The Mad River (
Shawnee
The Shawnee are an Algonquian-speaking indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands. In the 17th century they lived in Pennsylvania, and in the 18th century they were in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, with some bands in Kentucky a ...
: ''Hathennithiipi'' ) is a stream located in the west central part of the U.S. state of Ohio. It flows
[U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data]
The National Map
, accessed May 19, 2011 from
Logan County Logan County is the name of ten current counties and one former county in the United States:
* Logan County, Arkansas
* Logan County, Colorado
* Logan County, Idaho (1889–1895)
* Logan County, Illinois
* Logan County, Kansas
* Logan County, ...
to downtown
Dayton
Dayton () is the sixth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County. A small part of the city extends into Greene County. The 2020 U.S. census estimate put the city population at 137,644, while Greater Da ...
, where it meets the
Great Miami River
The Great Miami River (also called the Miami River) (Shawnee: ''Msimiyamithiipi'') is a tributary of the Ohio River, approximately long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accesse ...
. The stream flows southwest from its
source
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Research
* Historical document
* Historical source
* Source (intelligence) or sub source, typically a confidential provider of non open-source intelligence
* Source (journalism), a person, publication, publishing institute o ...
near
Campbell Hill through
West Liberty, along
U.S. Route 68 west of
Urbana __NOTOC__
Urbana can refer to:
Places Italy
*Urbana, Italy
United States
*Urbana, Illinois
**Urbana (conference), a Christian conference formerly held in Urbana, Illinois
*Urbana, Indiana
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*Urbana, ...
, past
Springfield (the point of confluence with
Buck Creek), then along
Ohio State Route 4
State Route 4 (SR 4), formerly known as Inter-county Highway 4 until 1921 and State Highway 4 in 1922, is a major north–south state highway in Ohio. It is the fifth longest state route in Ohio. Its southern terminus is at U.S. Route 42 i ...
into Dayton. The stream's confluence with the Great Miami River is in Deeds Park.
The Mad River was one of the Great Miami River
tributaries
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 b ...
that flooded during the
Great Dayton Flood
The Great Dayton Flood of 1913 resulted from flooding by the Great Miami River reaching Dayton, Ohio, and the surrounding area, causing the greatest natural disaster in Ohio history. In response, the General Assembly passed the Vonderheide Act to ...
of 1913, resulting in the creation of the
Miami Conservancy District
The Miami Conservancy District is a river management agency operating in Southwest Ohio to control flooding of the Great Miami River and its tributaries. It was organized in 1915 following the catastrophic Great Dayton Flood of the Great Miami R ...
.
The river derives its name from its mad, broken and rapid current. Historically, the stream has also been known by the names Mad Creek and Tiber River, respectively, as well as by the Croatian name Fiume Mad (lit. "Mad River").
The first road between Cincinnati and Dayton that opened up the "Mad River Country" to European settlement was the
Mad River Road
{{Unreferenced, date=December 2009
Mad River Road was the first overland route between Dayton, Ohio and Cincinnati, Ohio. It was cut by Daniel C. Cooper in 1795 to provide access to the new town of Dayton and the "Mad River Country" northeast and ...
, cut in 1797. Today, a ski resort named
Mad River Mountain
Mad River Mountain is a ski and snowboard resort in Valley Hi, Ohio, United States. The elevation of Mad River Mountain is with a vertical drop of , and it has a ski season that runs from approximately mid-December through mid-March. The resor ...
is located near the stream's source.
Mad River is the largest
coldwater fishery
Fishery can mean either the enterprise of raising or harvesting fish and other aquatic life; or more commonly, the site where such enterprise takes place ( a.k.a. fishing ground). Commercial fisheries include wild fisheries and fish farms, both ...
in Ohio. The
Ohio Department of Natural Resources
The Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) is the Ohio state government agency charged with ensuring "a balance between wise use and protection of our natural resources for the benefit of all." ODNR regulates the oil and gas industry, the m ...
's Division of Wildlife periodically stocks Mad River with
rainbow trout
The rainbow trout (''Oncorhynchus mykiss'') is a species of trout native to cold-water tributaries of the Pacific Ocean in Asia and North America. The steelhead (sometimes called "steelhead trout") is an anadromous (sea-run) form of the coasta ...
and
brown trout
The brown trout (''Salmo trutta'') is a European species of salmonid fish that has been widely introduced into suitable environments globally. It includes purely freshwater populations, referred to as the riverine ecotype, ''Salmo trutta'' morph ...
.
The trout population suffers low reproduction rates due to sedimentation from
channelization, extensive
agricultural runoff
Agricultural pollution refers to biotic and abiotic byproducts of farming practices that result in contamination or degradation of the environment and surrounding ecosystems, and/or cause injury to humans and their economic interests. The pol ...
, and diminishing habitat.
See also
*
List of rivers of Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the Great Lakes region of the United States. The state takes its name from the Ohio River, whose name in turn originated from the Seneca word '' ohiːyo, meaning "good river", "great river" or "large creek". The Ohio ...
*
Fishing in Ohio
Ohio currently has 5 rivers that host populations of either rainbow trout, brown trout, or brook trout. These rivers are the Mad River, the Clear Fork River, Clear Creek, the Chagrin River, and the Rocky River.
The Mad River
Ohio's oldest tr ...
*
Water pollution
Water pollution (or aquatic pollution) is the contamination of water bodies, usually as a result of human activities, so that it negatively affects its uses. Water bodies include lakes, rivers, oceans, aquifers, reservoirs and groundwater. Water ...
References
{{authority control
Rivers of Ohio
Rivers of Champaign County, Ohio
Rivers of Clark County, Ohio
Rivers of Greene County, Ohio
Rivers of Logan County, Ohio
Rivers of Montgomery County, Ohio