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Red Bird River

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41-702: The Red Bird River (a.k.a. Red Bird Creek or Redbird Creek ) is one of two tributaries at the head of the South Fork Kentucky River , the other being the Goose Creek . It is located in the Daniel Boone National Forest , in the southeast of the U.S. state of Kentucky . It is 34.3 miles (55.2 km) long and drains the eastern half of Clay County. At its mouth, the Red Bird River's mean annual discharge

82-645: A Chief Red Bird with his housekeeper Jack were murdered just upstream of the creek mouth of Hector Creek, at the former site of the Red Bird River Petroglyphs . Jack's Creek (the Lower one) is named after the Jack in the tale. Gilbert, or his son Abijah, is also credited in a similar story with coining the name of Hector Creek, naming it after his hunting dog that was killed by a bear on its banks. Local schoolteacher and minister John Jay Dickey recorded

123-442: A Mrs Asher (forename unrecorded) who had a mine 1.375 miles (2.213 km) upstream on Phillips Fork, and A. J. Asher who had a mine on Lick Fork. Tributary A tributary , or an affluent , is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream ( main stem or "parent" ), river, or a lake . A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean . Tributaries, and the main stem river into which they flow, drain

164-756: A log home there in 1799, which still stands on the grounds of the Red Bird River Community Hospital of the United Brethren Church. The Asher Fork post office and tributary of Goose Creek are named for the family. As is the Asher post office on the Beech Fork of Middle Fork Kentucky River to the west. The family included the aforementioned Richard Wilkerson Asher, J. D. Asher, Josiah Asher, and James F. Asher. Other Ashers were Matilda Asher, who lived on Saw-Pit Branch,

205-400: A new river, to be given its own name, perhaps one already known to the people who live upon its banks. Conversely, explorers approaching a new land from the sea encounter its rivers at their mouths, where they name them on their charts, then, following a river upstream, encounter each tributary as a forking of the stream to the right and to the left, which then appear on their charts as such; or

246-534: A storekeeper and a preacher, and in his time the post office served a small area with a corn mill, a school, and a church. Bill Knuckles was also a storekeeper, and also a lawyer. John Beverly Knuckles and Millard F. Knuckles were landowners, who in 1921 offered their land to build a school and hospital. This was to become the Red Bird Mission and Settlement School , built by the Women's Missionary Society of

287-492: Is 336.62 cubic feet per second (9,532 L/s). It drains an area of 195.7 square miles (507 km). Its overall gradient is 7.2 feet per mile (1.36 m/km). The headwaters of Red Bird River are in north-eastern Bell County , separated from the rest of that county by the Kentucky Ridge . It constitutes the county line between Clay and Leslie Counties for a 6.5 miles (10.5 km) reach. Kentucky Route 66 follows

328-411: Is a low point or opening between hills or mountains or in a ridge or mountain range . It may be called a col , notch, pass , saddle , water gap , or wind gap . Geomorphologically , a gap is most often carved by water erosion from a freshet , stream or a river . Gaps created by freshets are often, if not normally, devoid of water through much of the year, their streams being dependent upon

369-508: Is largely a mystery. It is known to have operated from 1828 to 1831, but its location and postmaster are unknown, and its location only narrowed down as far as being either on Red Bird Creek next to the mouth of Big Creek or somewhere on Big Creek. The second Red Bird post office in Bell County was established on 1876-10-24 by postmaster Richard Wilkerson Asher. It was located at the mouth of Cow Creek and remained there as it passed through

410-536: The United States Naval Reserve in World War 2 , with M. R. McCorckle of McCorckle Lumber running Bringardner Lumber whilst he was away. The Flat Creek post office was established on 1857-08-15 by postmaster Felix G. Gilbert. It is not known exactly where it was located and it closed on 1861-09-06. The Van Camp post office was established on 1924-09-29 by postmaster Jable L. Stewart. It

451-638: The meltwaters of a snow pack . Gaps sourced by small springs will generally have a small stream excepting perhaps during the most arid parts of the year. Water gaps of necessity often cut entirely through a barrier range and riverine gaps may create canyons such as the riverine gaps of the Danube River , Lehigh River Gorge , the Colorado River 's Grand Canyon and the Genesee River . Such cuttings may expose millennia of strata in

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492-531: The Evangelical Church of Pennsylvania. It has operated a sales outlet for local craftspeople, a community store, several schools, fifteen churches across five counties, a hospital, and a clinic. The Jacks Creek post office was established on 1932-02-26 by postmaster Marion Hensley. It closed in June 1954. The Burns post office was established on 1892-06-20 by postmaster Harriet Burns. She had wanted

533-485: The Gilberts's tales in his diary in the 1890s. Chief Red Bird and Jack are not recorded in any history books at all from the early 19th century, only being recorded by Dickey as aforementioned and by Richard Collins (revising his father Lewis's earlier work) in the 1870s; however there were two Red Bird post offices and several other things named after (at least) the river and the two creeks. The first Red Bird post office

574-678: The Roark family, all descendants of early John Coke Roark from Roanoke, Virginia . It is still there today. A family named Asher settled in the Upper Red Bird Creek area in the 19th century, descendents of early settler and local landowner in the Goose Creek and Red Bird valleys, Dillion Asher (1774–1844), who back in 1800 had lived in a minor tributary hollow just downstream of the Phillip's Fork. He may or may not have been

615-559: The area, however. The third, and least likely, account, from George R. Stewart's American Place Names dictionary, is that it was named after antepasti . The Gardner post office was established on 1931-05-31 and run by postmaster Ray Kevil Carter until August 1940. It served the Gardner Station on the railroad for the Bringardner Lumber Company , owned by Fred Bringardner of Lexington . The post office

656-507: The clerks at the USPS could not read the handwriting on the application form, naming it Eriline instead, and the Brittons did not consider it important enough to make a fuss about the name. It was originally established at the Brittons's home at the mouth of Hector Creek, but moved three times. The first move was to the east side of the Red Bird River, south of the mouth of Big Creek, which was

697-557: The confluence with Phillips Fork, and Red Bird River, which is the reach downstream; although the KGS Fourth Report in 1918 made no such distinction and simply named whole thing Redbird Creek. The meeting point of Clay, Bell, and Leslie counties is just east of Sandy Fork. Red Bird was the name of a Native American who was murdered near the river, according to a 19th-century tale that traces back at least to an early settler and preacher named John Gilbert. The story goes that

738-521: The county line in 1902. It closed in June 1913. The Sandy Fork post office was established on 1877-02-26 by postmaster J. R. Fairchild. It was located at the mouth of the same-named Sandy Fork, and changed name to Sandyfork in March 1894. It closed on 1911-09-30. The Roark post office was established on 1907-01-29 by postmasters John A. and Lucy F. Roark. Located 0.5 miles (0.80 km) upstream on (Upper) Jack's Creek it has been operated by members of

779-510: The course of the River from Oneida to the Clay–;Bell County line. The two Bear Creek tributaries are sometimes distinguished as Lower Bear Creek and Upper Bear Creek. The two Jack's Creek tributaries are likewise sometimes distinguished as Lower Jack's Creek and Upper Jack's Creek. Similarly, on some modern maps a distinction is drawn between Red Bird Creek, which is the reach upstream of

820-491: The first tollgate keeper at Cumberland Ford, the Asher family history saying that he was but Robert L. Kincaid in The Wilderness Road saying that it was rather one Robert Craig. He definitely had a lean-to at the ford in 1797, but he moved to Upper Red Bird shortly afterwards. He had passed through he area earlier in 1777, planting some peach seeds along the way, and he came back to see how they had fared. He built

861-406: The first-order tributary being typically the least in size. For example, a second-order tributary would be the result of two or more first-order tributaries combining to form the second-order tributary. Another method is to list tributaries from mouth to source, in the form of a tree structure , stored as a tree data structure . Gap (landform) A gap is a geological formation that

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902-451: The handedness is from the point of view of an observer facing upstream. For instance, Steer Creek has a left tributary which is called Right Fork Steer Creek. These naming conventions are reflective of the circumstances of a particular river's identification and charting: people living along the banks of a river, with a name known to them, may then float down the river in exploration, and each tributary joining it as they pass by appears as

943-411: The hands of successive family members. When R. W. Asher died in 1884 it passed to his daughter Amanda "Mandy" Jane, who married one William R. "Bill" Knuckles. She attempted to rename the post office Knuckles, but she misspelled it as Nuckles on the USPS forms. She in turn died in 1890, the postmastership passing to her husband, who in his turn died in 1910 with their son John Beverly Knuckles taking over

984-654: The headwaters of Hector Creek to the Lockhart Creek tributary of Goose Creek . Kentucky Route 149 crosses that gap and follows Hector Creek for the whole of its course, the Daniel Boone Parkway also following the creek for most of it. The Eriline post office was established on 1902-12-09 and lasted until 1988, with a 32-year hiatus from 1911. It was supposed to be named after Eveline (some sources spell as Evaline) Britton (1861–1939), wife of Van Britton (1855–1911) its first postmaster, but

1025-424: The joining of tributaries. The opposite to a tributary is a distributary , a river or stream that branches off from and flows away from the main stream. Distributaries are most often found in river deltas . Right tributary , or right-bank tributary , and left tributary , or left-bank tributary , describe the orientation of the tributary relative to the flow of the main stem river. These terms are defined from

1066-449: The most directly sourced: a story from his own family lore about the local preacher waiting for "Andy's passing" in the middle of church services, as Wilson's great-grandfather Andy Baker would drunkenly and noisily pass by. Another account, supported by George R. Stewart 's American Given Names dictionary, states that it was after some person whose name in turn was taken from Biblical figure Herod Antipas , no such person being recorded in

1107-627: The names Burns Store, Hector, or Hayes (after a local family). It was located 5 miles (8.0 km) upstream on Hector Creek, and closed in August 1893. The Hector post office was established on 1900-12-28 by postmaster Arazona Davidson. It was originally 3.5 miles (5.6 km) upstream on Hector Creek, but was moved in 1924 by postmaster Jane L. Chadwell to the mouth of a left branch of Hector now known as Davidson Branch and earlier known as Jim Hubbard's Branch, close to where Burns had been years before. It closed in 1977. A gap named Hector Gap connects

1148-469: The opposite bank before approaching the confluence. An early tributary is a tributary that joins the main stem river closer to its source than its mouth, that is, before the river's midpoint ; a late tributary joins the main stem further downstream, closer to its mouth than to its source, that is, after the midpoint. In the United States, where tributaries sometimes have the same name as

1189-476: The perspective of looking downstream, that is, facing the direction the water current of the main stem is going. In a navigational context, if one were floating on a raft or other vessel in the main stream, this would be the side the tributary enters from as one floats past; alternately, if one were floating down the tributary, the main stream meets it on the opposite bank of the tributary. This information may be used to avoid turbulent water by moving towards

1230-517: The postmastership. The USPS requested a change of name in August 1911, and the post office finally became Beverly . John was replaced by his wife Myrtle as postmaster on 1913-12-22. In the latter part of the 20th century the Beverly post office moved to the mouth of the Lawson Branch of Lawson Creek, some 2.5 miles (4.0 km) away. It is still open as of the 21st century. R. W. Asher was

1271-500: The result of its reëstablishment after the hiatus on 1943-08-29 by George C. Hensley. The second move was back north in 1944 by Mary W. Bowling to the west of the Red Bird, 2.5 miles (4.0 km) from the then Jacks Creek post office. The third move took it upriver in 1949, and at its closure in 1988 it was still on the west side of the Red Bird, at the junction of Kentucky Route 66 and Jacks Creek Road. The Spring Creek post office

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1312-666: The river into which they feed, they are called forks . These are typically designated by compass direction. For example, the American River in California receives flow from its North, Middle, and South forks. The Chicago River 's North Branch has the East, West, and Middle Fork; the South Branch has its South Fork, and used to have a West Fork as well (now filled in). Forks are sometimes designated as right or left. Here,

1353-418: The smaller stream designated the little fork, the larger either retaining its name unmodified, or receives the designation big . Tributaries are sometimes listed starting with those nearest to the source of the river and ending with those nearest to the mouth of the river . The Strahler stream order examines the arrangement of tributaries in a hierarchy of first, second, third and higher orders, with

1394-432: The streams are seen to diverge by the cardinal direction (north, south, east, or west) in which they proceed upstream, sometimes a third stream entering between two others is designated the middle fork; or the streams are distinguished by the relative height of one to the other, as one stream descending over a cataract into another becomes the upper fork, and the one it descends into, the lower ; or by relative volume:

1435-547: The surrounding drainage basin of its surface water and groundwater , leading the water out into an ocean. The Irtysh is a chief tributary of the Ob river and is also the longest tributary river in the world with a length of 4,248 km (2,640 mi). The Madeira River is the largest tributary river by volume in the world with an average discharge of 31,200 m /s (1.1 million cu ft/s). A confluence , where two or more bodies of water meet, usually refers to

1476-479: Was at the mouth of Lick Fork. The Bringardner Lumber Company's railway operated out of what was at the time known as Asher's Fork, further upstream towards the Beverly post office. Charles Bringardner, Fred's son, sales manager, and a later president of Bringardner Lumber, also later operated the Red Bird Lumber Company near to Marcum post office. Charles was commissioned as a junior lieutenant in

1517-493: Was established on 1876-07-10 by postmaster Jesse Mattingly. It was located at several sites on Spring Creek at or just upstream of the creek mouth. After closing on 1884-05-08 it was reëstablished at the mouth of Flat Creek by on 1885-01-16 by postmaster Christopher Bowling. After later moving back to Spring Creek, it closed in October 1944. The Marcum post office was established on 1908-03-11 by postmaster Henry B. Marcum Jr. It

1558-571: Was located 1.5 miles (2.4 km) upstream on Flat Creek at the mouth of its Rocky Fork. Stewart's first choice of name had been Sand Hills after the creek's headwaters, but this was rejected by the USPS. It closed in September 1938. The Creekville post office was established on 1928-09-01 by postmaster Bascom C. Bowling, one-time postmaster of the Annalee post office that was to become Peabody. Bowling's first choice of name had been Flat Creek. It

1599-491: Was located at the Flat Creek mouth on Red Bird, and closed in 1972. The Skidmore post office was established on 1876-08-03 by postmaster J. D. Asher. It was named after his successor Andrew C. Skidmore who took over from Asher on 1876-10-27. It was in the store of Joasiah Asher, J. D. Asher being a local miller, at the mouth of Phillips Fork. Postmaster James F. Asher moved it upstream to just 50 yards (46 m) away from

1640-440: Was named after his family, descendants of Henry's grandfather Thomas Marcum who was an early settler on Red Bird some time around 1812. It was originally located just below and across from the mouth of Sugar Creek. Some time before 1928 it moved upstream by 1 mile (1.6 km) to across from the mouth of Gilbert Creek. It closed in June 1984. The Antepast post office was established on 1910-01-20 by postmaster Wilson T. Martin. It

1681-529: Was originally located on Red Bird 1.5 miles (2.4 km) downstream of the mouth of (Lower) Beaar Creek, and moved 2 miles (3.2 km) further downstream in November 1932 under postmaster Howell T. Bowling. It was here, some 2.5 miles (4.0 km) upstream of Oneida, that it closed in November 1936. There are several competing hypotheses recorded for the origin of its name. Clay County historian Jess D. Wilson , in his book When They Hanged The Fiddler , gives

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