Killbuck Creek is a tributary of the Walhonding River,[1] 81.7 mi (131.5 km) long,[2] in north-central Ohio in the United States. Via the Walhonding, Muskingum and Ohio Rivers, it is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River. It drains an area of 613 mi² (1588 km²).[2]
Killbuck Creek rises in northern Wayne County and initially flows in a counter-clockwise loop northward into southern Medina County and past the town of Burbank before turning to a southward course through Wayne, Holmes and Coshocton Counties to its mouth at the Walhonding River,[3] 5 mi (8 km) west of the city of Coshocton.[1] Along its course it flows to the west of the city of Wooster and passes the towns of Holmesville, Millersburg and Killbuck.[3]
A USGS stream gauge on the creek at Layland recorded a mean annual discharge of 502 cubic feet per second (14.2 m3/s) during water years 1924-1930.[4] According to a US Environmental Protection Agency estimate, the mean annual discharge of the creek at its mouth is 625.34 cu ft/s (17.708 m3/s).[5]
Name
Killbuck Creek and the town of Killbuck are named for the Lenape war chief Bemino (fl. 1710s–1780s) — known as John Killbuck, Sr, to the whites.[6][7] According to the Geographic Names Information System, the stream has been known and spelled variously over the years:[8]
- Kilbuck Creek
- Killbuck Run
- Killbucks Creek
- Kilbuck River
- Kill-Buck River
The United States Board on Geographic Names settled on "Killbuck Creek" as the stream's name in 1963.