Turtle Creek (Monongahela River)
| Turtle Creek | |
|---|---|
1751 map depicting "Turtle C" near top, just left of center
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| Country | United States |
| Basin features | |
| Main source | 40°25′39″N 79°34′37″W / 40.4275675°N 79.5769871°W |
| River mouth | 722 ft (220 m) 40°23′23″N 79°51′07″W / 40.3897913°N 79.8519929°WCoordinates: 40°23′23″N 79°51′07″W / 40.3897913°N 79.8519929°W |
| River system | Monongahela River |
Turtle Creek is a 21.1-mile-long (34.0 km)tributary of the Monongahela River in Allegheny and Westmoreland counties in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. At its juncture with the Monongahela is Braddock, Pennsylvania, where the Battle of the Monongahela ("Braddock's Defeat") was fought in 1755. In the mid-19th century, the Pennsylvania Railroad laid tracks along the stream as part of its Main Line from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh.
The headwaters of Turtle Creek are in Delmont. The stream flows west and enters the Monongahela River at North Versailles Township.
Turtle Creek is the English translation of the Native American name, naming the area for its abundance of turtles. In 1742, John Fraser and his family established Braddock at the mouth of Turtle Creek as the first permanent English settlement west of the Allegheny Mountains.George Washington visited the area in 1753-1754. It was the site of Braddock's Defeat on July 9, 1755.
Wall is located at the site of a farm purchased by James Walls in 1829. The property, on the south bank of Turtle Creek, was passed to James' sons Henry and John Walls, who lived in a log cabin near the heart of present-day Wall. A station on the Pennsylvania Railroad opened in the early 1840s, which was named "Walls' Station" in honor of the Walls family. Eventually, the name of the station and the town that grew up around it was shortened to "Wall Station". Henry and John Walls sold their property to their cousin Frank Wall, an engineer on riverboats who developed the property around the station. Wall got its name after this Frank Wall, whose said property development led to him being the owner of the first two houses erected in the region.
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Wikipedia