Elk River (west Virginia)

The Elk River is a Tributary of the Kanawha River , 172 mi (277 km) long, in central West Virginia in the United States . Via the Kanawha and Ohio Rivers, it is part of the Watershed of the Mississippi River .

COURSE

The Elk is formed in the Allegheny Mountains in Pocahontas County by the confluence of two short streams, the Big Spring Fork and the Old Field Fork, which join near the community of Slatyfork . It follows a generally westward course across the unglaciated Allegheny Plateau , through Randolph , Webster , Braxton , Clay , and Kanawha Counties, past the towns of Webster Springs , Sutton , Gassaway , Clay , and Clendenin before joining the Kanawha River at Charleston .

At Sutton, a U.S. Army Corps Of Engineers Dam causes the Elk to form Sutton Lake .

The Elk's largest tributaries are the Holly River and the Birch River , both of which join it in Braxton County.

VARIANT NAMES

According to the Geographic Names Information System , the Elk River has also been known historically as:

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