Symmes Creek is a 76.4 miles (123 km) 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 Ohio River

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...

 in southern Ohio

Ohio

Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...

 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 Ohio 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 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 357 square miles (924.6 km²) on the unglaciated

Glacier

A glacier is a large persistent body of ice that forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. At least 0.1 km² in area and 50 m thick, but often much larger, a glacier slowly deforms and flows due to stresses induced by its weight...

 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...

.

Symmes Creek rises in Bloomfield Township

Bloomfield Township, Jackson County, Ohio

Bloomfield Township is one of the twelve townships of Jackson County, Ohio, United States. As of the 2000 census, 896 people lived in the township.-Geography:Located in the eastern part of the county, it borders the following townships:...

 in southeastern Jackson County

Jackson County, Ohio

Jackson County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States. As of 2010, the population was 33,225. Its county seat is Jackson and is named for Andrew Jackson, a hero of the War of 1812 who was subsequently elected President of the United States....

 and flows generally southward through Madison Township

Madison Township, Jackson County, Ohio

Madison Township is one of the twelve townships of Jackson County, Ohio, United States. As of the 2000 census, 2,171 people lived in the township, including 1,421 in its unincorporated areas.-Geography:...

 in Jackson County; Greenfield

Greenfield Township, Gallia County, Ohio

Greenfield Township is one of the fifteen townships of Gallia County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 498 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the far western part of the county, it borders the following townships:...

, Perry

Perry Township, Gallia County, Ohio

Perry Township is one of the fifteen townships of Gallia County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 1,276 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the western part of the county, it borders the following townships:*Raccoon Township - north...

, and Walnut

Walnut Township, Gallia County, Ohio

Walnut Township is one of the fifteen townships of Gallia County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 924 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the southwestern part of the county, it borders the following townships:*Perry Township - north...

 townships in Gallia County

Gallia County, Ohio

As of the census of 2000, there were 31,069 people, 12,060 households, and 8,586 families residing in the county. The population density was 66 people per square mile . There were 13,498 housing units at an average density of 29 per square mile...

; and Symmes

Symmes Township, Lawrence County, Ohio

Symmes Township is one of the fourteen townships of Lawrence County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 470 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the northern part of the county, it borders the following townships:...

, Aid

Aid Township, Lawrence County, Ohio

Aid Township is one of the fourteen townships of Lawrence County, Ohio, United States. The township had a population of 907 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Located in the northern part of the county, it borders the following townships:...

, Mason

Mason Township, Lawrence County, Ohio

Mason Township is one of the fourteen townships of Lawrence County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 1,095 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the northeastern part of the county, it borders the following townships:...

, Lawrence

Lawrence Township, Lawrence County, Ohio

Lawrence Township is one of the fourteen townships of Lawrence County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 2,574 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the central part of the county, it borders the following townships:*Aid Township - north...

, Windsor

Windsor Township, Lawrence County, Ohio

Windsor Township is one of the fourteen townships of Lawrence County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 2,127 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the southeastern part of the county, it borders the following townships:...

, and Union

Union Township, Lawrence County, Ohio

Union Township is one of the fourteen townships of Lawrence County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 9,002 people in the township, 7,540 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...

 townships in Lawrence County

Lawrence County, Ohio

As of the census of 2000, there were 62,319 people, 24,732 households, and 17,807 families residing in the county. The population density was 137 people per square mile . There were 27,189 housing units at an average density of 60 per square mile...

, through a portion of the Ironton Unit of the Wayne National Forest

Wayne National Forest

The Wayne National Forest is located in the south-eastern part of the U.S. state of Ohio, in the Unglaciated Allegheny Plateau. It is the only national forest in Ohio. Forest headquarters are located between The Plains and Nelsonville, Ohio, on US Route 33, overlooking the Hocking River.The forest...

 and past the communities of Waterloo

Waterloo, Ohio

Waterloo is an unincorporated community in southeastern Symmes Township, Lawrence County, Ohio, United States, along Symmes Creek. Although it is unincorporated, it has a post office, with the ZIP code of 45688....

, Aid, and Willow Wood

Willow Wood, Ohio

Willow Wood is an unincorporated community in western Windsor Township, Lawrence County, Ohio, United States, along Symmes Creek. Although it is unincorporated, it has a post office, with the ZIP code of 45696. Children in the Willow Wood area attend the Symmes Valley Multilevel and High...

. It joins the Ohio River at the village of Chesapeake

Chesapeake, Ohio

Chesapeake is a village in Lawrence County, Ohio, United States. The population was listed as 842 in the 2000 census. It lies across the Ohio River from Huntington, West Virginia, at the mouth of Symmes Creek....

, opposite downtown Huntington, West Virginia

Huntington, West Virginia

Huntington is a city in Cabell and Wayne counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia, along the Ohio River. Most of the city is in Cabell County, for which it is the county seat. A small portion of the city, mainly the neighborhood of Westmoreland, is in Wayne County. Its population was 49,138 at...

.

The United States Board on Geographic Names

United States Board on Geographic Names

The United States Board on Geographic Names is a United States federal body whose purpose is to establish and maintain uniform usage of geographic names throughout the U.S. government.-Overview:...

 settled on "Symmes Creek" as the stream's name in 1902. 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...

, it has also been known historically as "Simms," "Big Creek," and "Symms Creek."

Flow rate

At the United States Geological Survey

United States Geological Survey

The United States Geological Survey is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and the natural hazards that threaten it. The organization has four major science disciplines, concerning biology,...

's stream gauge

Stream gauge

A stream gauge, stream gage or gauging station is a location used by hydrologists or environmental scientists to monitor and test terrestrial bodies of water. Hydrometric measurements of water surface elevation and/or volumetric discharge are generally taken and observations of biota may also be...

 in Aid, the annual mean flow of Symmes Creek between November 2000 and September 2005 was 426 ft³/s (12 m³/s). The highest recorded flow during the period was 7,100 ft³/s (201 m³/s) on May 19, 2001. The lowest recorded flow was 1 ft³/s (0 m³/s) on September 18, 2001.