Tinkers Creek
Encyclopedia
Tinker's Creek, in Cuyahoga
, Summit
and Portage
counties, is the largest tributary
of the Cuyahoga River
, providing about a third of its flow into Lake Erie
.
's survey crew, who died in a boating accident while returning to New England in the fall of 1797.
causing sandstone outcropping collapses and features like 25 feet (7.6 m) high Great Falls of Tinker's Creek a.k.a. Gates Mills Falls 41°23′01"N 81°31′56"W Elevation: 853 feet (260 m), in Bedford, Ohio
.
41°21′53"N 81°36′32"W Elevation: 610 feet (185.9 m), on the National Register of Historic Places
, was built to bridge the Ohio and Erie Canal
over Tinker's Creek near its confluence with the Cuyahoga River
. The aqueduct
and surrounding area are subject to flooding by the Cuyahoga
River and Tinker's Creek.
The creek itself rises near Tinker's Creek State Park
in Streetsboro
, Portage County. The creek then flows through Twinsburg Township and Twinsburg
in Summit County, and Glenwillow, Oakwood, Bedford Heights, Bedford
, and Walton Hills in Cuyahoga County before its confluence with the Cuyahoga River
in Valley View village near Independence
.
The 24 municipalities within the watershed are:
Cuyahoga County
Geauga County
Portage County
Summit County
Further downstream, at the Great Falls, the creek plunges over a cliff of Berea sandstone composed of tiny quartz crystals cemented with clay. Berea sandstone is about 330 million years old (Mississippian), and was generated by rivers bearing sand from higher ground to the east and north and depositing it in fan-shaped deltas in an ocean. These deltas eventually dried and were buried under subsequent sediments where they hardened into a layer of resistant rock.
Cleveland shale (350 million years old; Devonian) underlies the sandstone. The shale is composed of extremely fine bits of quartz, clay and mica deposited at the edge of a sea. Ripple marks created by the sea's wave action are visible in the shale. The Cleveland shale is less resistant to erosion than the overlying Berea sandstone, so the creek was able to scour its impressive gorge once it had penetrated the sandstone cap--a process still occurring at the Great Falls.
Downstream of the gorge, approaching the creek's confluence with the Cuyahoga River, the creek has begun to reveal Chagrin shale, bluish-gray and opaque, laid down 360 million years ago.
due to its industrial history.
kayak
ers consider it one of the most demanding and enjoyable streams in Ohio.
Cuyahoga County, Ohio
Cuyahoga County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States. It is the most populous county in Ohio; as of the 2010 census, the population was 1,280,122. Its county seat is Cleveland. Cuyahoga County is part of Greater Cleveland, a metropolitan area, and Northeast Ohio, a...
, Summit
Summit County, Ohio
Summit County is an urban county located in the state of Ohio, United States. As of the 2000 census, the population was 542,899. In the 2010 Census the population was 541,781. Its county seat is Akron...
and Portage
Portage County, Ohio
Portage County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. The population was 152,061 at the 2000 Census and 161,419 at the 2010 Census. Its county seat is Ravenna. Portage County is named for the portage between the Cuyahoga and Tuscarawas Rivers...
counties, is the largest 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 Cuyahoga River
Cuyahoga River
The Cuyahoga River is located in Northeast Ohio in the United States. Outside of Ohio, the river is most famous for being "the river that caught fire", helping to spur the environmental movement in the late 1960s...
, providing about a third of its flow into Lake Erie
Lake Erie
Lake Erie is the fourth largest lake of the five Great Lakes in North America, and the tenth largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also has the shortest average water residence time. It is bounded on the north by the...
.
History
Tinker's Creek was named after Captain Joseph Tinker, the principal boatsman of Moses CleavelandMoses Cleaveland
Moses Cleaveland was a lawyer, politician, soldier, and surveyor from Connecticut who founded the U.S. city of Cleveland, Ohio, while surveying the Western Reserve in 1796.-Early life:...
's survey crew, who died in a boating accident while returning to New England in the fall of 1797.
Tinker's Creek Gorge
Thousands of years ago, when the Wisconsinian Glaciation retreated, dips and valleys like Tinker's Creek Gorge 41°22′37"N 081°33′30"W Elevation: 896 feet (273.1 m) were created due to erosion in the underlying shale. The awesome, severely sloped gorge sculpted by Tinker's Creek became a National Natural Landmark in 1968. A raised viewpoint over the gorge is easily accessible from the Gorge Parkway in the Cleveland Metroparks' Bedford Reservation. The stream is sometimes run in whitewater kayaks and is arguably the most challenging creek in the state of Ohio (when there is enough water to make it runnable).Great Falls
The continuous downward flow of water erodes the underlying shale faster than the harder sandstone,causing sandstone outcropping collapses and features like 25 feet (7.6 m) high Great Falls of Tinker's Creek a.k.a. Gates Mills Falls 41°23′01"N 81°31′56"W Elevation: 853 feet (260 m), in Bedford, Ohio
Bedford, Ohio
Bedford is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. The population was 13,074 at the 2010 census. It is an eastern suburb of Cleveland.-Geography:Bedford is located at ....
.
Tinkers Creek Aqueduct
Tinkers Creek AqueductTinkers Creek Aqueduct
Tinkers Creek Aqueduct is an aqueduct that was constructed to bridge the Ohio and Erie Canal over Tinkers Creek near its confluence with the Cuyahoga River in Valley View, Ohio. It is a relatively rare surviving example of an Ohio and Erie Canal aqueduct. It was originally constructed in...
41°21′53"N 81°36′32"W Elevation: 610 feet (185.9 m), on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
, was built to bridge the Ohio and Erie Canal
Ohio and Erie Canal
The Ohio Canal or Ohio and Erie Canal was a canal constructed in the 1820s and early 1830s. It connected Akron, Summit County, with the Cuyahoga River near its mouth on Lake Erie in Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, and a few years later, with the Ohio River near Portsmouth, Scioto County, and then...
over Tinker's Creek near its confluence with the Cuyahoga River
Cuyahoga River
The Cuyahoga River is located in Northeast Ohio in the United States. Outside of Ohio, the river is most famous for being "the river that caught fire", helping to spur the environmental movement in the late 1960s...
. The aqueduct
Aqueduct
An aqueduct is a water supply or navigable channel constructed to convey water. In modern engineering, the term is used for any system of pipes, ditches, canals, tunnels, and other structures used for this purpose....
and surrounding area are subject to flooding by the Cuyahoga
Cuyahoga
Cuyahoga may mean:* Cuyahoga County, Ohio* Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio* Cuyahoga Heights, Ohio* Cuyahoga River* Cuyahoga Valley National Park, a U.S...
River and Tinker's Creek.
Watershed
Tinker's Creek is the largest tributary of the Cuyahoga River, the river which flows through Cleveland and into Lake Erie. Because of its glacial history, the course of the Cuyahoga River is unusual: it rises in Geauga County, Ohio, flows southward into the city of Akron, Ohio, and then abruptly turns northward and flows into Lake Erie. Its course is shaped like a reversed "J," and Tinker's Creek, entering from the east, drains almost all of the land nestled in the hook of the "J" that does not drain directly into the Cuyahoga.The creek itself rises near Tinker's Creek State Park
Tinker's Creek State Park
Tinkers Creek State Park is a state park located in Streetsboro, Portage County, Ohio, United States.Its many small lakes and marshes provide food and habitat for beavers and thousands of waterfowl.-History:...
in Streetsboro
Streetsboro, Ohio
Streetsboro is a city in Portage County, Ohio, United States. It is formed from the former township of Streetsboro, which was formed from the Connecticut Western Reserve. It is nearly co-extant with the former Streetsboro Township; the village of Sugar Bush Knolls was also formed in part from a...
, Portage County. The creek then flows through Twinsburg Township and Twinsburg
Twinsburg, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 17,006 people, 6,641 households, and 4,695 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,366.7 people per square mile . There were 6,871 housing units at an average density of 552.2 per square mile...
in Summit County, and Glenwillow, Oakwood, Bedford Heights, Bedford
Bedford, Ohio
Bedford is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. The population was 13,074 at the 2010 census. It is an eastern suburb of Cleveland.-Geography:Bedford is located at ....
, and Walton Hills in Cuyahoga County before its confluence with the Cuyahoga River
Cuyahoga River
The Cuyahoga River is located in Northeast Ohio in the United States. Outside of Ohio, the river is most famous for being "the river that caught fire", helping to spur the environmental movement in the late 1960s...
in Valley View village near Independence
Independence, Ohio
Independence is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 7,133.-Geography:Independence is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land....
.
The 24 municipalities within the watershed are:
Cuyahoga County
- Beachwood
- Bedford
- Bedford Heights
- Glenwillow
- Highland Heights
- Maple Heights
- North Randall
- Oakwood
- Orange
- Solon
- Valley View
- Walton Hills
- Warrensville Heights
Geauga County
- Bainbridge Township
Portage County
- Aurora
- Franklin Township
- Streetsboro
- Sugar Bush Knolls
Summit County
- Hudson Village
- Macedonia
- Northfield
- Reminderville
- Twinsburg
- Twinsburg Township
Tributaries
Tinkers Creek has eight major tributaries and countless unnamed smaller tributaries. From the headwaters moving downstream, the major tributaries are:- Bell Run
- Hudson Springs
- Pond Brook
- Beaver Meadow Run
- Mud Creek
- Hawthorne Creek
- Deer Lick Run
- Wood Run
Geology
The walls of the Tinker's Creek valley expose four geologic layers. The youngest sediments, unconsolidated glacial till deposited on top of bedrock by the retreat of the Wisconsin glaciation 12,000 years ago, occur in the upper portion of the watershed. These poorly sorted and poorly drained materials largely account for the marshes, swamps, bogs and fens that characterize the headwaters of the creek.Further downstream, at the Great Falls, the creek plunges over a cliff of Berea sandstone composed of tiny quartz crystals cemented with clay. Berea sandstone is about 330 million years old (Mississippian), and was generated by rivers bearing sand from higher ground to the east and north and depositing it in fan-shaped deltas in an ocean. These deltas eventually dried and were buried under subsequent sediments where they hardened into a layer of resistant rock.
Cleveland shale (350 million years old; Devonian) underlies the sandstone. The shale is composed of extremely fine bits of quartz, clay and mica deposited at the edge of a sea. Ripple marks created by the sea's wave action are visible in the shale. The Cleveland shale is less resistant to erosion than the overlying Berea sandstone, so the creek was able to scour its impressive gorge once it had penetrated the sandstone cap--a process still occurring at the Great Falls.
Downstream of the gorge, approaching the creek's confluence with the Cuyahoga River, the creek has begun to reveal Chagrin shale, bluish-gray and opaque, laid down 360 million years ago.
Water Pollution
Tinkers Creek has substantial pollutionWater pollution
Water pollution is the contamination of water bodies . Water pollution occurs when pollutants are discharged directly or indirectly into water bodies without adequate treatment to remove harmful compounds....
due to its industrial history.
Whitewater
Despite water pollution, whitewaterWhitewater
Whitewater is formed in a rapid, when a river's gradient increases enough to disturb its laminar flow and create turbulence, i.e. form a bubbly, or aerated and unstable current; the frothy water appears white...
kayak
Kayak
A kayak is a small, relatively narrow, human-powered boat primarily designed to be manually propelled by means of a double blade paddle.The traditional kayak has a covered deck and one or more cockpits, each seating one paddler...
ers consider it one of the most demanding and enjoyable streams in Ohio.
See also
- List of National Natural Landmarks
- Tinker's Creek State ParkTinker's Creek State ParkTinkers Creek State Park is a state park located in Streetsboro, Portage County, Ohio, United States.Its many small lakes and marshes provide food and habitat for beavers and thousands of waterfowl.-History:...
- List of rivers of Ohio