Deep River is a tributary of the

Cape Fear River The Cape Fear River is a long blackwater river in east central North Carolina. It flows into the Atlantic Ocean near Cape Fear, from which it takes its name. The river is formed at the confluence of the Haw River and the Deep River (North Carol ...

, approximately 125 miles (200 km) long, in north central

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. Deep River is a translation of the Indian name ''sapponah'', "deep river". Paddling is popular on the river. Deep River is flanked by the planned Deep River State Trail and several other parks and preservation areas including Carbonton Dam Park, House in the Horseshoe Historic Site, Deep River Park and Deep River Camelback Truss Bridge, Endor Iron Furnace, White Pines Nature Preserve,

Lockville Dam, Canal and Powerhouse Lockville Dam, Canal and Powerhouse is a historic dam, canal, and powerhouse located near Moncure, Chatham County, North Carolina. The dam was built in 1922 and replaced an earlier log dam built by the Cape Fear and Deep River Navigation Compan ...

, and Mermaid Point. The

Cape Fear shiner The Cape Fear shiner (''Notropis mekistocholas'') is a North American species of freshwater fish in the family Cyprinidae. It is endemic to the central part of the state of North Carolina in the southeastern United States, and is only found in th ...

, a critically endangered minnow, inhabits the river.

Course

Deep River rises in the

Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

country in western

Guilford County Guilford County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population is 541,299, making it the third-most populous county in North Carolina. The county seat, and largest municipality, is Greensboro. S ...

, east of Kernersville. It flows southeast past High Point and Randleman, forming the Randleman Lake. It passes northeast of

Asheboro Asheboro is a city in and the county seat of Randolph County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 25,012 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Greensboro–High Point metropolitan area of the Piedmont Triad and is home of the sta ...

, then flows east to Franklinville then to Ramseur, then passing north of Sanford. The Rocky River enters the Deep River at the White Pines Nature Preserve. Deep River joins

Haw River The Haw River is a tributary of the Cape Fear River, approximately 110 mi (177 km) long, that is entirely contained in north central North Carolina in the United States. It was first documented as the "Hau River" by John Lawson, an E ...

at Mermaid Point near Moncure to form the

Dams

Deep River has 12 dams or relict dam structures and is the source river of the Randleman lake project that covers 3000 acres (12 km²) of property on the river near

U.S. Route 220 U.S. Route 220 (US 220) is a spur route of US 20. It runs in a north–south layout in the eastern United States, unlike its parent route as well as conventionally even-numbered highways which run east-west. US 220 extends for f ...

. The river crosses the

Fall Line A fall line (or fall zone) is the area where an upland region and a coastal plain meet and is typically prominent where rivers cross it, with resulting rapids or waterfalls. The uplands are relatively hard crystalline basement rock, and the coa ...

of North Carolina, an area where rivers are quite rocky and have a moderately high gradient. This gradient was used to power mills along the river to support the early

textile Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not the ...

industry in North Carolina. The river, popular with

canoe A canoe is a lightweight narrow water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using a single-bladed paddle. In British English, the ter ...

ists, was a center of a great deal of activity during the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revoluti ...

at places such as Franklinville and the House In The Horseshoe. The Lockville Dam, built of stone, is the only portion of the 19th-century Deep River lock and dam system that remains today. Until recently, the Deep River was host to the Carbonton Dam, the largest dam on the river at 17 feet (5.2 m) high and 270 feet (82 m) wide. In the fall of 2005, the dam was removed for the purpose of creating environmental mitigation credit by Restoration Systems, LLC, a leading environmental mitigation company in North Carolina. The project restored 10 miles (16 km) of the former impoundment around the House in the Horseshoe to free-flowing river.

Tributaries

References

{{authority control Rivers of North Carolina Rivers of Chatham County, North Carolina Rivers of Guilford County, North Carolina Rivers of Lee County, North Carolina Rivers of Moore County, North Carolina Rivers of Randolph County, North Carolina