Clover Hill Creek (also known as Trib 28528 to Leggetts Creek) is a

tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage ...

of Leggetts Creek in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately long and flows through Dickson City and Scranton. The watershed of the creek has an area of approximately . The upper reaches of the creek's watershed are on forested land and lightly populated residential land. However, the lower reaches are extensively channelized and culvertized.

Course

Clover Hill Creek begins on Bell Mountain in Dickson City. It flows south-southwest down the mountain for more than a mile before crossing a highway. The creek then continues flowing south-southwest alongside the highway, entering Scranton. A few tenths of a mile further downstream, it crosses Interstate 81 and reaches its confluence with Leggetts Creek. Clover Hill Creek joins Leggetts Creek approximately upstream of its mouth.

Hydrology

Various

Swale Swale or Swales may refer to: Topography * Swale (landform), a low tract of land ** Bioswale, landform designed to remove silt and pollution ** Swales, found in the formation of Hummocky cross-stratification Geography * River Swale, in North ...

s and inlets direct

stormwater Stormwater, also spelled storm water, is water that originates from precipitation (storm), including heavy rain and meltwater from hail and snow. Stormwater can soak into the soil ( infiltrate) and become groundwater, be stored on depressed la ...

from roads into Clover Hill Creek. Biofiltration systems and various other systems have been recommended for this area.

Geography and geology

The elevation near the

mouth In animal anatomy, the mouth, also known as the oral cavity, or in Latin cavum oris, is the opening through which many animals take in food and issue vocal sounds. It is also the cavity lying at the upper end of the alimentary canal, bounded on ...

of Clover Hill Creek is above

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardised g ...

. The elevation of the creek's source is between above sea level. The headwaters of Clover Hill Creek are in springs on a ridge known as Bell Mountain. In its upper reaches, the creek has a steep course and is on a forested mountainside with numerous splash pools and rock ledge falls. However, there are some local roads nearby in the lightly inhabited residential Bell Mountain neighborhood. However, in its lower reaches, the creek has been severely channelized and flows next to a highway. The

channel Channel, channels, channeling, etc., may refer to: Geography * Channel (geography), in physical geography, a landform consisting of the outline (banks) of the path of a narrow body of water. Australia * Channel Country, region of outback Austral ...

of Clover Hill Creek is deeply incised near Hollow Road. It flows through a

culvert A culvert is a structure that channels water past an obstacle or to a subterranean waterway. Typically embedded so as to be surrounded by soil, a culvert may be made from a pipe, reinforced concrete or other material. In the United Kingdom ...

under the Scranton/Carbondale Highway and through a riprap channel as it flows alongside that highway. The creek flows through two pipes with a size of .

Watershed and biology

The

watershed Watershed is a hydrological term, which has been adopted in other fields in a more or less figurative sense. It may refer to: Hydrology * Drainage divide, the line that separates neighbouring drainage basins * Drainage basin, called a "watershe ...

of Clover Hill Creek has an area of approximately . The creek is entirely within the

United States Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, ...

quadrangle of Scranton. Clover Hill Creek is a

first-order In mathematics and other formal sciences, first-order or first order most often means either: * "linear" (a polynomial of degree at most one), as in first-order approximation and other calculus uses, where it is contrasted with "polynomials of high ...

stream. The main

land use Land use involves the management and modification of natural environment or wilderness into built environment such as settlements and semi-natural habitats such as arable fields, pastures, and managed woods. Land use by humans has a long h ...

s in the watershed's upper reaches are forested land and residential land. Other land uses in the watershed include Highway Commercial. A small patch of

wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...

is located near the creek's middle reaches. The riparian buffer of Clover Hill Creek is largely forested in its upper reaches. Further downstream, the buffer consists of meadow grasses and herbaceous plants. The creek is a Trout Stocked Fishery for its entire length.

History

Clover Hill Creek was entered into the

Geographic Names Information System The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is a database of name and locative information about more than two million physical and cultural features throughout the United States and its territories, Antarctica, and the associated states of ...

on January 1, 1990. Its identifier in the Geographic Names Information System is 1202403. The creek was added due to its presence on Patton's Philadelphia and Suburbs Street and Road Map, which was published in 1984. It is also known as "Trib 28528 to Leggetts Creek". During heavy rains in 2013, Clover Hill Creek temporarily flooded over US Route 6, blocking off an entrance to the Viewmont Mall.

References