Stonecoal Creek 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 West Fork River

West Fork River

The West Fork River is a principal tributary of the Monongahela River, 103 miles long, in north-central West Virginia in the United States...

, 12.8 miles (20.6 km) long, in north-central 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...

 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 West Fork, Monongahela

Monongahela River

The Monongahela River is a river on the Allegheny Plateau in north-central West Virginia and southwestern Pennsylvania in the United States...

 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 41 square miles (106.2 km²) on the unglaciated portion of the Allegheny Plateau

Allegheny Plateau

The Allegheny Plateau is a large dissected plateau area in western and central New York, northern and western Pennsylvania, northern and western West Virginia, and eastern Ohio...

. The stream is believed to have been named in the late 1760s by a group of explorers and settler

Settler

A settler is a person who has migrated to an area and established permanent residence there, often to colonize the area. Settlers are generally people who take up residence on land and cultivate it, as opposed to nomads...

s (including Jesse Hughes), who found coal

Coal

Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...

 in nearby hills and mixed with pebbles in the stream.

Stonecoal Creek rises approximately five miles (8 km) west-northwest of Buckhannon

Buckhannon, West Virginia

Buckhannon is the only incorporated city in, and the county seat of, Upshur County, West Virginia, United States, and is located along the Buckhannon River. The population was 5,725 at the 2000 census. Buckhannon is home to West Virginia Wesleyan College and the West Virginia Strawberry Festival,...

 in northwestern Upshur County

Upshur County, West Virginia

As of the census of 2000, there were 23,404 people, 8,972 households, and 6,352 families residing in the county. The population density was 66 people per square mile . There were 10,751 housing units at an average density of 30 per square mile...

 and flows westwardly into northern Lewis County

Lewis County, West Virginia

As of the census of 2000, there were 16,919 people, 6,946 households, and 4,806 families residing in the county. The population density was 44 people per square mile . There were 7,944 housing units at an average density of 21 per square mile...

, where it joins the West Fork River from the east in the city of Weston

Weston, West Virginia

Weston is a city in Lewis County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 4,317 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Lewis County, and home to the West Virginia Museum of American Glass.-History:...

. Its principal tributary, the 9.7 miles (15.6 km) Right Fork Stonecoal Creek, was dam

Dam

A dam is a barrier that impounds water or underground streams. Dams generally serve the primary purpose of retaining water, while other structures such as floodgates or levees are used to manage or prevent water flow into specific land regions. Hydropower and pumped-storage hydroelectricity are...

med in Lewis County to form Stonecoal Lake in 1972 by Allegheny Energy

Allegheny Energy

Allegheny Energy is an electric utility headquartered in Greensburg, Pennsylvania. It owns and operates electric generation facilities and delivers electric services to customers in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Maryland, and Virginia...

 for the purpose of providing water to a power plant in Harrison County

Harrison County, West Virginia

As of the census of 2000, there were 68,652 people, 27,867 households, and 19,088 families residing in the county. The population density was 165 people per square mile . There were 31,112 housing units at an average density of 75 per square mile...

. The 550 acres (222.6 ha) lake is privately owned, but is managed by the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources

West Virginia Division of Natural Resources

The West Virginia Division of Natural Resources is an agency of the government of the U.S. state of West Virginia. While formerly known as the cabinet-level Department of Natural Resources, it is now part of the West Virginia Department of Commerce...

, as is a Wildlife Management Area

Stonecoal Lake Wildlife Management Area

Stonecoal Lake Wildlife Management Area is located on east of Weston, West Virginia in Lewis and Upshur counties. The wildlife management area is centered around Stonecoal Lake , a hydroelectric project owned by Allegheny Energy.-External links:*...

 surrounding the lake.

According to the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection, approximately 77% of Stonecoal Creek's watershed is forest

Forest

A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...

ed, mostly deciduous

Deciduous

Deciduous means "falling off at maturity" or "tending to fall off", and is typically used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally, and to the shedding of other plant structures such as petals after flowering or fruit when ripe...

. Approximately 19% is used for pasture and agriculture, and approximately 2% is urban.

Variant spellings

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...

, Stonecoal Creek has also been known historically as:

• Stone Coal Creek
• Stone Cole Creek
• Stone Cole Run