DESCRIPTION mil in a 4. The basin. Yellow Creek is a minor tributary of the Cumberland le River, with a drainage area of 103 square miles. The greater portion and of the basin lies in Bell County in the southeastern corner of Kentucky, Bene and a small portion extends southward into Claiborne County in northeastern Tennessee. The area in the two States is 88 and 15 La square miles, respectively. The basin is roughly rectangular in fet p shape, about 15 miles along a northeast-southwest axis and about C 7 miles along a northwest-southeast axis. The drainage basin of Powell River lies to the southeast, while the watersheds of Cumber land River and its minor tributaries envelop the other sides of the Yellow Creek Basin. The country is decidedly rugged. The greatest bank elevation is that of Log Mountain the peaks of which reach a heighttribu of about 3,200 feet above mean sea level and the lowest point is about evera elevation 1,000, at the mouth of the stream where it enters the Cumberland River approximately 5 miles above Pineville, Ky., or 660 miles above the confluence of the Cumberland and Ohio Rivers. The principal valley, located near the center of the basin, is about 2 by 3 miles in extent and is the site of the city of Middlesborough. Bams. Pets Pork 5. Yellow Creek.-Yellow Creek is about 18 miles long and is formed in the southwest part of Middlesborough by the junction of Stony and Bennetts Forks. The main stream flows generally northeast for about 2 miles to the junction with Little Yellow Creek, thence flows northward for about 16 miles to the Cumberland River. In about 1890, Yellow Creek was straightened and widened through the city from a point near its head downstream to Binghamtown, distance of approximately 3 miles. The original gradient of the stream is not known. The present slope, however, from the head to the mouth of Little Yellow Creek at mile 16.0 is about 10 feet per mile. From the mouth of that creek to mile 10, the slope is approxi mately 3 feet per mile, and from that point to the Cumberland River, 10 feet per mile. Plate 1 shows the low-water profile, together with the high-water profiles of the 1929 and 1939 floods. The stream is not navigable. Recently completed flood-control works at Middles borough now divert most of the headwater around the city, allowing only a small quantity of water, sufficient for sanitary requirements to pass through the old channel. The slope of the diversion channel from its head on Bennetts Fork to the point where it discharges into Yellow Creek at mile 15, or about 1 mile below the mouth of Little Yellow Creek, is approximately 12 feet per mile. The width of Yellow Creek varies from about 40 feet, which prevails at Middles-res a borough, to about 75 feet at the mouth, and the height of the banksy wi generally is from 5 to 10 feet. Low-water depth varies from a few inches, near the headwaters and in the shoals, to several feet in the pools. The flood plain below Middlesborough varies from a few constr hundred feet to about one-fourth mile in width. The original canal through the city is capable of discharging about 1,500 cubic feet per second without causing damage to the town, and the new diversion channel is designed for a peak discharge of 30,000 cubic feet per second. A gorge which exists below the mouth of the diversion channel restricts the flow at that point. and 6. Tributaries.-Yellow Creek has four major tributaries: Bennetts Fork, Stony Fork, Little Yellow Creek, and Clear Creek, with drainage areas of 15, 16, 13.3, and 18 square miles and lengths of 6.5, 7.5, Fern basin Her supp Low Cre the tow fout 35 kment acent t rol of dies ind way ca Ser slow be enda 1. Genera ly disse great гороста rept for care area Pennsylv 10.5, and 8.5 miles, respectively. The first two unite to form Yellow Creek, while Little Yellow Creek enters at mile 16.0 and Clear Creek at mile 6.8. These tributaries all head in rugged mountainous terrain, and collect the run-off from very steep slopes. The average fall of Bennetts Fork is 200 feet per mile, while that of Stony Fork is about 180 feet per mile. Little Yellow Creek from headwaters to Fern Lake Dam, a distance of 7.5 miles, has an approximate slope of 70 feet per mile, but from there to its mouth only about 30 feet per mile. Clear Creek has an average slope of approximately 75 feet per mile. The tributaries are typical mountain streams, characterized by successions of pools and shoals which have low-water depths of from a few inches to several feet and widths of from 10 to 30 feet. The banks generally are only a few feet in height. The widths of the tributary flood plains vary from about 50 feet in narrow gorges to several hundred feet where alluvial bottoms lie adjacent to the streams. A summary of data pertaining to the main tributaries is shown in table 2. TABLE 2.-Principal tributaries of Yellow Creek 7. Fern Lake.-The one important artificial water surface within the basin is Fern Lake. This lake was created as a source of public water supply, in 1890, by the construction of an earth dam on Little Yellow Creek about 3 miles above its mouth and about 1 mile south of the town. The dam, now owned by a private utilities company, is about 35 feet high, and has a 20-foot top width. The earth embankment is 950 feet long, with a 70-foot brick and masonry spillway adjacent to the left abutment. No provisions were made for the control of floods. The drainange area above it is about 9 square miles, and the impounded pool contains an area of approximately 150 acres and is about 2 miles in length. This reservoir has provided the city with an adequate supply of good water for over 50 years. Studies indicate that floods may be anticipated that will exceed the spillway capacity. However, although the dam is of earth, it is so well constructed that should it be overtopped, failure would be rather slow and consequently the levees under consideration would not be endangered. 8. General geology.-Yellow Creek drainage basin lies within the highly dissected eastern end of the Cumberland Plateau bordering the great valley of east Tennessee and its extension into Virginia. The topography is rugged, the maximum relief being about 2,200 feet. Except for one narrow strip of Mississippian limestone and shale, the entire area is overlain by sandstones, shales, conglomerates, and coals of Pennsylvanian age which have been quite variable in their resistance 1 to erosion with the resulting mountainous topography. The area is included in part of a major structural depression, the Middlesborough Basin, a large elongated syncline trending in a northeast-southwest direction. The southeast flank of this syncline is bounded by Cumberland Mountain toward which the rock strata rise and become one of the successive parallel structural ridges of the great valley of east Tennessee. This physiographic divide is also the drainage divide between Yellow Creek and tributaries of the Tennessee River. About 1 mile northwest, and outside the limits of Yellow Creek drainage, the rock strata rise progressively steeper toward the northwest. These steep dips culminate in the other elongated boundary of the Middlesborough Basin, the Pine Mountain overthrust, a high-angle fault of To.. such displacement as to expose Mississippian and Devonian rocks. There are numerous minor folds and one thrust fault, the Rocky Face fault, within the remainder of the drainage area. The fault begins at the crest of an anticline about 3 miles north of Cumberland Gap and continues northward for 3 miles where it again becomes the crest of the anticline. The displacement has been great enough to expose a narrow strip of Mississippian strata. er grow 9. Population. Although the total population of the basin and of Middlesborough has increased for the last 20 years, the increase for the basin is largely attributable to urban growth. Most of the rural areas have shown a decline. As may be seen from the following table, the percentage of the population of the entire basin living in Middles borough has been 51, 60, and 62 for the years shown. Table 3 shows the population of Yellow Creek Basin and of Middlesborough. TABLE 3.-Population of Yellow Creek Basin and city of Middlesborough K041 10 32 11,777 the 1. La abou pe to Louis Ene 10. Industries.-The Yellow Creek Basin is mainly a coal-producing area. The town of Middlesborough was built by English capital in de sma 1889-90 and was to have been a highly developed iron and steeltyin producing center. The city grew rapidly for a time, apparently until the site was overbuilt. Accounts of the founding of the city indicate. Tra that financial difficulties and inadequate ore beds caused a collapse in nd gener Sand 1893 of the early industrial developments and a population decrease ral po from around 20,000 to about 2,000 within a short period. Since thene ru the town has had a stable growth and is of local industrial importance, principally supported by coal mines and manufacturing plants. The of the coal-mining activities account directly for about 64 percent of the persons employed and about 65 percent of the income of the community. Table 4 shows the number of persons employed and pay rolls for the various industrial groups of Middlesborough, as compiled from an industrial survey made by the local chamber of commerce. adam at exist for gr are, bu Arcity of acts, 40 clemen crops 2. Nat area, v recor Cere are on in purpos ough te p tion is t Cumber Gap,& 11. Land use.-Owing to the mountainous character of the area, only about 15 percent has been cleared. Practically all of the remaining 85 percent of the basin is covered with cut-over and second-growth timber. About 40,000 acres of the watershed is owned in large tracts, mostly by coal and lumber companies which sell operating rights to other groups. The farm lands are in the narrow valleys and on the gentler slopes of mountain sides. The soil of the cleared upland has been damaged by sheet erosion, but not badly gullied. The gullies that exist are not deep and numerous enough to seriously impair its use for grazing purposes. The soils of the bottom lands are acid in nature, but are fairly fertile and are highly prized on account of the scarcity of farm land in the region. Also, as the farms are in small tracts, 40 to 50 acres, they are desirable for operation by tenants to supplement employment in the mines or other industries. The principal crops are corn and vegetables; however, the estimated average annual value of farm products of $140,000 does not indicate that agriculture, within itself, is of much importance. 12. Natural resources.-Coal ranks first of the natural resources of the area, with an average annual production of about 2,000,000 tons. The recoverable coal is estimated as not less than 300,000,000 tons. There are several thin beds of good grade iron ore in the Yellow Creek Basin, which may or may not be extensive enough for profitable production in the near future. Sand, gravel, and stone suitable for building purposes are also found in the vicinity. The timbered areas, although closely cut-over and damaged by forest fires, are extensive enough to sustain considerable activity in forest products industries. While small quantities of natural gas have been produced in Bell County in one or two isolated wells, the production of petroleum is only a remote possibility. 13. Transportation.-A line of the Cumberland Valley division of the Louisville & Nashville Railroad Co. enters the basin in the eastcentral portion through a tunnel under Cumberland Gap. Thence, the line runs westward a few miles to Middlesborough, turns northward generally parallel to Yellow Creek, and leaves the basin to the west of the mouth of the stream. Spur lines of this railroad serve mines and mining settlements within and adjacent to the basin. Connection is made with the Southern Railway System on the east side of Cumberland Mountain at Cumberland Gap, Tenn. One Federal highway-U S 25-E-traverses the basin, entering through Cumberland Gap, and, thence, runs west and north through Middlesborough. 96613-44- -2 Several State highways serve portions of the basin: Kentucky Highway 74 leads westward from Middlesborough; Kentucky Highway 186 runs southwest from Middlesborough, where it connects with a county highway in Claiborne County, Tenn.; and Kentucky Highway 188 leaves United States Highway 25-E in the north-central part of the basin and runs eastward to serve mining communities. All of the above main roads are in Bell County, Ky. There are no State or Federal highways in the basin in Claiborne County, Tenn. In addition to highways, a network of improved connecting county roads afford adequate outlets from rural areas and mining camps to the city of Middlesborough. a, mo on 14. Maps. A map of the city of Middlesborough and the lay-out and construction drawings of the Middlesborough flood-control project are on file in the Nashville district. The maps' submitted with this report are as follows: Plate 1, a watershed map, showing promi-on of nent features mentioned in this report, vicinity map, stream gages, ing rainfall stations, and stream profile; plate 2, a map of Middlesborough, showing existing flood-control works, improvement plans discussed in uary this report, including typical levee and canal sections and an outlinee Ju of the area inundated by the flood of 1929 both as it actually occurred and as it probably would appear under present conditions; and plates 3 to 10, plan and profile sheets, showing location of stream, topography, and profile grade for channel rectification. Published maps showing Yellow Creek Basin or portions thereof are shown in table 5. dat TABLE 5.-Published maps of Yellow Creek Basin and vicinity do. Highway and transporta- highway and vey. Kentucky Department of Highways. Tennessee State Highway 1927 1933 1928 1933 1929 1937 1939 Scale 1:62,500 1:500,000 SE 1:500,000 162,500 sin, as 1 1:125,000 roundi ches oc 1.62,500 earli pective .Pr rough, od does 1:62,500 able 7. 1:500,000 infall is nthly Month METEOROLOGY AND HYDROLOGY 28. No 15. Climatological records.-The United States Weather Bureau and the United States Engineer Department are the only agencies engaged in the collection of climatological data in the Yellow Creek Basin. The standard United States Weather Bureau cooperative station at Middlesborough (published as Middlesboro) is the only long-record station having both precipitation and climatological data, the record being almost continuous since 1891. There are three recording pre record. Pertinent data for stations in the basin are given in table 6, and locations of these stations are shown on plate 1. 1 Only pls. 1 and 2 are printed. curren re have bes. So floods in |