The Pottsburg Creek is an urban creek in

Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the seat of Duval County, with which the ...

. Its beginning is near a retention pond behind the old studios of

WJXX WJXX (channel 25) is a television station licensed to Orange Park, Florida, United States, serving the Jacksonville area as an affiliate of ABC. It is owned by Tegna Inc. alongside NBC affiliate WTLV (channel 12). Both stations share studios ...

. It outputs into the Arlington River (north of Atlantic Boulevard and west of Arlington Road) which in turn empties into the

St. Johns River The St. Johns River ( es, Río San Juan) is the longest river in the U.S. state of Florida and its most significant one for commercial and recreational use. At long, it flows north and winds through or borders twelve counties. The drop in eleva ...

. The creek primarily flows through the heart of Jacksonville's Southside, and through southern parts of the Arlington neighborhood.

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The Pottsburg Creek originates in the Southpoint section of Jacksonville's Southside. The origins of the pond are unknown, however, most ideas point to a retention pond near a television studio formerly used by

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

affiliate WJXX. Historical records of Spanish land grants filed with the Florida territorial government, such as for the plot owned by Peter Bagley, indicate a tributary of the Arlington River named Pottsburg Creek on maps of the area as early as 1824. The creek starts out as very narrow, and almost swamplike canal. The creek travels under busy J. Turner Butler Blvd., heading north. The creek here is very overgrown, and almost impossible to see while driving at the normal speed limit. The creek meanders north through suburban parts of Jacksonville, being fed directly or indirectly by heavy amounts of pollution and fertilizers. Many retention ponds and storm drains owned by JEA, the utility company, feed into this part of the creek. This creates a heavily fluctuating water level through this section. The creek continues north where it approaches U.S. 90/SR 212/Beach Blvd. Located along the creeks are several television transmitters, including ones for

WFOX-TV WFOX-TV (channel 30) is a television station in Jacksonville, Florida, United States, affiliated with Fox and Telemundo. It is owned by Cox Media Group, which provides certain services to CBS affiliate WJAX-TV (channel 47) under a joint sales ag ...

WJAX-TV WJAX-TV (channel 47) is a television station in Jacksonville, Florida, United States, affiliated with CBS. It is owned by Hoffman Communications, which maintains a joint sales agreement (JSA) with Cox Media Group, owner of Fox/Telemundo affiliat ...

, and

WCWJ WCWJ (channel 17) is a television station in Jacksonville, Florida, United States, affiliated with The CW. It is owned by Graham Media Group alongside independent station WJXT (channel 4). Both stations share studios at 4 Broadcast Place on the ...

. The transmitters for

WTLV WTLV (channel 12) is a television station in Jacksonville, Florida, United States, affiliated with NBC. It is owned by Tegna Inc. alongside Orange Park–licensed ABC affiliate WJXX (channel 25). Both stations share studios on East Adams Stre ...

WJXT WJXT (channel 4) is an independent television station in Jacksonville, Florida, United States. It is owned by Graham Media Group alongside CW affiliate WCWJ (channel 17). Both stations share studios at 4 Broadcast Place on the south bank of th ...

, and the digital transmitter for

are also visible nearby, across busy Southside Blvd. This area is known as Killarney Shores. The creek begins to widen as it starts to head out of the southside area and into Arlington. The creek is also frequented by boat traffic due to the city boat ramp nearby. Soon the creek is joined by the spring run for Pottsburg Spring and the Little Pottsburg Creek. The creek widens even more as it passes under Atlantic Blvd. and out to the St. Johns River.

Tributaries

The Pottsburg Creek is mainly fed by rainwater, retention ponds, and storm drain runoff. Other named tributaries include the Little Pottsburg Creek, Strawberry Creek, Silversmith Creek, and discharge from the Pottsburg Spring.

References

Tributaries of the St. Johns River Rivers of Florida Geography of Jacksonville, Florida Bodies of water of Duval County, Florida Arlington, Jacksonville {{Florida-river-stub

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Tributaries

See also

References