This is 1 of 12 EarthCache sights in the SRWT. The first 100 to complete the trail will receive a geocoin commerating the SRWT, 60 of which are trackable. These will be available at the Mercer County Conservation District office Mon.- Fri. from 8 am to 4 pm after April 21st. We are located at 753 Greenville Road, Mercer, PA 16137. To learn more about this geoWatershed Trail, visit us by clicking here.
SHENANGO RIVER HISTORY (Mondok, 1990)
The Shenango River Basin is shared by the state of Ohio and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The river and its tributaries drain 744 square miles of the Pennsylvania counties of Crawford, Lawrence, and Mercer and 285 square miles of the Ohio counties of Ashtabula , Mahoning, and Trumbull. The waters and its tributaries been used for transportation such as the Erie Extension Canal, watering livestock, and other household uses.
Prior to European settlement, the land area of the Shenango was inhabited by many indian tribes including the Seneca and the Delaware. The word Shenango itself comes from the Iroquoian word Shaningo meaning “beautiful one”.
The 75 mile long river begins in the marshes that are now part of Pymatuning Reservoir near Hartstown in Crawford County and eventually meets the Mahoning River near New Castle in Lawrence County.
ICE AGE INFLUENCES (Mondok, 1990)
The topography and soils in Pennsylvania and Ohio were shaped during the Ice Age that ended about 10, 000 years ago. Prior to this glacial epoch, the Shenango River flowed in a northerly direction to the Atlantic Ocean via the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River. This dissected plateau was covered by glaciers; some were a mile thick in some places. Boulders, rocks, soil, sand, silt, and clay were carried with the glacial ice and deposited on glacial till, kame terraces, moraines, and eskers when the ice melts as the climate warmed. These deposits were so vast, that their ancient river valleys were filled, causing the flow from the Atlantic Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico.
THE BIG BEND AREA
The Big Bend area on the Shenango River displays a unique 90 degree turn in the river’s path as it begins to drain down towards the Shenango River Lake. Along the banks of Big Bend, you can take a step back into Erie Extension Canal history. The remnants of the riprap laid along the stream bank to prevent streambank erosion are still visible today. The Erie Extension Canal provided the isolated regions of Mercer County a vital means of transporting goods to ports at Erie and Pittsburgh. This stimulated the regional economy which for years had been limited to local trade due to the absence of convenient transportation (Bauman, J.F., 1989).
This picture displays one of the last locks that is intact. This lock is located a half a mile below the Shenango Dam in Sharpsville, PA.
In addition to its unique historical significance, the Big Bend area also holds some very innovative geological postulations into the history of its northern path. As stated previously, the Shenango River flowed north before the glacial epoch. Based off the “Bedrock Geologic Map of the Fredonia and Sharpsville Quadrangles and Part of the Orangeville Quadrangle, Northern Mercer County, PA” map by George Schiner and Grant Kimmel published in 1976, the bedrock of the riverbed for both the Shenango River and Lackawannock Creek is the same. It is made up of Bedford Shale, Cussewago Sandstone, and Devonian Undifferentiated. Based off the riverbed rock structure and the actual riverbed location, it is postulated that before the glacial epoch, the Shenango River coursed up Lackawannock Creek northward. Today, Lackawannock Creek is a tributary that flows into the Shenango River at the Big Bend.
At this location, you will be able to see the Big Bend, where Lackawannock joins the Shenango, and the historic riprap of the Erie Extension Canal.
COORDINATES TO PARKING AREA
N 41 16.892’ W080 19.274’
TO GET CREDIT FOR THIS CACHE:
Please be sure to send your answers to the following questions to jmccullough@mcc.co.mercer.pa.us in order to receive credit for this cache.
1. Describe the riprap stones along the outside streambank. Why are they important?
2. What wildlife or sign is present?
A special thank you to the Army Corps of Engineers for allowing this EarthCache to be placed.
References:
Bauman, J.F. (1989). The Erie Extension Canal and the Canal Boom Towns of Clarksville, Big Bend, and New Hamburg, PA, During the Canal Era, 1941-1871: A Search of the Literature. US Army Corps of Engineers, 1.
Mondok, J. (1990). The Shenango River. Shenango Riverscapes, 1-2.
Schiner, G.R. and G.E. Kimmel. 1989. Map of the “Bedrock Geologic Map of the Fredonia and Sharpsville Quadrangles and Part of the Orangeville Quadrangle, Northern Mercer County, PA”.