- Ocmulgee River
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Ocmulgee River River 
The Ocmulgee River at MaconCountry United States State Georgia Tributaries - left South River - right Yellow River Source Confluence of South, Yellow, and Alcovy rivers - location Lloyd Shoals Dam, Georgia - coordinates 33°19′15″N 83°50′39″W / 33.32083°N 83.84417°W Mouth - location Hazelhurst, Georgia Length 255 mi (410 km) 
Map of the Ocmulgee River watershed highlightedThe Ocmulgee River (ok-MUHL-gee) is a tributary of the Altamaha River, approximately 255 mi (410 km) long, in the U.S. state of Georgia. Noted for its relatively unspoiled and gentle current, it provides the principal drainage for a large section of the Piedmont and coastal plain of central Georgia.
Contents
Description
It is formed in north central Georgia southeast of Atlanta by the confluence of the Yellow, South, and Alcovy rivers, which join as arms of the Lake Jackson reservoir. It flows southeast past Macon, founded on the fall line, and joins the Oconee from the northwest to form the Altamaha near Lumber City.
Downstream from Lake Jackson, the river flows freely and is considered relatively unspoiled among the rivers of the region. Its low gradient of approximately 1 ft/mile (24 cm/km) gives it a wide and peaceful current along most of its course; it is a popular destination for canoeing. It receives treated wastewater from 13 facilities along its course. The river is a popular destination for catfishing and bass fishing.
On June 2, 1932 George W Perry caught the world-record Largemouth Bass in Montgomery Lake in Telfair County, Georgia. The fish weighed 22 1/4 pounds. While the record has not been broken, it was tied in 2010. Montgomery Lake, now shallow and silted in, was an oxbow lake on the Ocmulgee River.
History
The banks of the river were inhabited by the Mississippian culture between the 10th and 12th centuries. The river passes the remnants of several prehistoric Native American villages at Ocmulgee National Monument in Macon. For this reason the Ocmulgee site is also referred to as the "Macon Plateau". It was established around 950 CE by a population that most likely migrated from the Tennessee River Valley based on pottery evidence. The inhabitants established a chiefdom, which was common for the Mississippian area. The site is home to eight, distantly-spaced, large platform mounds and an earth lodge. Within the lodge there were forty-seven seats that formed a bench around the perimeter of the room. Opposing this bench was a three seated bench in the shape of an eagle effigy that would most likely seat the chiefdom leaders. In 1150 CE, the site was abandoned until 1540. In 1540 Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto traversed the region and baptized Native American converts in the river. This expedition devastated much of the area and left a trail of disease as well.[citation needed] In the 18th century, the Hitchiti, later part of the Creek Indian confederation, lived near present-day Macon in Ocmulgee Fields. The name of the river probably comes from a Hitchiti words oki, "water", plus molki, "bubbling" or "boiling".[1]
In 1806, the U.S. acquired the area between the Oconee and Ocmulgee from the Creek Indians by the First Treaty of Washington. That same year United States Army established Fort Benjamin Hawkins overlooking the Ocmulgee Fields. In 1819 the Creek Indians held their last meeting at Ocmulgee Fields. In the same year, the McCall brother established a barge-building operation at Macon. The first steamboat arrived on the river in 1829. During the 19th century, the river provided the principal water navigation route for Macon, allowing the development of the cotton industry in the surrounding region. In 1842 the river was connected by railroad to Savannah. The river froze from bank to bank in 1886. In 1994 devastating floods on the river after heavy rains caused widespread damage around Macon.[2]
Ocmulgee creeks
Major creeks that flow into the Ocmulgee River include:
- Tucsawhatchee Creek
- Echeconnee Creek
- This tributary's name means "deer trap" in the Muscogee language, the language of the Creek indians. It refers to the steep incline of the creek where Creeks would trap deer, luring them into steep areas and then charging them.
- Alligator Creek
- Big Indian Creek
- Coley Creek
- Big Horse Creek
- Flat Creek
- Folsom Creek
- Horse Creek
- Jordan Creek
- Limestone Creek
- Little Ocmulgee River (Gum Swamp Creek)
- Little Shellstone Creek
- Little Sturgeon Creek
- Mossy Creek
- Otter Creek
- Richland Creek
- Sandy Run Creek
- Savage Creek
- Shellstone Creek
- South Shellstone Creek
- Sturgeon Creek
- Sugar Creek
- Ten Mile Creek
See also
References
- ^ Bright, William (2004). Native American placenames of the United States. University of Oklahoma Press. p. 347. ISBN 978-0-8061-3598-4. http://books.google.com/books?id=5XfxzCm1qa4C&pg=PA347. Retrieved 16 September 2011.
- ^ http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/00032058.htm
- Snow, Dean (2010). Archaeology of Native North America. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. pp. 208–209. ISBN 978-0-13-615686-4.
Cannonball House • City Hall • Douglass Theatre • Fort Hawkins • Georgia Children's Museum • Georgia Music Hall of Fame • Georgia Sports Hall of Fame • Grand Opera House • Hay House • Luther Williams Field • Macon City Auditorium • Macon Coliseum • Macon Little Theater • Medical Center of Central Georgia • Mercer University • Museum of Arts and Sciences • Nu-Way Weiners • Ocmulgee National Monument • Ocmulgee River • Rose Hill Cemetery • Sidney Lanier Cottage • Tubman African American Museum • Waddell Barnes Botanical Gardens
External links
Categories:- Landmarks in Macon, Georgia
- Rivers of Georgia (U.S. state)
- Geography of Macon, Georgia
- Geography of Bibb County, Georgia
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