Cattaraugus Creek

Cattaraugus Creek
The mouth of Cattaraugus Creek on Lake Erie near Sunset Bay, New York.
Country	United States
State	New York
Source	Java Lake
- location	Java, Wyoming County
- coordinates	42°37′43″N 78°20′24″W / 42.62861°N 78.34000°W / 42.62861; -78.34000
Mouth	Lake Erie
- location	Sunset Bay, Erie County
- coordinates	42°34′14″N 79°08′14″W / 42.57056°N 79.13722°W / 42.57056; -79.13722Coordinates: 42°34′14″N 79°08′14″W / 42.57056°N 79.13722°W / 42.57056; -79.13722
Length	68 mi (109 km)
Basin	559 sq mi (1,448 km2)
Location of the mouth of Cattaraugus Creek in New York State.

Cattaraugus Creek is a stream, approximately 68 miles (109 km) long, in western New York in the United States. The creek drains a wooded rural portion of western New York southwest of Buffalo into Lake Erie. In its lower course it flows primarily through the Cattaraugus Reservation of the Seneca tribe. The word Cattaraugus is derived from the Seneca word Gah-ta-ra-ke-ras, meaning "stinking shore" or "foul-smelling river bank." This name is a result of the natural gas that oozes from the river mud.

The creek rises in Java Lake in Wyoming County. In the village of Arcade it is joined by Clear Creek. It flows westward out of Wyoming County to the hamlet of Yorkshire, where the creek becomes the boundary between Erie County to the north and Cattaraugus County to the south. Near Springville, the creek is impounded by the Scoby Dam. From Springville to Gowanda, Cattaraugus Creek passes through the Zoar Valley Multiple Use Area. This conservation zone is a favorite recreation area for fishing and rafting. The South Branch of Cattaraugus Creek originates in East Otto and flows southwest into the village of Cattaraugus before veering northwest to Cattaraugus Creek along the Persia-Otto town line, joining the main creek just east of Gowanda, a village that straddles the main stem of the creek and is thereby in two counties. Along its lower course Cattaraugus Creek flows past the hamlet of Versailles, on the south bank of the creek in the Cattaraugus Reservation. For its final miles, the creek forms the border between Erie County and Chautauqua County, then flows into Lake Erie by Sunset Bay in the town of Hanover in Chautauqua County.