40°11′5″N76°43′56″W / 40.18472°N 76.73222°W /40.18472; -76.73222
| Swatara Creek | |
|---|---|
 Waterville Bridge over Swatara Creek | |
  | |
| Nickname | Swatty |
| Location | |
| State | Pennsylvania |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Mouth | Susquehanna River |
| Length | 72 miles (116 km) |
Swatara Creek (nicknamed theSwatty) is a 72-mile-long (116 km)[1]tributary of theSusquehanna River in east-centralPennsylvania in theUnited States. It rises in theAppalachian Mountains in centralSchuylkill County and passes through northwestLebanon County before draining into the Susquehanna atMiddletown inDauphin County.
The name "Swatara" is said to derive from aSusquehannock word,Swahadowry orSchaha-dawa, which means "where we feed on eels".[2] Ancient Native Americans built dozens of eel-weirs, V-shaped rock barriers designed to funnel eels to facilitate capture, on the Susquehanna and its tributaries.[3][4]
Swatara Creek rises in theAppalachian Mountains in central Schuylkill County, onBroad Mountain north of theSharp Mountain ridge, approximately 5 miles (8 km) west ofMinersville. It flows southwest in a winding course, passing south ofTremont, then cutting south through the ridges of Sharp Mountain andSecond Mountain. It passes throughSwatara State Park then turns south to pass throughSwatara Gap in theBlue Mountain ridge northwest ofLebanon. After emerging from the ridge the creek flows southwest, north ofHershey, pastHummelstown, and joins the Susquehanna at Royalton, inMiddletown. It receivesQuittapahilla Creek from the east 3 mi (4.8 km) north ofPalmyra.
The creek was a significant transportation route in the colonial period ofNorth America up through the late 19th century. A canal linking the Susquehanna andDelaware valleys in southeastern Pennsylvania was first proposed in 1690 byWilliam Penn, the founder of thePennsylvania Colony. Nearly a century passed before a route for the canal was surveyed byDavid Rittenhouse andWilliam Smith between 1762 and 1770, the first canal ever surveyed in the United States. Spurred by the 1791 discovery ofanthracite in the upper Susquehanna Valley, thePennsylvania General Assembly chartered two companies to undertake the project: theSchuylkill and Susquehanna Navigation Company and theDelaware and Schuylkill Navigation Company. At the time of the initial construction in 1792,Philadelphia was involved in an intense rivalry withBaltimore, Maryland, for supremacy as a shipping port. The canal was backed by Philadelphia businessmen as a means to divert commercial traffic from following the Susquehanna downriver to theChesapeake Bay, its more natural destination. Although the Schuylkill and Susquehanna Navigation Company project failed for lack of funds, the project was restarted and ultimately completed by its successor company, theUnion Canal in 1828.
From west to east, the route of the Schuylkill and Susquehanna Navigation Company canal in 1792 was to follow Swatara Creek upstream from Middletown toQuittapahilla Creek, which it then followed upstream pastLebanon andMyerstown to its headwaters. It then crossed overland to Clarks Run at the headwaters ofTulpehocken Creek, following Tulpehocken Creek downstream toReading on the Schuylkill River. It was to follow the Schuylkill downriver to theDelaware River at Philadelphia. The route of the Union Canal followed the same route up Swatara Creek and continued up the creek toUnion Water Works. The canal then went up Clarks Run to the summit and thence by a 729-foot (222 m) tunnel over toLebanon. The upper course above Union Water Works into the mountains provided the route of a feeder to the main canal, as well as providing a route to ship anthracite from the mountains to Philadelphia.
On September 8, 2011, the creek reached a record height of 26.8 feet (8.2 m) near Hershey, following devastating rains fromTropical Storm Lee and remnants ofHurricane Irene, the highest since measurements began in 1975. Farther upstream at the Harpers Tavern gauge, 24.6 feet (7.5 m) was recorded, making it the worst flooding since 1889. The flooding caused thousands of people to be evacuated from their homes throughout central Pennsylvania, and at least one death.[5]
Severalcovered bridges once crossed Swatara Creek, including the Fiddler's Elbow Covered Bridge, built 1862, nearHummelstown and Clifton Covered Bridge, built 1870, nearMiddletown, both destroyed byHurricane Agnes in 1972. TheSand Beach Covered Bridge burned down in 1966 by arson.
Today, Swatara Creek is part of a national and statewide water trail system,[6] providing outdoor recreation for families canoeing and kayaking a 60-mile (97 km) segment that connects to the Susquehanna River[7] and Captain John Smith water trails.[8]
Three water companies — Suez Water Pennsylvania, American Water,[9] and the Lebanon Water Authority[10] — draw drinking water for hundreds of thousands of residents of the Swatara watershed.
Two ships in theUnited States Navy have been named USSSwatara after the creek:
