Black Bear Creek facts for kids
Black Bear Creek is a long creek, about 116 miles (187 km) long, in northern Oklahoma. It flows through Garfield, Noble, and Pawnee counties. The creek gets its name from the black bear. Its water often looks red because of the red clay in the area.
Contents
About Black Bear Creek
Black Bear Creek flows into the Arkansas River in Pawnee County. This meeting point is near the town of Blackburn. Many smaller streams flow into Black Bear Creek. These smaller streams are called tributaries. Some of its tributaries include Camp Creek, Cow Creek, and Gansel Creek. Other tributaries are Garber Creek, Garber Field Creek, Lutheran Creek, St. John Creek, and Shale Creek.
How Much Water Does it Carry?
Scientists measure how much water flows in Black Bear Creek. The USGS has a special tool called a stream gauge near Pawnee. This tool showed that from 1945 to 2019, the creek carried about 214 cubic feet (6.06 cubic meters) of water every second. This is the average amount of water flowing each year.
Keeping the Creek Safe from Floods
Flooding used to be a big problem along Black Bear Creek. Between 1933 and 1954, there were many floods in Payne and Noble counties. To help stop this, many dams have been built along the creek. These dams help control the water flow and prevent floods.
Important Dams and Lakes
One important dam is called Perry Lake Dam. Its official name is Upper Black Bear Creek Watershed Dam No. 62. This dam was built in 1963. It helps control floods along the creek. Perry Lake Dam also provides water for the town of Perry, Oklahoma. Perry is about 25 miles (40 km) northwest of Stillwater, Oklahoma.
Another flood control dam is Lower Black Bear Creek Watershed Dam No. 19M. It is located in southern Pawnee County. This dam was built in 1980. It created a lake called Lone Chimney Lake. This lake covers about 550 acres (220 hectares). Lone Chimney Lake is very important for drinking water. It provides 40 percent of the water for Cleveland and Pawnee. It is also the main water source for smaller towns like Blackburn, Glencoe, Meramec, Morrison, Skeedee, Terlton, and Yale.
