Tinkers Creek (Cuyahoga River tributary) facts for kids

Tinker's Creek is a cool river in Ohio! It flows through Cuyahoga, Summit, and Portage counties. It's the biggest stream that feeds into the Cuyahoga River, adding about one-third of the water that eventually reaches Lake Erie.

The Story of Tinker's Creek

Tinker's Creek got its name from Captain Joseph Tinker. He was a main boatman for Moses Cleaveland's survey team. Sadly, Captain Tinker died in a boating accident in 1797 while heading back home.

Exploring Tinker's Creek Gorge

Thousands of years ago, a huge ice sheet called the Wisconsinian Glaciation melted away. As it did, it carved out deep dips and valleys like Tinker's Creek Gorge 41°22′37″N 081°33′30″W / 41.37694°N 81.55833°W / 41.37694; -81.55833. This happened because the flowing water wore away the soft rock underneath.

This amazing gorge, with its steep sides, became a special National Natural Landmark in 1967. You can easily see a great view of the gorge from the Gorge Parkway. This spot is in the Cleveland Metroparks' Bedford Reservation.

Discovering Great Falls

Water constantly flowing downhill wears away softer rock faster than harder rock. This creates cool features like the 25-foot-high Great Falls of Tinker's Creek 41°23′01″N 81°31′56″W / 41.38361°N 81.53222°W / 41.38361; -81.53222. These falls are also known as Gates Mills Falls and are located in Bedford, Ohio.

Tinker's Creek Aqueduct: A Water Bridge

Tinker's Creek Aqueduct, a special bridge for water.

The Tinker's Creek Aqueduct 41°21′53″N 81°36′32″W / 41.36472°N 81.60889°W / 41.36472; -81.60889 is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was built to carry the Ohio and Erie Canal over Tinker's Creek. This happened near where the creek meets the Cuyahoga River.

An aqueduct is like a bridge for water. This aqueduct and the area around it can sometimes get flooded by the Cuyahoga River and Tinker's Creek.

Tinker's Creek Viaduct: A Railroad Bridge

The Tinker's Creek Viaduct 41°23′05″N 81°32′03″W / 41.38472°N 81.53417°W / 41.38472; -81.53417 is another historic structure on the National Register of Historic Places. It was a railroad bridge built to cross Tinker's Creek near the Great Falls.

Later, a 510-foot-long stone archway was built to guide the creek through the gorge. The gorge was then filled with earth to build a newer railway with two tracks. You can still see the top part of the old viaduct today.

Tinker's Creek Watershed: Where Water Flows

Tinker's Creek is the biggest stream that flows into the Cuyahoga River. The Cuyahoga River then flows through Cleveland and into Lake Erie. The Cuyahoga River has a unique path because of ancient glaciers. It starts in Geauga County, Ohio, flows south, then suddenly turns north towards Lake Erie. It looks like a reversed "J" shape.

Tinker's Creek, coming from the east, drains almost all the land inside this "J" shape that doesn't flow directly into the Cuyahoga.

The creek itself begins near Tinker's Creek State Park in Streetsboro, Portage County. It then flows through Twinsburg Township and Twinsburg in Summit County. After that, it goes through Glenwillow, Oakwood, Bedford Heights, Bedford, and Walton Hills in Cuyahoga County. Finally, it joins the Cuyahoga River in Valley View village near Independence.

Many towns are part of the Tinker's Creek watershed. This means their rainwater eventually flows into Tinker's Creek.

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

There are also groups like Tinker's Creek Watershed Partners who help take care of the creek.

Streams Joining Tinker's Creek

Tinker's Creek has eight main streams that flow into it, plus many smaller ones. Here are the major ones, starting from where Tinker's Creek begins and moving downstream:

• Bell Run
• Hudson Springs
• Pond Brook
• Beaver Meadow Run
• Mud Creek
• Hawthorne Creek
• Deer Lick Run
• Wood Run

The Geology of Tinker's Creek Valley

The sides of the Tinker's Creek valley show four different layers of rock and soil. The youngest layers are loose glacial till. This was left behind by the melting Wisconsin glacier about 12,000 years ago. These layers are found higher up in the watershed. They are not well-drained, which is why you find marshes and swamps near the creek's beginning.

Further downstream, at the Great Falls, the creek drops over a cliff of Berea sandstone. This sandstone is made of tiny quartz crystals held together by clay. Berea sandstone is about 330 million years old. It formed from sand carried by ancient rivers and deposited in deltas in an ocean. These deltas eventually hardened into a strong rock layer.

Below the sandstone is Cleveland shale, which is about 350 million years old. This shale is made of very tiny bits of quartz, clay, and mica. These were deposited at the edge of an ancient sea. You can even see ripple marks in the shale from the sea's waves! Cleveland shale is softer than the Berea sandstone. This allowed the creek to carve out its impressive gorge once it broke through the harder sandstone layer. This carving process is still happening at the Great Falls today.

Even further downstream, closer to where the creek meets the Cuyahoga River, you can see Chagrin Shale. This rock is bluish-gray and was formed about 360 million years ago.

Water Quality in Tinker's Creek

Tinker's Creek has faced challenges with its water quality. This is due to its history with industries in the area. Efforts are made to improve the creek's health.

Whitewater Adventures

Even with its history, whitewater kayakers enjoy Tinker's Creek. They consider it one of the most exciting and challenging streams to paddle in Ohio when there's enough water.