Cheat River
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| Cheat River | |
| River | |
 The Cheat River from Cooper's Rock Overlook
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| Country |  United States |
|---|---|
| States |  Pennsylvania,  West Virginia |
| County | Fayette PA, Monongalia WV, Preston WV, Tucker WV |
| Tributaries | |
| - right | Big Sandy Creek |
| Source | Shavers Fork [1] |
| - elevation | 4,620 ft (1,408 m) |
| - coordinates | |
| Secondary source | Black Fork [2] |
| - location | Hendricks, West Virginia |
| - elevation | 1,700 ft (518 m) |
| - coordinates | |
| Source confluence | |
| - location | Parsons, WV |
| - elevation | 1,621 ft (494 m) |
| - coordinates | |
| Mouth | Monongahela River [3] |
| - location | Point Marion, PA |
| - elevation | 760 ft (232 m) |
| - coordinates | |
| Length | 78 mi (126 km) [4] |
| Basin | 1,423 sq mi (3,686 km²) [4] |
| Discharge | for Rowlesburg, WV |
| - average | 3,880 cu ft/s (110 m³/s) [5] |
| - max | 7,000 cu ft/s (198 m³/s) |
| - min | 908 cu ft/s (26 m³/s) |
| Discharge elsewhere (average) | |
| - Parsons, WV | 3,700 cu ft/s (105 m³/s) [6] |
 Map of the Monongahela River basin, with the Cheat River highlighted.
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The Cheat River is a tributary of the Monongahela River in eastern West Virginia and southwestern Pennsylvania in the United States. Via the Monongahela and Ohio Rivers, it is part of the Mississippi River watershed.
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[edit] Geography
The Cheat is formed at Parsons, West Virginia by the confluence of its Shavers and Black Forks; the Black Fork is fed by the Blackwater River and the Dry, Glady, and Laurel Forks, all of which are considered primary forks of the Cheat. From Parsons the river flows generally northward through Tucker and Preston Counties, past the towns of Rowlesburg and Albright. The Cheat flows northeastwardly from Albright, collecting Big Sandy Creek before entering Monongalia County, where a hydro-electric dam just south of the Pennsylvania border causes it to widen as the Cheat Lake reservoir. It then flows for a short distance through southwestern Fayette County, Pennsylvania before joining the Monongahela River at Point Marion, Pennsylvania. Upstream of its dam, the Cheat is one of the largest undammed watersheds in the eastern United States.
Cheat Mountain, a high and rugged ridge, runs about 50 miles southward starting at its northernmost tip, just a few miles west of the confluence at Parsons.
[edit] Name
The Delaware Indian name for Cheat was reportedly Ach-sin-ha-nac meaning "stony river". "Cheat River" is variously reported to have been named for (1) a French explorer (or an Indian) named Cheat or Chaet, (2) an abundance of cheat grass along its banks (possibly a misidentification of frost-killed wheat), or (3) deceptively deep pools that presumably "cheated" men of their lives by drowning them. None of these theories has good documentary support, but the one referring to deep pools and drowning is probably most often cited. (A relatively recent source stated that Cheat Mountain got its name because so many loggers had been cheated of their lives while working on it, an apparent variation of the Cheat River story.)
[edit] Historical names
According to the Geographic Names Information System,[3] the Cheat River has formerly been known as:
- Ach-sin-ha-nac
- Achsinhanac
- Cheal River
- Chealt River
- Eleat River
- Wilmoths River
[edit] History
[edit] Early history
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Please help improve this section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion. |
[edit] 1985 flood
In November 1985, heavy rains caused a massive flood on the Cheat, essentially wiping out the small town of Albright. The river flow was estimated at 190,000 cubic feet per second, much larger than normal flows ranging from 1,000 to 5,000 cubic feet per second. The massive flood also caused the Cheat River to leave its banks and flood the small town of Rowlesburg, West Virginia. The town of Rowlesburg lost a lot of business and many families left their homes or the land that they owned. The flood also wiped out the school in Rowlesburg, which caused the consolidation of a high school for the county.
[edit] Pollution
In the vicinity of Albright, the Cheat has been plagued by pollution, notably acid mine drainage. Although the rocks downstream of Albright have been stained a rust brown, and the river has a very low fish population below Albright, water quality has been making slow improvements since the 1990s. Friends of the Cheat, the local river advocacy organization, has been instrumental in promoting remediation, cleanup, river stewardship, and education.
[edit] Whitewater recreation
The Cheat Canyon section of the Cheat River (from Albright, WV to Jenkinsburg, WV), which features Class IV rapids (and Class V rapids at upper levels), has become a favorite destination for whitewater kayaking and rafting. On the first weekend in May of every year, paddlers gather from many states to attend the Cheat Festival. A very popular whitewater race -- The Cheat River Race -- takes place in the 10 mile Cheat Canyon on the Friday of that weekend. Unlike the overwhelming majority of whitewater races, which employ a staggered start, this race uses a mass start (in which all participants start at the same time). For the first few miles, paddlers must avoid one another, in addition to the whitewater hazards that the river presents. The race, which usually attracts 150 people, is often cited at the largest whitewater race in existence.
The Cheat Narrows section of the Cheat River (upstream of Albright, WV) is also utilized by whitewater paddlers, and features Class II and III rapids.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ USGS GNIS: Shavers Fork, retrieved March 13, 2007.
- ^ USGS GNIS: Black Fork
- ^ a b USGS GNIS: Cheat River
- ^ a b Kosky, James P.E.; Lessons Learned: Cheat River and Tygart River Flood Warning Systems; retrieved from stormwatch.com March 13, 2007.
- ^ United States Geological Survey; USGS 03069870 CHEAT RIVER AT HWY 50 NEAR ROWLESBURG, WV; retrieved March 13, 2007.
- ^ United States Geological Survey; USGS 03069500 CHEAT RIVER NEAR PARSONS, WV; retrieved March 13, 2007.
[edit] External links
- U.S. Geological Survey: PA stream gaging stations
- National whitewater River Inventory: Cheat Narrows
- National whitewater River Inventory: Cheat Canyon
- Friends of the Cheat
- Mouth or other endpoint (Monongahela River) is at coordinates
- Source (Parsons) is at coordinates
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