Conewango Creek is a

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 ...

of the

Allegheny River The Allegheny River ( ) is a long headwater stream of the Ohio River in western Pennsylvania and New York (state), New York. The Allegheny River runs from its headwaters just below the middle of Pennsylvania's northern border northwesterly into ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

and

western New York Western New York (WNY) is the westernmost region of the U.S. state of New York. The eastern boundary of the region is not consistently defined by state agencies or those who call themselves "Western New Yorkers". Almost all sources agree WNY in ...

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 territorie ...

. The creek's drainage covers much of southeastern

Chautauqua County, New York Chautauqua County is the westernmost County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. As of the United States Census 2020, 2020 census, the population was 127,657. Its county seat is Mayville, New York, Mayville, an ...

, and western

Cattaraugus County, New York Cattaraugus County (locally known as Catt County) is a county in Western New York, with one side bordering Pennsylvania. As of the United States 2020 census, the population was 77,042. The county seat is Little Valley. The county was created ...

. The creek's most notable tributary is the

Chadakoin River The Chadakoin River is a stream that is a tributary of the Conewango Creek. The Chadakoin lies entirely in Chautauqua County in Western New York in the United States. The stream drains an area of , covering much of Chautauqua County. The creek ...

, which supplies the creek water from

Chautauqua Lake Chautauqua Lake is located entirely within Chautauqua County, New York, United States. The lake is approximately long and wide at its greatest width. The surface area is approximately . The maximum depth is about . The shoreline is about of w ...

. The Chautauqua Ridge, a

continental divide A continental divide is a drainage divide on a continent such that the drainage basin on one side of the divide feeds into one ocean or sea, and the basin on the other side either feeds into a different ocean or sea, or else is endorheic, not ...

bounds the watershed to the north and west.

Course

Conewango Creek begins at New Albion Lake in

New Albion, New York :''not to be confused with Albion, New York'' New Albion is a town in Cattaraugus County, New York, United States. The population was 1,990 at the 2020 census. The town is named after Albion in Orleans County, the source of some early settlers ...

and follows a meandering path around much of western Cattaraugus County. It joins with the

Frewsburg, New York Frewsburg is a hamlet and census-designated place in the town of Carroll in Chautauqua County, New York, United States. The population was 1,906 at the 2010 census. The ZIP code is 14738 and the telephone exchange (which extends past Carroll and ...

before heading southward into Pennsylvania. Conewango Creek joins the Allegheny River at the city of

Warren, Pennsylvania Warren is a city in Warren County, Pennsylvania, United States, located along the Allegheny River. The population was 9,404 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Warren County. It is home to the headquarters of the Allegheny National Fores ...

River modifications

On September 26, 2009, an obsolete Civil War-era

low head dam A weir or low head dam is a barrier across the width of a river that alters the flow characteristics of water and usually results in a change in the height of the river level. Weirs are also used to control the flow of water for outlets of l ...

within the city of Warren on the Conewango Creek was removed. Removal of this dam allowed

fish migration Fish migration is mass relocation by fish from one area or body of water to another. Many types of fish migrate on a regular basis, on time scales ranging from daily to annually or longer, and over distances ranging from a few metres to thousa ...

from the Allegheny River throughout the upper reaches of the Conewango Creek

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 ...

. From August 25 through September 4, 2014, saw the demolition of two Civil War-era remnant dams on the Conewango Creek in North Warren, Pennsylvania. One dam was a partially breached low head dam similar to the dam that was removed downriver in Warren in 2009. Because it was located in close proximity to the Warren State Hospital and used to provide a water supply to that facility in years past, this dam was known as the Hospital Dam. The second dam was a remnant rock and crib dam located immediately upriver of the first. With the removal of the Carter Dam in the autumn of 2009 and the hospital dams in 2014, the entirety of the course of the Conewango Creek mainstream are open and free of dams, improving the ecology of the Conewango Creek watershed. Removing the dam was a public safety service, and will reconnect most of the Conewango Creek for freshwater mussel host species.

Pennsylvania River of the Year 2015

On January 16, 2015, it was announced that Conewango Creek won the 2015 Pennsylvania River of the Year contest, an annual competition conducted by the

Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR), established on July 1, 1995, is the agency in the U.S. State of Pennsylvania responsible for maintaining and preserving the state's 124 state parks and 20 state forests; pr ...

and the Pennsylvania Organization for Watersheds and Rivers since 1983. The general public was invited to vote online for the designation from November 10 through December 15, 2014, choosing from among five waterways across the state. The winning organization was the Conewango Creek Watershed Association, a non-profit organization based in North Warren, Pennsylvania, who received a $10,000 grant intended to be used to integrate the "River of the Year" message into a river sojourn focusing on the watershed's history, wildlife, local fisheries, and related topics. Other planned activities included a poker run, special fall celebration, creek cleanup, photo contest, and public water safety courses. The association also planned to explore starting a pilot stream ambassador program.

Natural History

The water of the Conewango sustains two rare fish species. The

burbot The burbot (''Lota lota'') is the only gadiform (cod-like) freshwater fish Freshwater fish are those that spend some or all of their lives in fresh water, such as rivers and lakes, with a salinity of less than 1.05%. These environments di ...

, once common in the headwaters of the Alleghany River but thought to be eradicated has been found in the Conewango. The

paddlefish Paddlefish (family Polyodontidae) are a family of ray-finned fish belonging to order Acipenseriformes, and one of two living groups of the order alongside sturgeons (Acipenseridae). They are distinguished from other fish by their titular elongla ...

, a native fish, was recently reintroduced to the area. The waterway also is home 19 native, freshwater mussel species, and boasts biodiversity rich in river otters,

bald eagles The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche as ...

, ospreys,

herons The herons are long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae, with 72 recognised species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns rather than herons. Members of the genera ''Botaurus'' and ''Ixobrychus ...

, and other wildlife.

References

External links