Harrison Spring
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Harrison Spring is the largest spring in the U.S. state of
Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...
. It is located in west-central Harrison County, near the Blue River and just north of White Cloud.


The Spring

Several dye trace studies have shown that the
drainage basin A drainage basin is an area of land in which 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, ...
of Harrison Spring is, by Indiana standards, very large. Indian Creek is a major infeeder to the Harrison Springs drainage system as the entire summer flow of Indian Creek can disappear at the Sinks of Indian Creek and re-emerge at Harrison Springs in low-flow conditions, in about one hour. Given that Big Indian Creek – upstream of the Sinks of Indian Creek – drains an area between Corydon and Georgetown, as well as Little Indian Creek (an infeeder to Big Indian) drains an area that runs east of Lanesville, the Indian Creek portion of the Harrison Spring drainage basin alone drains an area of at least . The other major known drainage basin is nearly entirely subsurface karst drainage and includes a known area that runs from Harrison Spring to the north and northeast to Ramsey and Central Barren, just south of
Palmyra Palmyra ( ; Palmyrene dialect, Palmyrene: (), romanized: ''Tadmor''; ) is an ancient city in central Syria. It is located in the eastern part of the Levant, and archaeological finds date back to the Neolithic period, and documents first menti ...
and contains an area of at least . While mapping parts of Binkley's Cave, the largest known cave in Indiana, the cavers of the Indiana Speleological Survey (ISS) have noted that according to their cave mapping data, water in the Blowing Hole section of Binkley's appears to flow under the bed of Indian Creek, near the Sinks of Indian Creek, and resurge at Harrison Spring. This is further proven by dye trace studies performed in the sinkhole plain containing Binkley's Cave. Surface water that sinks into the sinkhole plain in areas near the intersection of Shiloh Road and
Indiana State Road 135 State Road 135 (SR 135) in the U.S. state of Indiana is a road that connects Indianapolis with the Ohio River; for the most part it is a two-lane road except for near Greenwood and Indianapolis. Route description The southern terminus is ...
south of Corydon has been observed to flow through known parts of Binkley's Cave, subterraneally under Indian Creek, exit to the surface at Harrison Spring, and flow to the Blue River. There may be a link under Indian Creek between Harrison Spring and Binkley's Cave. However the route would certainly involve many long cave dives – nothing of which on such a scale has ever been attempted in Indiana. Such a connection would likely greatly expand the known lengths of both caves as there are still significant gaps of unexplored cave in between the two systems. Binkley's currently measures around in length – the longest known cave in Indiana and the seventh longest cave known in the United States – and its known extent is increasing due to the efforts of the ISS. Cave divers led by Dave Strickland have mapped several thousand feet of cave in Harrison Spring – all of which was at a significant depth, and entirely underwater. The rise pool at Harrison Spring measures approximately by . It is within an abandoned meander loop of Blue River. Divers have measured its depth to be about . Harrison Spring has an average discharge of with a flood discharge of up to . The water from the spring overflows into an outlet that travels about before merging with Blue River as a tributary.


History

The spring is privately owned. It was once part of a large farm owned by
United States President The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed For ...
William Henry Harrison William Henry Harrison (February 9, 1773April 4, 1841) was the ninth president of the United States, serving from March 4 to April 4, 1841, the shortest presidency in U.S. history. He was also the first U.S. president to die in office, causin ...
, from whom it gains its name. The spring produced enough water to run a
gristmill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist is grain that h ...
and
sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logging, logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ...
downstream which began operating 1807, making it one of the first in the state.Amazing Tales from Indiana By Fred D. Cavinder, 1990, Pg 6
/ref>Water Resources If Indiana and Ohio, by Frank Leverett, 1897, Pg 483
/ref> The farm was known as Harrison Valley. Harrison had planned to make it a plantation similar to Grouseland, and a shipyard. However, the outlawing of slavery by the
Indiana Constitution The Constitution of Indiana is the highest body of state law in the U.S. state of Indiana. It establishes the structure and function of the state and is based on the principles of federalism and Jacksonian democracy. Indiana's constitution is su ...
of 1816 made this impossible. The spring was registered as a
National Natural Landmark The National Natural Landmarks (NNL) Program recognizes and encourages the conservation of outstanding examples of the natural history of the United States. It is the only national natural areas program that identifies and recognizes the best e ...
in 1980, but is not open to the public.


References

* 2007 NSS Convention Guidebook: Bassett 2007: pages 212–217


External links


Harrison Spring: One of the Largest in the Midwest


{{authority control Springs of Indiana Bodies of water of Harrison County, Indiana National Natural Landmarks in Indiana