Allegheny River

Allegheny River
The Allegheny River, looking upstream at Freeport, Pennsylvania
Country	United States
Basin
Main source	Allegany Township, Potter County, near Coudersport, Pennsylvania at the corner of Ben Green and Cobb Hill Rd ~2,490 ft (760 m) 41°52′22″N 77°52′30″W / 41.872844°N 77.874998°W / 41.872844; -77.874998
River mouth	Ohio River at Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 40°26′36″N 80°00′54″W / 40.443402°N 80.015053°W / 40.443402; -80.015053Coordinates: 40°26′36″N 80°00′54″W / 40.443402°N 80.015053°W / 40.443402; -80.015053
Basin size	11,580 sq mi (30,000 km2)
Physical characteristics
Length	325 mi (523 km)
Discharge	Average rate: 19,750 cu ft/s (559 m3/s) at the village of Natrona, PA (river mile 24.3)
Features
Tributaries	Left: Tionesta Creek, Clarion River, Redbank Creek, Mahoning Creek, Crooked Creek, Kiskiminetas River, Buffalo Creek, Chartiers Run, Pucketa Creek Right: Conewango Creek, Brokenstraw Creek, Oil Creek, French Creek, Bull Creek, Deer Creek, Squaw Run, Pine Creek, Girtys Run

The Allegheny River /ælᵻˈɡeɪni/ is a principal tributary of the Ohio River; it is located in the Eastern United States. The Allegheny River joins with the Monongahela River to form the Ohio River at the "Point" of Point State Park in Downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The Allegheny River is, by volume, the main headstream of the Ohio River.

The river is approximately 325 miles (523 km) long, running through the U.S. states of New York and Pennsylvania. It drains a rural dissected plateau of 11,580 square miles (30,000 km²) in the northern Allegheny Plateau, providing the northeastern most drainage in the watershed of the Mississippi River. Its tributaries reach to within 8 miles (13 km) of Lake Erie in southwestern New York.

The Allegheny Valley has been one of the most productive areas of fossil fuel extraction in U.S. history, with its extensive deposits of coal, petroleum, and natural gas.

The name Allegheny probably comes from Lenape welhik hane or oolikhanna, which means 'best flowing river of the hills' or 'beautiful stream'. There is a Lenape legend of a tribe called "Allegewi" who used to live along the river.