Saluda River
Encyclopedia
The Saluda River is a principal 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 Congaree River
Congaree River
The Congaree River is a short but wide river in South Carolina in the United States; It flows for only 47 miles . The river serves an important role as the final outlet channel for the entire Lower Saluda and Lower Broad watersheds, before merging with the Wateree River just north of Lake Marion to...

, about 200 mi (320 km) long, in northern and western South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...

 in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. Via the Congaree River, 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 Santee River
Santee River
The Santee River is a river in South Carolina in the United States, long. The Santee and its tributaries provide the principal drainage and navigation for the central coastal plain of South Carolina, emptying into the Atlantic Ocean approximately from its farthest headwater on the Catawba River...

, which flows to the Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...

.

Course

The Saluda River is formed about 10 mi (15 km) northwest of the city of Greenville
Greenville, South Carolina
-Law and government:The city of Greenville adopted the Council-Manager form of municipal government in 1976.-History:The area was part of the Cherokee Nation's protected grounds after the Treaty of 1763, which ended the French and Indian War. No White man was allowed to enter, though some families...

, on the common boundary of Greenville
Greenville County, South Carolina
- External Links :*...

 and Pickens Counties, by the confluence of its north and south forks, each of which rises in the Blue Ridge Mountains
Blue Ridge Mountains
The Blue Ridge Mountains are a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian Mountains range. This province consists of northern and southern physiographic regions, which divide near the Roanoke River gap. The mountain range is located in the eastern United States, starting at its southern-most...

 very near the border of North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...

:
  • The North Saluda River flows generally south-southwestwardly through northern Greenville County, past Marietta
    Slater-Marietta, South Carolina
    Slater-Marietta is a census-designated place in Greenville County, South Carolina, United States, along the North Saluda River. The population was 2,228 at the 2000 census...

    .
  • The South Saluda River flows generally southeastwardly on the Greenville-Pickens County border, receiving the Oolenoy River
    Oolenoy River
    The Oolenoy River is a minor tributary of the Saluda River sourced near Sassafras Mountain in northern Pickens County, South Carolina. Approximately 37 miles in length, it empties into the South Fork Saluda River near the Pumpkintown Community. It is part of the Santee River System....

     and the Middle Saluda River, which rises in Jones Gap State Park
    Jones Gap State Park
    Jones Gap State Park is a large park located in northern Greenville County, South Carolina. Combined with the nearby Caesars Head State Park, Jones Gap forms the Mountain Bridge Wilderness Area on the Blue Ridge Escarpment....

     and flows generally southward through northwestern Greenville County.


From this confluence the Saluda River flows generally southeastwardly through the Piedmont
Piedmont (United States)
The Piedmont is a plateau region located in the eastern United States between the Atlantic Coastal Plain and the main Appalachian Mountains, stretching from New Jersey in the north to central Alabama in the south. The Piedmont province is a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian division...

 region, through or along the boundaries of Pickens, Greenville, Anderson
Anderson County, South Carolina
-Demographics:As of the census of 2010, there were 187,126 people and 70,597 households residing in the county. The population density was 260.6 people per square mile . There were 84,092 housing units...

, Abbeville
Abbeville County, South Carolina
Abbeville County is a county located in the U.S. state of South Carolina. In 2010, its population was 25,147. Its county seat is Abbeville. It is the first county in the United States alphabetically.-History:...

, Laurens, Greenwood, Newberry, Lexington and Richland
Richland County, South Carolina
Richland County is a county located in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The 2000 U.S. census recorded its population to be 320,677. In 2010, the U.S. Census Bureau recorded that its population had reached 384,504. It is the second most populous county in South Carolina, behind only Greenville...

 Counties, past the towns of Piedmont
Piedmont, South Carolina
Piedmont is a census-designated place along the Saluda River in Anderson and Greenville counties in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 4,684 at the 2000 census....

, West Pelzer
West Pelzer, South Carolina
West Pelzer is a town in Anderson County, South Carolina, United States, along the Saluda River. The population was 879 at the 2000 census.-Geography:West Pelzer is located at ....

, Pelzer
Pelzer, South Carolina
Pelzer is a town in Anderson County, South Carolina, United States, along the Saluda River. The population was 97 at the 2000 census.-Government:As of 2010 the town was governed by a Mayor and four council members, for a population of 89.-Geography:...

, Ware Shoals
Ware Shoals, South Carolina
Ware Shoals is a town in Abbeville, Greenwood, and Laurens counties in the U.S. state of South Carolina, along the Saluda River. The population was 2,363 at the 2000 census....

 and West Columbia
West Columbia, South Carolina
West Columbia is a city in Lexington County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 13,064 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Columbia, South Carolina Metropolitan Statistical Area....

. It joins the Broad River
Broad River (Carolinas)
The Broad River is a principal tributary of the Congaree River, about 150 miles long, in western North Carolina and northern South Carolina in the United States. Via the Congaree, it is part of the watershed of the Santee River, which flows to the Atlantic Ocean...

 in Columbia
Columbia, South Carolina
Columbia is the state capital and largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 129,272 according to the 2010 census. Columbia is the county seat of Richland County, but a portion of the city extends into neighboring Lexington County. The city is the center of a metropolitan...

 to form the Congaree River.

Dams

Dams on the Saluda include:
  • The uppermost dam on the Saluda River, on the border of Greenville
    Greenville, South Carolina
    -Law and government:The city of Greenville adopted the Council-Manager form of municipal government in 1976.-History:The area was part of the Cherokee Nation's protected grounds after the Treaty of 1763, which ended the French and Indian War. No White man was allowed to enter, though some families...

     and Pickens Counties, forming Saluda Lake
    Saluda Lake
    Saluda Lake is a reservoir formed by a spillway from the uppermost dam on the Saluda River in South Carolina, United States. The lake was constructed in 1905 for the purpose of creating hydroelectric power. Duke Power Company formerly owned the lake then sold it to North Brook Energy, LLC....

  • Lake Saluda Reservoir Dam near Berea
    Berea, South Carolina
    Berea is a census-designated place in Greenville County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 14,158 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Greenville–Mauldin–Easley Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...

    .
  • the old textile mill dam in Piedmont
    Piedmont, South Carolina
    Piedmont is a census-designated place along the Saluda River in Anderson and Greenville counties in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 4,684 at the 2000 census....

  • The textile mill dam at Pelzer
    Pelzer, South Carolina
    Pelzer is a town in Anderson County, South Carolina, United States, along the Saluda River. The population was 97 at the 2000 census.-Government:As of 2010 the town was governed by a Mayor and four council members, for a population of 89.-Geography:...

  • The Pelzer Mills Dam, near Williamston
    Williamston, South Carolina
    Williamston is a town in Anderson County, South Carolina, United States, The population was 3,791 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Williamston is located at ....

  • The Lee Steam Plant Dam near Williamston
  • The Holiday Dam near Belton
    Belton, South Carolina
    Belton is a city in eastern Anderson County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 4,461 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Belton is located at ....

  • a still-operating dam built to power the textile mill in Ware Shoals
    Ware Shoals, South Carolina
    Ware Shoals is a town in Abbeville, Greenwood, and Laurens counties in the U.S. state of South Carolina, along the Saluda River. The population was 2,363 at the 2000 census....

  • Greenwood dam, creating Lake Greenwood
    Lake Greenwood (South Carolina)
    Lake Greenwood is formed by a hydroelectric dam across the Saluda River. The lake has of shoreline and . The Reedy River joins the Saluda at Lake Greenwood. Lake Greenwood is used for recreational boating and fishing....

  • Dreher Shoals Dam creating Lake Murray
    Lake Murray (South Carolina)
    Lake Murray is a reservoir in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It is approximately 50,000 acres in size, and has roughly 500 miles of shoreline. It was impounded in the late 1920s to provide hydroelectric power to the state of South Carolina. Lake Murray is fed by the Saluda River, which flows...


Principal tributaries

  • The Reedy River
    Reedy River
    The Reedy River is a tributary of the Saluda River, about long, in northwestern South Carolina in the United States. Via the Saluda and Congaree Rivers, it is part of the watershed of the Santee River, which flows to the Atlantic Ocean....

     flows into Lake Greenwood from the north in Laurens County.
  • The Little River flows into the Saluda from the north in Newberry County.
  • The Bush River
    Bush River (South Carolina)
    The Bush River is a tributary of the Saluda River, 30 mi long, in the Piedmont region of western South Carolina in the United States. Via the Saluda and Congaree Rivers, it is part of the watershed of the Santee River, which flows to the Atlantic Ocean....

     flows into Lake Murray from the north in Newberry County.
  • The Little Saluda River flows into Lake Murray from the south in Saluda County; it is formed at the town of Saluda
    Saluda, South Carolina
    Saluda is a town in Saluda County, South Carolina, along the Little Saluda River. The population was 3,066 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Saluda County.Saluda is part of the Columbia, South Carolina Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...

     by the confluence of Mine Creek and Red Bank Creek.

Crossings

As it travels downstream, the Saluda river is crossed several times. (Note: this list may at times be incomplete)
  • Greenville County/Pickens County/Anderson County
    • New Easley Highway (U.S. 123)
    • Old Easley Highway
    • Anderson Road (Old Dunham Bridge - S.C. 81)
    • Interstate 85
      Interstate 85
      Interstate 85 is a major interstate highway in the Southeastern United States. Its current southern terminus is at an interchange with Interstate 65 in Montgomery, Alabama; its northern terminus interchanges with Interstate 95 in Petersburg, Virginia, near Richmond...

    • Anderson Street in Piedmont, South Carolina
      Piedmont, South Carolina
      Piedmont is a census-designated place along the Saluda River in Anderson and Greenville counties in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 4,684 at the 2000 census....

       (S.C. 86)
    • Piedmont Highway (S.C. 20) in Pelzer, South Carolina
      Pelzer, South Carolina
      Pelzer is a town in Anderson County, South Carolina, United States, along the Saluda River. The population was 97 at the 2000 census.-Government:As of 2010 the town was governed by a Mayor and four council members, for a population of 89.-Geography:...

    • S.C. 8 in Pelzer
    • Lee Steam Plant Road
    • Cooley Bridge Road in Belton, South Carolina
      Belton, South Carolina
      Belton is a city in eastern Anderson County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 4,461 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Belton is located at ....

    • Holiday Dam Road
    • U.S. 76 in Honea Path, South Carolina
      Honea Path, South Carolina
      Honea Path is a town in Abbeville and Anderson counties in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 3,504 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Honea Path is located at ....

  • Laurens County/Abbeville County/Greenwood County
    • Erwin Mill Road
    • S.C. 252 (Old Bridge) in Ware Shoals, South Carolina
      Ware Shoals, South Carolina
      Ware Shoals is a town in Abbeville, Greenwood, and Laurens counties in the U.S. state of South Carolina, along the Saluda River. The population was 2,363 at the 2000 census....

    • East Main Street in Ware Shoals
    • S.C. 25 in Ware Shoals
  • Lake Greenwood
    Lake Greenwood (South Carolina)
    Lake Greenwood is formed by a hydroelectric dam across the Saluda River. The lake has of shoreline and . The Reedy River joins the Saluda at Lake Greenwood. Lake Greenwood is used for recreational boating and fishing....

    • Old Laurens-Greenwood Highway
    • Greenwood Highway (S.C. 72) in Lake Shores, South Carolina
  • Newberry County/Saluda County
    • Ninety-Six Highway (S.C. 34)
    • S.C. 39 in Chappells, South Carolina
    • Newberry Highway (S.C. 121)
  • Lake Murray
    • Kempson Bridge Road
    • S.C. 391 near Prosperity, South Carolina
      Prosperity, South Carolina
      Prosperity is a town in Newberry County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 1,047 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Prosperity is located at ....

       (also crosses the Little Saluda River
    • Dreher Shoals Dam (S.C. 6)
  • Columbia
    • Interstate 20
      Interstate 20
      Interstate 20 is a major east–west Interstate Highway in the Southern United States. I‑20 runs 1,535 miles from near Kent, Texas, at Interstate 10 to Florence, South Carolina, at Interstate 95...

    • Interstate 26
      Interstate 26
      Interstate 26 is a nominally east–west main route of the Interstate Highway System in the Southeastern United States. I-26 runs from the junction of U.S. Route 11W and U.S. Route 23 in Kingsport, Tennessee, generally southeastward to U.S. Route 17 in Charleston, South Carolina...

    • Riverbanks Zoo
      Riverbanks Zoo
      The Riverbanks Zoo and Garden is a zoo, aquarium, and botanical garden located at 500 Wildlife Parkway, along the Saluda River, in Columbia, South Carolina, USA.Riverbanks Zoo and Garden is an accredited member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums ....

       (footbridge)

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 Saluda River has also been known as:
  • Chickawa
  • Corn River
  • Saludy River
  • Saluta River
  • Salutah River
  • Santee River
    Santee River
    The Santee River is a river in South Carolina in the United States, long. The Santee and its tributaries provide the principal drainage and navigation for the central coastal plain of South Carolina, emptying into the Atlantic Ocean approximately from its farthest headwater on the Catawba River...

  • Seleuda River

The river is named after an Indian tribe that once lived along its banks near the community of Chappells, South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...

.

Save Our Saluda

In 2008, a collective of local citizens (or Citizens Action Group) based in Marietta, Greenville County, South Carolina
Greenville County, South Carolina
- External Links :*...

 initiated a campaign to "Save Our Saluda" following what they perceived to be aggressive property development. Their mission is to "(protect) and (preserve) the headwaters of the Saluda 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...

 through concerned citizens action".

Endangered Status

In April 2009, the Saluda River was named by American Rivers, a leading river conservation group to a list of rivers in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 that are under imminent threat by dams, industry or development. The article, posted on CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...

 on April 7, 2009 stated "Excess levels of sewage waste threaten the drinking water of more than 500,000 South Carolina residents, conservationists say. Sewage in the river increases phosphorus and algae levels, depletes oxygen, and kills fish and other aquatic life. American Rivers is asking the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control to improve sewage-treatment standards and ensure the river reduces its phosphorus levels by 25 to 50 percent."

Sources

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