Greenbrier River - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Greenbrier River is a tributary

Tributary

A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...

of the New River, 173 miles (278.4 km) long, in southeastern West Virginia

West Virginia

West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...

, USA. Via the New, Kanawha

Kanawha River

The Kanawha River is a tributary of the Ohio River, approximately 97 mi long, in the U.S. state of West Virginia. The largest inland waterway in West Virginia, it has formed a significant industrial region of the state since the middle of the 19th century.It is formed at the town of Gauley...

and Ohio

Ohio River

The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...

Rivers, it is part of the watershed

Drainage basin

A drainage basin is an extent or an area of land where surface water from rain and melting snow or ice converges to a single point, usually the exit of the basin, where the waters join another waterbody, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea, or ocean...

of the Mississippi River

Mississippi River

The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...

, draining an area of 1656 square miles (4,289 km²). It is one of the longest rivers in West Virginia.

Course

The Greenbrier is formed at Durbin

Durbin, West Virginia

Durbin is a town in Pocahontas County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 262 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Durbin is situated in the northern part of Pocahontas County at the confluence of the East and West Forks of the Greenbrier River. It is thus the starting point of the...

in northern Pocahontas County

Pocahontas County, West Virginia

As of the census of 2000, there were 9,131 people, 835 households, and 527 families residing in the county. The population density was 10 people per square mile . There were 7,594 housing units at an average density of 8 per square mile...

by the confluence of the East Fork Greenbrier River and the West Fork Greenbrier River, both of which are short streams rising at elevations exceeding 3300 feet (1,005.8 m) and flowing for their entire lengths in northern Pocahontas County. From Durbin the Greenbrier flows generally south-southwest through Pocahontas, Greenbrier

Greenbrier County, West Virginia

As of the census of 2000, there were 34,453 people, 14,571 households, and 9,922 families residing in the county. The population density was 34 people per square mile . There were 17,644 housing units at an average density of 17 per square mile...

and Summers

Summers County, West Virginia

Summers County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2010 census, the population was 13,927. Its county seat is Hinton. Summers County was created by an act of the West Virginia General Assembly on February 27, 1871 from parts of Fayette, Greenbrier, Mercer and Monroe...

Counties, past several communities including Cass

Cass, West Virginia

Cass is an unincorporated census-designated place on the Greenbrier River in Pocahontas County, West Virginia, USA. As of the 2010 census, its population was 52...

, Marlinton

Marlinton, West Virginia

Marlinton is a town in Pocahontas County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 1,204 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Pocahontas County.-History:...

, Hillsboro

Hillsboro, West Virginia

Hillsboro is a town in Pocahontas County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 243 at the 2000 census.- History :Hillsboro was named for pioneer John Hill, from North Carolina, who built a log cabin near what is now Lobelia...

, Ronceverte

Ronceverte, West Virginia

Ronceverte is a city in Greenbrier County, West Virginia, on the Greenbrier River. The population was 1,557 at the 2000 census.- Culture and History :...

, Fort Spring

Fort Spring

Fort Spring is an unincorporated community in Greenbrier County, West Virginia, USA. It is situated along the Greenbrier River within the Greenbrier River Watershed. It was once a substantial portion of the Chesapeake and Ohio railway by way of the Gravel Girtie route from Hinton in Summers...

, Alderson

Alderson, West Virginia

Alderson, a town in the US State of West Virginia, is split geographically by the Greenbrier River, with portions in both Greenbrier and Monroe Counties. Although split physically by the river, the town functions as one entity, including that of town government...

, and Hinton

Hinton, West Virginia

Hinton is a city in Summers County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 2,880 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Summers County. Hinton was established in 1873 and chartered in 1897. Hinton was named for John "Jack" Hinton, a prominent lawyer of Summers County and husband of...

, where it flows into the New River.

History

Along most of its course, the Greenbrier accommodated the celebrated Indian warpath known as the Seneca Trail (Great Indian Warpath

Great Indian Warpath

The Great Indian Warpath — also known as the Great Indian War and Trading Path, or the Seneca Trail — was that part of the network of trails in eastern North America developed and used by Native Americans which ran through the Great Appalachian Valley...

). From the vicinity of present-day White Sulphur Springs

White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia

White Sulphur Springs is a city in Greenbrier County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 2,444 at the 2010 census.-Geography:White Sulphur Springs is located at ....

the Trail followed Anthony’s Creek down to the Greenbrier near the present Pocahontas

Pocahontas County, West Virginia

-Greenbrier County

Greenbrier County, West Virginia

line. It then ascended the River to the vicinity of Hillsboro

Hillsboro, West Virginia

and Droop Mountain

Droop Mountain

Droop Mountain is a small mountain in the Allegheny Mountains on the border of Greenbrier and Pocahontas counties in southeastern West Virginia. It was the scene of one of West Virginia's most important battles during the American Civil War—the Battle of Droop Mountain.Droop Mountain, rising...

and made its way through present Pocahontas County by way of future Marlinton

Marlinton, West Virginia

Marlinton is a town in Pocahontas County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 1,204 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Pocahontas County.-History:...

, Indian Draft Run, and Edray

Edray, West Virginia

Edray is an unincorporated community in Pocahontas County, West Virginia, United States. Edray is located near U.S. Route 219 and West Virginia Route 55 north of Marlinton....

Uses

The Greenbrier is the longest untamed (unblocked) river left in the Eastern United States

Eastern United States

The Eastern United States, the American East, or simply the East is traditionally defined as the states east of the Mississippi River. The first two tiers of states west of the Mississippi have traditionally been considered part of the West, but can be included in the East today; usually in...

. It is heavily used for recreation

Recreation

Recreation is an activity of leisure, leisure being discretionary time. The "need to do something for recreation" is an essential element of human biology and psychology. Recreational activities are often done for enjoyment, amusement, or pleasure and are considered to be "fun"...

al pursuits. Its upper reaches flow through the Monongahela National Forest

Monongahela National Forest

The Monongahela National Forest is a national forest located in the Allegheny Mountains of eastern West Virginia, USA. It protects over of federally-owned land within a proclamation boundary that includes much of the Potomac Highlands Region and portions of 10 counties.The MNF includes some...

, and it is paralleled for 77 miles (123.9 km) by the Greenbrier River Trail

Greenbrier River Trail

The Greenbrier River Trail is a rail trail operated by West Virginia State Parks. The trail is a long former railroad, now used for hiking, bicycling, ski-touring, horseback-riding, and wheel-chair use. The trail passes through numerous small towns and traverses 35 bridges and 2 tunnels as it...

, a rail trail

Rail trail

A rail trail is the conversion of a disused railway easement into a multi-use path, typically for walking, cycling and sometimes horse riding. The characteristics of former tracks—flat, long, frequently running through historical areas—are appealing for various development. The term sometimes also...

which runs between the communities of Cass

Cass

-Surnames:* Brian Cass* David Cass , American economist* Elizabeth Cass* Frederick Cass* George Washington Cass* Godfrey Cass* Harriet Cass* John Cass , English politician and philanthropist...

and North Caldwell

Caldwell

- People with the surname Caldwell :* Alexander Caldwell, American politician* Alfred Caldwell, American landscape architect* Andre Caldwell, American football player* Anne Caldwell, American librettist* Ben Caldwell, cartoonist...

.

It has always been a valuable water route, with the majority of the important cities in the watershed

Drainage basin

being established riverports. The river gives the receiving waters of the New River an estimated 30% of its water volume. Over three-fourths of the watershed is an extensive karst

KARST

Kilometer-square Area Radio Synthesis Telescope is a Chinese telescope project to which FAST is a forerunner. KARST is a set of large spherical reflectors on karst landforms, which are bowlshaped limestone sinkholes named after the Kras region in Slovenia and Northern Italy. It will consist of...

ic (cavern system), which supports fine trout fishing, cave exploration and recreation. Many important festival

Festival

A festival or gala is an event, usually and ordinarily staged by a local community, which centers on and celebrates some unique aspect of that community and the Festival....

s and public events are held along the river throughout the watershed.

In honor of the river's use in the state's logging

Logging

Logging is the cutting, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks.In forestry, the term logging is sometimes used in a narrow sense concerning the logistics of moving wood from the stump to somewhere outside the forest, usually a sawmill or a lumber yard...

history, the West Virginia

West Virginia

State Park

State park

State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the federated state level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, or recreational...

, Cass Scenic Railroad in Cass

Cass

-Surnames:* Brian Cass* David Cass , American economist* Elizabeth Cass* Frederick Cass* George Washington Cass* Godfrey Cass* Harriet Cass* John Cass , English politician and philanthropist...

has a car called "The Greenbrier River."http://www.cassrailroad.com/whittaker.html

Variant names

According to the Geographic Names Information System

Geographic Names Information System

The Geographic Names Information System is a database that contains name and locative information about more than two million physical and cultural features located throughout the United States of America and its territories. It is a type of gazetteer...

, the Greenbrier River has also been known historically as:

Green Briar River
Green Brier River
Green Bryar River
Greenbriar River
O-ne-pa-ke (Lenape for Dark Path)
O-ne-pa-ke-cepe (Lenape for Dark Path Water or River)
Onepake
Riviere de la Ronceverte (River of the Greenbrier)
We-o-to-we
We-o-to-we-cepe-we
Weotowe

Caves and karst

The unique karstlands of the Greenbrier River Valley — underlain by the Greenbrier Limestone

Greenbrier Limestone

The Greenbrier Limestone, also known locally as the "Big Lime", is an extensive limestone unit deposited during the Middle Mississippian Epoch , part of the Carboniferous Period. This rock stratum is present below ground in much of West Virginia and neighboring Kentucky, and extends somewhat into...

Formation — constitute one of the world's densest sinkhole

Sinkhole

A sinkhole, also known as a sink, shake hole, swallow hole, swallet, doline or cenote, is a natural depression or hole in the Earth's surface caused by karst processes — the chemical dissolution of carbonate rocks or suffosion processes for example in sandstone...

plains, with an average of 18 sinkholes per square kilometer. This green "moonscape" of collapsed craters is a unique problem for development as the ground is prone to subsidization. It is impossible to tell how large a cave system is by looking at the surface, and developers often build their structures too close to the open spaces beneath the ground. There is no current karst

KARST

protection plan for any of the counties that are involved with this problem. A booklet describing the issues of the watershed, "What's All the Fuss About Karst?" has been placed online to help residents along the Greenbrier understand their unique region:

The aggregated caves and karst

KARST

of the Greenbrier River Valley

Valley

In geology, a valley or dale is a depression with predominant extent in one direction. A very deep river valley may be called a canyon or gorge.The terms U-shaped and V-shaped are descriptive terms of geography to characterize the form of valleys...

are among the world's Top Ten Endangered Karst Ecosystem

Ecosystem

An ecosystem is a biological environment consisting of all the organisms living in a particular area, as well as all the nonliving , physical components of the environment with which the organisms interact, such as air, soil, water and sunlight....

s as listed by the Karst Waters Institute in 2001.

West Virginia State Fossil

American vertebrate paleontology

Vertebrate paleontology

Vertebrate paleontology is a large subfield to paleontology seeking to discover the behavior, reproduction and appearance of extinct animals with vertebrae or a notochord, through the study of their fossilized remains...

arguably began in the sub-watershed of Second Creek, a Greenbrier tributary. Bones discovered by saltpeter

Potassium nitrate

Potassium nitrate is a chemical compound with the formula KNO3. It is an ionic salt of potassium ions K+ and nitrate ions NO3−.It occurs as a mineral niter and is a natural solid source of nitrogen. Its common names include saltpetre , from medieval Latin sal petræ: "stone salt" or possibly "Salt...

miners in Haynes Cave

Haynes Cave

Haynes Cave is a cave within the Greenbrier River watershed in West Virginia. It sits within the complex hydrology of the historic Second Creek watershed in Monroe County....

close to the river in Monroe County

Monroe County, West Virginia

As of the census of 2000, there were 14,583 people, 5,447 households, and 3,883 families residing in the county. The population density was 31 people per square mile . There were 7,267 housing units at an average density of 15 per square mile...

were sent to (future President) Thomas Jefferson

Thomas Jefferson

Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...

, who identified them as a previously unknown species. Without a skull for identification purposes, Jefferson used the eight-inch claws as an identifying mark, and named the skeleton, Megalonyx
Megalonyx
Megalonyx is an extinct genus of giant ground sloths of the family Megalonychidae endemic to North America from the Hemphillian of the Late Miocene through to the Rancholabrean of the Pleistocene, living from ~10.3 Mya—11,000 years ago, existing for approximately .-Taxonomy:The generic name...

or "Great Claw". Later the bones were positively identified as that of a giant ground sloth. The name "jeffersonii" was later added to it in tribute. For years the sloth was mistakenly thought to be from another cave within the watershed, Organ Cave

Organ Cave

Organ Cave is a large and historic cave in Greenbrier County, West Virginia, USA. The surrounding community takes its name from the cave.In November 1973, the Organ Cave System — also known as the Organ-Hendricks Cave System — was registered as a National Natural Landmark for being "the largest...

, but recent research indicates that Haynes Cave

Haynes Cave

Haynes Cave is a cave within the Greenbrier River watershed in West Virginia. It sits within the complex hydrology of the historic Second Creek watershed in Monroe County....

was the cave of origin. The Megalonyx jeffersonii
Megalonyx jeffersonii
Megalonyx jeffersonii, or Jefferson's ground sloth, is an extinct species of giant ground sloth that lived from the Illinoian Stage during the Middle Pleistocene through to the Rancholabrean of the Late Pleistocene . Its closest living relatives are the two-toed tree sloths of the genus...

is now the state fossil

Fossil

Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...

of West Virginia

West Virginia

West Virginia State Gemstone

The West Virginia

West Virginia

state gemstone

Gemstone

A gemstone or gem is a piece of mineral, which, in cut and polished form, is used to make jewelry or other adornments...

is also part of the Greenbrier River watershed

Drainage basin

: The Lithostrotionella, a fossilized form of coral that is found in the Hillsdale Limestone group in Pocahontas

Pocahontas

Pocahontas was a Virginia Indian notable for her association with the colonial settlement at Jamestown, Virginia. She was the daughter of Chief Powhatan, the head of a network of tributary tribal nations in Tidewater Virginia...

and Greenbrier

Greenbrier

Greenbrier is the common name of the plant genus Smilax. It may also refer to:Places, United States*Greenbrier, Arkansas*Greenbrier, Orange County, Indiana*Greenbrier, Warrick County, Indiana*Greenbrier, Tennessee, in Robertson County...

counties. Not an official gemstone, it is a siliceous chalcedony

Chalcedony

Chalcedony is a cryptocrystalline form of silica, composed of very fine intergrowths of the minerals quartz and moganite. These are both silica minerals, but they differ in that quartz has a trigonal crystal structure, while moganite is monoclinic...

. It is found almost exclusively within Greenbrier

Greenbrier

and Pocahontas

Pocahontas

counties.

Ecology

The Greenbrier hosts one of the state's two endemic species of salamander

Salamander

Salamander is a common name of approximately 500 species of amphibians. They are typically characterized by a superficially lizard-like appearance, with their slender bodies, short noses, and long tails. All known fossils and extinct species fall under the order Caudata, while sometimes the extant...

s, the West Virginia Spring Salamander

West Virginia Spring Salamander

The West Virginia Spring Salamander is a species of salamander in the Plethodontidae family.It is endemic to the United States.Its natural habitats are inland karsts and caves.It is threatened by habitat loss....

in Fort Spring

Fort Spring

. The other salamander, the Cheat Mountain Salamander

Cheat Mountain salamander

The Cheat Mountain salamander is a small, threatened woodland salamander found only on Cheat Mountain, and a few nearby mountains, in the eastern highlands of West Virginia...

lives in the mountains of the headwaters.

The Candy Darter of Knapp Creek (Finescale saddled darter

Finescale saddled darter

The finescale saddled darter is a species of fish in the Percidae family. It is endemic to the United States....

) is a survivor to when the Greenbrier followed a more ancient drainage

Drainage

Drainage is the natural or artificial removal of surface and sub-surface water from an area. Many agricultural soils need drainage to improve production or to manage water supplies.-Early history:...

pattern with Teays Valley.

Threats to the Greenbrier

The river is vulnerable to Nonpoint source pollution

Nonpoint source pollution

Nonpoint source pollution refers to both water and air pollution from diffuse sources. Nonpoint source water pollution affects a water body from sources such as polluted runoff from agricultural areas draining into a river, or wind-borne debris blowing out to sea. Nonpoint source air pollution...

and sediment

Sediment

Sediment is naturally occurring material that is broken down by processes of weathering and erosion, and is subsequently transported by the action of fluids such as wind, water, or ice, and/or by the force of gravity acting on the particle itself....

from timbering and flooding. It has been on the WV List of Impaired Streams since 2006 for the contamination of fecal coliform bacteria

Bacteria

Bacteria are a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria have a wide range of shapes, ranging from spheres to rods and spirals...

. Algae

Algae

Algae are a large and diverse group of simple, typically autotrophic organisms, ranging from unicellular to multicellular forms, such as the giant kelps that grow to 65 meters in length. They are photosynthetic like plants, and "simple" because their tissues are not organized into the many...

is becoming a known nuisance upon the waters, primarily in warm weather, and there is a need to study how much water can be pulled out of the river to supply the needs of communities in a state that practices little in the way of water conservation, even in times of drought. The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection and various concerned citizen groups are working to prevent further stresses upon the river.

On December 17, 2009 the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection's James Summers released a report on its findings of algae

Algae

in West Virginia

West Virginia

rivers. The Greenbrier was deemed the most algae-affected river in the state, due to nutrient source tracking. Steps are currently being made to address this issue.

Maps

The New River Atlas has successfully mapped the Greenbrier from Ronceverte to Hinton, West Virginia

Hinton, West Virginia

. The Atlas shows the original batteau channels and historic man-made impacts.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

Course

History

Uses

Variant names

Caves and karst

West Virginia State Fossil

West Virginia State Gemstone

Ecology

Threats to the Greenbrier

Maps

See also

External links