East Branch Raven Creek is a tributary of Raven Creek in Columbia County and Luzerne County, in Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately and flows through Benton Township in Columbia County and Fairmount Township in Luzerne County. The watershed of the creek has an area of . It has one named tributary, which is known as Stine Hollow. East Branch Raven Creek is a freestone stream that is inhabited by brook trout. At least one bridge crosses it. The creek is named after Raven Creek.

Course

East Branch Raven Creek looking upstream near Stine Hollow

East Branch Raven Creek begins on a hill in Benton Township, Columbia County, a few hundred feet west of the border between Columbia County and Luzerne County. It flows south for a short distance before turning southeast for a few tenths of a mile. It briefly crosses into Fairmount Township, Luzerne County and passes through a small pond before returning to Benton Township. The creek then turns south-southwest for approximately a mile, passing by Hess Hill. It then crosses

Pennsylvania Route 239 Pennsylvania Route 239 (PA 239) is a state highway located in Luzerne, Columbia and Lycoming Counties in Pennsylvania. The southern terminus is at PA 93 in Nescopeck Township. The northern terminus is at PA 42 in North ...

and continues flowing south-southwest. After several tenths of a mile, it turns southwest. Some distance further downstream, it receives its first named tributary, Stine Hollow, on its right. The creek turns south-southwest for several hundred feet before turning west for a similar distance. It then turns southwest, flowing along the base of Creveling Hill. After a short distance, the creek reaches its confluence with Raven Creek. East Branch Raven Creek joins Raven Creek upstream of its mouth.

Tributaries

East Branch Raven Creek has one named tributary and one unnamed tributary. The named tributary is known as Stine Hollow. Stine Hollow joins East Branch Raven Creek upstream of its mouth. The stream's watershed has an area of .

Hydrology, geography and geology

The average daily

discharge Discharge may refer to Expel or let go * Discharge, the act of firing a gun * Discharge, or termination of employment, the end of an employee's duration with an employer * Military discharge, the release of a member of the armed forces from serv ...

of East Branch Raven Creek is estimated to be 3.63 cubic feet per second. 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 East Branch Raven Creek is above sea level. The elevation of the creek's source is between above sea level. The percentage of runs, riffles, and pools have been measured on a section of East Branch Raven Creek that is long. A total of 47 percent of the section consists of pools. 28 percent of the section consists of riffles and 25 percent consists of runs. East Branch Raven Creek is a

freestone stream In fly fishing, a freestone stream flows seasonally, based on the water supply. In the summer and fall, freestone streams grow warm and have reduced flow because water from snow melt is less readily available. In contrast to limestone streams, which ...

. It is near the edge of a glaciated plateau.

Watershed

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 East Branch Raven Creek has an area of . The entire length of the creek is in the United States Geological Survey quadrangle of Stillwater. The creek's mouth is in south-central Benton Township and its source is in east-central Benton Township. The creek is near the borough of Stillwater. East Branch Raven Creek is in the

ridge and valley The Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians, also called the Ridge and Valley Province or the Valley and Ridge Appalachians, are a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian division and are also a belt within the Appalachian Mountains extending ...

physiographical province.

History and etymology

East Branch Raven Creek was entered into the Geographic Names Information System on August 2, 1979. Its identifier in the Geographic Names Information System is 1173764. An electrofishing survey was carried out on the creek on May 25, 1995. A concrete

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 ...

bridge was constructed over East Branch Raven Creek east of

Benton Benton may refer to: Places Canada *Benton, a local service district south of Woodstock, New Brunswick *Benton, Newfoundland and Labrador United Kingdom * Benton, Devon, near Bratton Fleming * Benton, Tyne and Wear United States *Benton, Alabam ...

in 2006. It is long and carries Pennsylvania Route 239. East Branch Raven Creek is named after Raven Creek, which it is a tributary of. Raven Creek may itself have been known as Raving Creek at one time. It is also possible that Raven Creek is named after John Sutton, who was nicknamed "Raven".

Biology

East Branch Raven Creek is stocked with

brook trout The brook trout (''Salvelinus fontinalis'') is a species of freshwater fish in the char genus ''Salvelinus'' of the salmon family Salmonidae. It is native to Eastern North America in the United States and Canada, but has been introduced elsewhere ...

. The trout also naturally reproduce in the creek.

References

External links

{{authority control Rivers of Columbia County, Pennsylvania Rivers of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania Tributaries of Fishing Creek (North Branch Susquehanna River) Rivers of Pennsylvania