empties into White Clay Creek near Stanton,[7] approximately 5 miles (8.0 km) southwest of Wilmington. Ultimately, White Clay Creek enters the Christina River, also near Stanton.[7]

Tributaries

History

The creek serves as a boundary between the Hundreds of Mill Creek and Christiana.[7] The Wilmington and Western Railroad follows the creek south from Yorklyn as far as Greenbank.

In the late 19th Century, several factories were located along Red Clay Creek, including those for the manufacture of flour, wool and iron.[7]

The creek suffered from severe flooding in 1999 due to Hurricane Floyd and in 2003 due to Tropical Storm Henri.

Since 2000, portions of the river, along with other tributaries of White Clay Creek, have been protected as part of the White Clay Creek Wild and Scenic River.

Bridges

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "GNIS Detail - Red Clay Creek". geonames.usgs.gov. US Geological Survey. Retrieved 29 May 2019.
  2. ^ a b "Red Clay Creek Topo Map, New Castle County DE (Newark East Area)". TopoZone. Locality, LLC. Retrieved 30 July 2019.
  3. ^ a b "ArcGIS Web Application". epa.maps.arcgis.com. US EPA. Retrieved 30 July 2019.
  4. ^ a b "Red Clay Creek Watershed Report". Waters Geoviewer. US EPA. Retrieved 30 July 2019.
  5. ^ U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. The National Map, accessed April 1, 2011
  6. ^ The U.S. Geological Survey citation and the Boyd, William citation conflict on which is a tributary of the other, White Clay Creek or Red Clay Creek. The text of the article reflects the U.S. Geological Survey information; Boyd indicates that White Clay Creek is a tributary of Red Clay Creek and that it is Red Clay Creek which flows into the Christina (Christiana) River.
  7. ^ a b c d e f Boyd, William H. (1874), The Delaware state directory and gazetteer for 1874–75, Wilmington, DE: Commercial Press, pp. 367, 467, 519, OCLC 42023366, retrieved May 17, 2012
  8. ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.

39°48′51″N 75°41′07″W / 39.81414°N 75.68537°W / 39.81414; -75.68537