Nancy Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data
The National Map
accessed April 15, 2011

stream A stream is a continuous body of water, body of surface water Current (stream), flowing within the stream bed, bed and bank (geography), banks of a channel (geography), channel. Depending on its location or certain characteristics, a stream ...

in northern

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to 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 territorie ...

. It begins in far northern

DeKalb County DeKalb County may refer to one of several counties in the United States, all of which were named for Baron Johan DeKalb: * DeKalb County, Alabama * DeKalb County, Georgia * DeKalb County, Illinois * DeKalb County, Indiana * DeKalb County, Missouri ...

, just north of

Chamblee Chamblee ( ) is a city in northern DeKalb County, Georgia, United States, northeast of Atlanta. The population was 30,164 as of the 2020 census. History The area that would later become Chamblee was originally dairy farms. During the late nin ...

, and flows southwestward into

Fulton County Fulton County is the name of eight counties in the United States of America. Most are named for Robert Fulton, inventor of the first practical steamboat: *Fulton County, Arkansas, named after Governor William Savin Fulton *Fulton County, Georgia *F ...

, through the far southeast corner of

Sandy Springs Sandy Springs is a city in northern Fulton County, Georgia and an inner ring suburb of Atlanta. The city's population was 108,080 at the 2020 census, making it Georgia's seventh-largest city. It is the site of several corporate headquarters, i ...

, then through the

Buckhead Buckhead is the uptown commercial and residential district of the city of Atlanta, Georgia, comprising approximately the northernmost fifth of the city. Buckhead is the third largest business district within the Atlanta city limits, behind Downt ...

area of Atlanta. It empties into

Peachtree Creek Peachtree Creek is a major stream in Atlanta. It flows for U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 15, 2011 almost due west into the Chattahoochee River just south of Vin ...

, which then flows into the

Chattahoochee River The Chattahoochee River forms the southern half of the Alabama and Georgia border, as well as a portion of the Florida - Georgia border. It is a tributary of the Apalachicola River, a relatively short river formed by the confluence of the Chatta ...

, south of Vinings and

Paces A pace is a unit of length consisting either of one normal walking step (approximately ), or of a double step, returning to the same foot (approximately ). The normal pace length decreases with age and some health conditions. The word "pace" is al ...

. The Chattahoochee eventually joins with the

Flint River The Flint River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 15, 2011 river in the U.S. state of Georgia. The river drains of western Georgia, flowing south from the u ...

to create the

Apalachicola River The Apalachicola River is a river, approximately 160 mi (180 km) long in the state of Florida. The river's large watershed, known as the ACF River Basin, drains an area of approximately into the Gulf of Mexico. The distance to its fa ...

, which flows into the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an oceanic basin, ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of ...

. The North Fork Nancy Creek is a major

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 ...

, while Little Nancy Creek tends to run low or dry. Other tributaries include Bubbling Creek which originates in Chamblee, Perimeter Creek which originates in

Dunwoody Dunwoody is a city located in DeKalb County, Georgia, United States. As a northern suburb of Atlanta, Dunwoody is part of the Atlanta metropolitan area. It was incorporated as a city on December 1, 2008 but its area establishment dates back to ...

and Silver Creek which includes the 38-acre Silver Lake and Little Silver Lake. Since 1994, Nancy Creek has had a

USGS 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, a ...

stream gauge A stream gauge, streamgage or stream gauging station is a location used by hydrologists or environmental scientists to monitor and test terrestrial bodies of water. Hydrometric measurements of water level surface elevation ("stage") and/or volu ...

in the Paces

neighborhood of Atlanta : The city of Atlanta, Georgia is made up of 243 neighborhoods officially defined by the city. These neighborhoods are a mix of traditional neighborhoods, subdivisions, or groups of subdivisions. The neighborhoods are grouped by the city planni ...

at West Wesley Road (''NANG1'', ), with NWS

flood stage Flood stage is the water level or stage at which the surface of a body of water has risen to a sufficient level to cause sufficient inundation of areas that are not normally covered by water, causing an inconvenience or a threat to life and property ...

being at that point. The

drainage basin A drainage basin is an area of land where all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, t ...

above it is . Since 2003, there is another gauge further upstream in Buckhead at Rickenbacker Drive (''NCKG1'', ). The basin at that point is , above an elevation of , with a flood stage of . Records of manual observations actually go back to 1961 at both sites (which are considered to be "at Atlanta"), but the latter gauge (often called "at Buckhead" to avoid ambiguity) appears to be the officially-used one.

Flooding

Especially due to excessive

urbanization Urbanization (or urbanisation) refers to the population shift from rural to urban areas, the corresponding decrease in the proportion of people living in rural areas, and the ways in which societies adapt to this change. It is predominantly t ...

, Nancy Creek often

flood A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are an area of study of the discipline hydrol ...

s. Prior to September 2009, the most recent was in July 2005, with it reaching after the outer rain bands of

Hurricane Dennis Hurricane Dennis was an early-forming major hurricane in the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico during the record-breaking 2005 Atlantic hurricane season. Dennis was the fourth named storm, second hurricane, and first major hurricane of the season. F ...

passed by. This was just after Hurricane Cindy caused it to flood as well, though neither event was considered major.

Hurricane Ivan Hurricane Ivan was a large, long-lived, Cape Verde hurricane that caused widespread damage in the Caribbean and United States. The cyclone was the ninth named storm, the sixth hurricane and the fourth major hurricane of the active 2004 Atlan ...

and

Hurricane Frances Hurricane Frances was the second most intense tropical cyclone in the Atlantic during 2004 and proved to be very destructive in Florida. It was the sixth named storm, the fourth hurricane, and the third major hurricane of the 2004 Atlantic hu ...

caused record-high floods less than a year earlier in September 2004. Those massive rains caused a sewer

pipe Pipe(s), PIPE(S) or piping may refer to: Objects * Pipe (fluid conveyance), a hollow cylinder following certain dimension rules ** Piping, the use of pipes in industry * Smoking pipe ** Tobacco pipe * Half-pipe and quarter pipe, semi-circula ...

to collapse into the creek due to major

erosion Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as water flow or wind) that removes soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust, and then transports it to another location where it is deposited. Erosion is distin ...

, spilling

sewage Sewage (or domestic sewage, domestic wastewater, municipal wastewater) is a type of wastewater that is produced by a community of people. It is typically transported through a sewer system. Sewage consists of wastewater discharged from residenc ...

into the creek. The creek reached late on September 16, its second-highest ever. While this only lasted a few hours, several residents had to be rescued and evacuated by boat. Some of the worst flooding ever recorded on Nancy Creek occurred in September 2009 as a result of the

2009 Atlanta floods The September 2009 Southeastern United States floods were a group of floods that affected several counties throughout northern Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, and Arkansas. The worst flooding occurred across the Atlanta metropolitan area ...

. It severely damaged the bridge at Peachtree Dunwoody Road, washing out the main center support beam. The bridge was closed for six months until an entirely new two-lane replacement bridge reopened on March 23, 2010. The Emergency Repair Program of the Federal Highway Administration funded 100% of the $1 million cost. On the evening of September 21, the creek reached at Rickenbacker Drive, where it began to overflow the bridge. This falls in fourth place, behind the 1973 record of set on December 1. It also reached at West Wesley Road, in second place behind the 2004 flood, when it reached on September 17.

Fish life

Sport fish

Largemouth Bass The largemouth bass (''Micropterus salmoides'') is a carnivorous freshwater gamefish in the Centrarchidae ( sunfish) family, a species of black bass native to the eastern and central United States, southeastern Canada and northern Mexico, but ...

**''Micropterus salmoides'' *

Spotted Bass The spotted bass (''Micropterus punctulatus''), also called spotty, or spots in various fishing communities, is a species of North American freshwater fish belonging to the sunfish family (Centrarchidae) of the order Perciformes. It is noted f ...

**''Micropterus punctulatus'' *

Bluegill The bluegill (''Lepomis macrochirus''), sometimes referred to as "bream", "brim", "sunny", or "copper nose" as is common in Texas, is a species of North American freshwater fish, native to and commonly found in streams, rivers, lakes, ponds and ...

**''Lepomis macrochirus'' *

Redbreast Sunfish The redbreast sunfish (''Lepomis auritus'') is a species of freshwater fish in the sunfish family (family Centrarchidae) of order Perciformes. The type species of its genus, it is native to the river systems of eastern Canada and the United Sta ...

**''Lepomis auritus'' *

Green Sunfish The green sunfish (''Lepomis cyanellus'') is a species of freshwater fish in the sunfish family (Centrarchidae) of order Perciformes. A panfish popular with anglers, the green sunfish is also kept as an aquarium fish by hobbyists. They are us ...

**''Lepomis cyanellus '' *

Snail Bullhead The snail bullhead (''Ameiurus brunneus'') is a bony fish in the family Ictaluridae distributed widely in the Southeastern United States. Among its bullhead catfish congeners, it has many North American relatives, like the brown bullhead (''Ameiu ...

**''Ameiurus brunneus'' *

Warmouth The warmouth (''Lepomis gulosus'') is a freshwater fish of the sunfish family ( Centrarchidae) that is found throughout the eastern United States. Other local names include molly, redeye, goggle-eye, red-eyed bream, and strawberry perch. Descrip ...

**''Lepomis gulosus'' *

Shadow bass The shadow bass (''Ambloplites ariommus'') is a species of freshwater fish in the sunfish family (biology), family (Centrarchidae) of order (biology), order Perciformes. It is Endemism, endemic to southeastern United States of America. Descript ...

**''Ambloplites ariommus''

Other fish

Creek Chub ''Semotilus'' is the genus of creek chubs, ray-finned fish in the family Cyprinidae. The term "creek chub" is sometimes used for individual species, particularly the common creek chub, ''S. atromaculatus''. The creek chub species of minnows can ...

Red Shiner The red shiner or red-horse minnow (''Cyprinella lutrensis'') is a North American species of freshwater fish in the family Cyprinidae. They are deep-bodied and laterally compressed,Farringer R.T., III, A.A. Echelle, and S.F. Lehtinen. 1979. Repr ...

* Silverjaw Shiner *

White Sucker The white sucker (''Catostomus commersonii)'' is a species of freshwater cypriniform fish inhabiting the upper Midwest and Northeast in North America, but it is also found as far south as Georgia and as far west as New Mexico. The fish is commonl ...

* Alabama Hog Sucker *

Mosquitofish The western Mosquitofish (''Gambusia affinis'') is a North American freshwater fish, also known commonly, if ambiguously, as simply Mosquitofish or by its generic name, ''Gambusia'', or by the common name gambezi. Its sister species, the easte ...

Fishing

The best times of day and year for fishing in these areas are late spring to mid-fall in the afternoon to evening. During the winter, the fish of Nancy Creek are significantly less active due to the great drop in temperature of the water. Popular techniques for fishing in Nancy Creek include

fly fishing Fly fishing is an angling method that uses a light-weight lure—called an artificial fly—to catch fish. The fly is cast using a fly rod, reel, and specialized weighted line. The light weight requires casting techniques significantly diffe ...

, as well as fishing with a spinning outfit.

Toponymy

The origin of the name "Nancy Creek" is unclear. The name most likely honors a Native American Indian woman named Nancy. Atlanta Constitution Wednesday January 31, 1883. "The widow of John L. Evans, late of this county, is living stout and hearty. She is now 85 years old. She is the mother of 11 children, 57 grandchildren and 93 great grandchildren. Her maiden name was Nancy Baugh. She was a sister of the late William Baugh of Gwinnett County and came to what later became Fulton County in 1818, and settled with her husband on Nancy Creek in this county when the Indians were here. This creek was named for her. Mrs. Evins, the mother of J.C. Evins of this city, is still living at the old homestead settled 65 years ago. Who can beat that for an old inhabitant." *Nancy Evans died November 1883 and is buried in an unmarked grave in the cemetery of the church bearing her name. *Garrett's Necrology

References

External links

USGS page for Nancy Creek gauge at West Wesley RoadUSGS page for Nancy Creek gauge at Rickenbacker Drive
* ''Peachtree Creek: A Natural and Unnatural History of Atlanta's Watershed'' b
David R. KaufmanFishing in Nancy Creek
{{authority control 3Nancy Chattahoochee River Rivers of DeKalb County, Georgia Rivers of Fulton County, Georgia Geography of Atlanta Rivers of Georgia (U.S. state)