| Chiques Creek | |
|---|---|
 Kauffman's Distillery Covered Bridge spans Chiques Creek in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania | |
 | |
| Location | |
| Country | Lebanon andLancaster Counties,Pennsylvania,United States |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | |
| • location | Mount Gretna Heights, Pennsylvania |
| • elevation | 1,100 feet (340 m) |
| Mouth | |
• location | Susquehanna River atMarietta, Pennsylvania |
• elevation | 230 feet (70 m) |
| Length | 31.6 mi (50.9 km) |
| Basin size | 126 mi2 (330 km2) |
Chiques Creek (known asChickies Creek until 2002) is a 31.6-mile-long (50.9 km)[1]tributary of theSusquehanna River inLebanon andLancaster counties,Pennsylvania in theUnited States.
The source is at an elevation of 1,100 feet (340 m) nearMount Gretna Heights in Lebanon County. The mouth is theconfluence with the Susquehanna River at an elevation of 230 feet (70 m) atMarietta in Lancaster County.[2]
The name of the creek comes from theLenapeChiquesalunga, meaning "place ofcrayfish".[3]
TheUnited States Geological Survey Board on Geographic Names has made three official decisions on the name of the creek, deciding it wasChickies Creek in 1896 and 1916 before changing it toChiques Creek in 2002. The USGSGeographic Names Information System recognizes the following thirteen variant names for the creek: Big Chickies Creek, Big Chiques Creek, Big Chiquesalunga Creek, Chickesalapga Creek, Chickeswalungo Creek, Chickies Creek, Chickisalungo Creek, Chicques Creek, Chikiswalunga Creek, Chikiswalungo Creek, Chiquasatunga Creek, Chiquesatonga Creek, and Chiquesatunga Creek.[4]
Chiques Creek flows generally south for its entire course. The Chickies Creek watershed has a total area of 126 square miles (330 km2) and is part of the largerChesapeake Baydrainage basin. Chiques Creek's major tributary isLittle Chiques Creek, entering roughly one mile upstream its mouth. (hence the variant names with Big in them for the main creek).[5]
Five covered bridges cross the creek in Lancaster County:
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
40°07′21″N76°27′29″W / 40.12248°N 76.45806°W /40.12248; -76.45806
