Kinderhook Creek

River in Massachusetts, United States

42°34′38″N 73°17′52″W / 42.57722°N 73.29778°W / 42.57722; -73.29778 MouthStockport Creek

• location

Stockport, New York

• coordinates

42°19′03″N 73°44′43″W / 42.31750°N 73.74528°W / 42.31750; -73.74528

• elevation

10 ft (3.0 m)Length49 mi (79 km)

Kinderhook Creek^[1] is a 49.0-mile-long (78.9 km)^[2] tributary to Stockport Creek, an inlet of the Hudson River in the United States. From its source in Hancock, Massachusetts, the creek runs southwest through the Taconic Mountains into Rensselaer County, New York, and then into Columbia County. It flows through the towns of Stephentown, New Lebanon, Nassau, Chatham, Kinderhook and Stuyvesant to its mouth at Stockport Creek in the town of Stockport.

Kinderhook Creek has a drainage area of over 329 square miles (850 km²).^[3]

History

Kinderhook Creek was known as Pasanthkack by the Mahican Native Americans.^[4] Prior to 1667 it was known as "Major Abram's (Staats) Kill" and "Third Falls." In 1823 it was called Stuyvesant Falls (now referring to a village on the creek) and after 1845 "Kinderhook Creek".^[5]

The name "Kinderhook" has its root in the landing of Henry Hudson in the area around present-day Stuyvesant, where he was greeted by Native Americans with many children. With the Dutch Kinder meaning "child" and Hoeck meaning "bend" or "hook" [in the river], the name literally means "bend in the river where the children are". A figurative translation is "children's point".^[6]

The area around Kinderhook Creek was called Machackoesk by the Native American Mahican Tribe.^[7]

Tributaries

Valatie Kill - Native American, Tsat-sa-was-sa or Tack-a-was-ick creek (and lake) are placed in the town of Nassau by the French. The name may refer to a stone mortar.
Kline Kill - Native American Mahican name Scom-pa-muck or Squampanoc^[8]
- Indian Creek
- Punsit Creek
Stony Kill
- Frisbee Creek
- Queechy Lake Brook - Mahican name Quis-sich-kook, unknown meaning^[8]
Green Brook
Tackawasick Creek
- Cranberry Vly
Black Brook
- Huff Brook
Hollow Brook
Wyomanock Creek - Native American name for the creek. Also known as Lebanon Creek.
- South Branch Wyomanock Creek
- Berry Pond Creek
  - Red Oak Brook
Taplin Bourn (from Middle English bourne, a brook)
Black River
Roaring Brook
East Brook
- West Brook
Bentley Brook
Whitman Brook
Jones Brook
Rathburn Brook

References

^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Kinderhook Creek
^ U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. The National Map Archived 2012-03-29 at the Wayback Machine, accessed October 3, 2011
^ USGS 01361000 KINDERHOOK CREEK AT ROSSMAN NY
^ The Mohicans and their land, 1609–1730, p.299; Shirley Wiltse Dunn, Purple Mountain Press, 1994
^ List of New York State Historic Markers in Columbia County, New York Marker number 130 "Major Abram's Kill"
^ University of the State of New York Bulletin. University of the State of New York. 1914. p. 52.
^ History of the Indian tribes of Hudson's River: their origin, manners and customs..., By Edward Manning Ruttenberg, page 370
^ ^a ^b Aboriginal place names of New York, by William Martin Beauchamp, page 48

Rivers of Massachusetts by drainage system

Atlantic Ocean

Buzzards Bay	Acushnet River Agawam River Back River Copicut River Crooked River Mattapoisett River Nasketucket River Paskamanset River Pocasset River Sippican River Slocums River Wankinco River Westport River Weweantic River
Nantucket Sound	Bass River Bumps River Childs River Coonamesset River Mashpee River Mitchell River Oyster Pond River Popponesset Creek Quashnet River Santuit River
Others	Tiasquam River

Gulf of Maine

Cape Cod Bay	Bluefish River Eel River Herring River Jones River Little Pamet River Pamet River Town Brook
Massachusetts Bay	Aberjona River Alewife Brook Canton River Charles River Chelsea Creek Cochato River Fore River Fresh River Indian Head River Malden River Millers River Monatiquot River Muddy River Mystic River Neponset River North River Saugus River Stony Brook (Boston) Stony Brook (Waltham) Stop River Weir River Weymouth Back River
Merrimack River Watershed	Artichoke River Assabet River Back River Beaver Brook Cochichewick River Concord River Little River Merrimack River Nashua River Nissitissit River North Nashua River Phillips Brook Powwow River Quinapoxet River Salmon Brook Shawsheen River Souhegan River South Branch Souhegan River South Nashua River Spicket River Squannacook River Stillwater River Sudbury River Trout Brook Vine Brook Whitman River
Others	Annisquam River Blackwater River Eagle Hill River Egypt River Ipswich River Jericho Creek Roger Island River Rowley River Skug River

Long Island Sound

Connecticut River Watershed	Burnshirt River Chapel Brook Chicopee River Connecticut River Cranberry River Deerfield River East Brookfield River Farmington River Fall River Five Mile River Green River Hubbard River Manhan River Mill River (Northampton) Mill River (Springfield) Millers River Mirey Brook North Branch Millers River North Branch Westfield River North River Otter River Quaboag River Scantic River Seven Mile River Tarbell Brook Ware River Westfield River
Housatonic River Watershed	Housatonic River Konkapot River Schenob Brook Umpachene River
Thames River Watershed	French River Quinebaug River

Narragansett Bay

Mount Hope Bay (Taunton River Watershed)	Assonet River Canoe River Cedar Swamp River Cocasset River Cotley River Forge River Hockomock River Matfield River Mill River Nemasket River Poor Meadow Brook Quequechan River Rumford River Salisbury Plain River Satucket River Segreganset River Shumatuscacant River Snake River Taunton River Three Mile River Town River Wading River Winnetuxet River
Providence River Watershed	Abbott Run Blackstone River Bungay River Chockalog River Mill River Mumford River Peters River Quinsigamond River Sevenmile River Tannery River Ten Mile River West River Wilde River
Others	Barrington River Cole River Coles Brook Kickamuit River Lees River Palmer River Runnins River