Mattaponi River
| Mattaponi River | |
|---|---|
 The Mattaponi River, upstream of its confluence with theSouth River | |
 York River watershed | |
| Location | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Virginia |
| Counties | King and Queen,King William,New Kent,Caroline |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | Confluence of the Matta and Poni rivers |
| • location | NearWoodford,Caroline County |
| • coordinates | 38°06′45″N77°26′08″W/ 38.11250°N 77.43556°W[1] |
| Mouth | York River |
• location | West Point,King William County |
• coordinates | 37°31′03″N76°47′30″W/ 37.51750°N 76.79167°W[1] |
| Length | 103 mi (166 km)[2] |
| Basin features | |
| Tributaries | |
| • left | Matta River,South River |
| • right | Poni River |
TheMattaponi River/ˈmætəpənaɪ/is a 103-mile-long (166 km)[2]tributaryof theYork Riverestuaryin easternVirginiain the United States.
History[edit]
Historically, the Mattaponi River has been known by a variety of names and alternate spellings, includingMat-ta-pa-ment,Matapanient River, Matapany River, Matapeneugh River, Mattapanient River, Mattaponie River, Mattapony River, andRiviere de Mattapony.The current name and spelling of "Mattaponi" was set by official decisions of theUnited States Board on Geographic Namesin 1897 and 1936.[1]
Residents of the counties surrounding Mattaponi River have debated a proposed reservoir on the Mattaponi River, with environmental groups such as theSierra Club,members of theMattaponiIndian tribe, and residents of King William County opposingNewport News Waterworksin their efforts to build the King William Reservoir.[3]
Course[edit]
The Mattaponi River ultimately rises as four streams inSpotsylvania County,each of which is given a shorter piece of the Mattaponi's name:
- TheMat Riverand theTa Riverjoin in Spotsylvania County to form theMatta River;
- ThePo Riverand theNi Riverjoin inCaroline Countyto form thePoni River;
- TheMatta Riverand thePoni Riverjoin in Caroline County to form the Mattaponi River.
From theconfluenceof its tributaries, the Mattaponi flows generally southeast through Caroline County, where it collects theSouth Riverat the southern edge of theMattaponi Wildlife Management Area;in its lower reaches it defines the boundary betweenKing WilliamandKing and Queencounties. AtWest Point,it meets thePamunkey Riverto form theYork River.
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^abc"Mattaponi River".Geographic Names Information System.United States Geological Survey,United States Department of the Interior.RetrievedFebruary 22,2017.
- ^abU.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data.The National MapArchived2012-03-29 at theWayback Machine,accessed April 1, 2011
- ^Harper, Scott (2 May 2009)."Newport News halts King William Reservoir work".The Virginian-Pilot.Retrieved16 August2017.
| International | |
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| National | |
