Buffalo River (New York)
The Buffalo River drains a 447-square-mile (1,160 km2) watershed in Western New York state, emptying into the eastern end of Lake Erie at the City of Buffalo. The river has three tributaries: Cayuga Creek, Buffalo Creek, and Cazenovia Creek.
| Buffalo River | |
|---|---|
Buffalo River where it empties into Lake Erie. The lighthouse on the left of the river is the Buffalo Main Light | |
| Location | |
| Country | United States |
| State | New York |
| Counties | Erie, Wyoming |
| City | Buffalo |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | |
| • coordinates | 42°35′38″N 78°28′15″W |
| • elevation | 1,450 ft (440 m) |
| Mouth | Lake Erie |
• location | Buffalo |
• coordinates | 42°52′42″N 78°53′11″W |
• elevation | 570 ft (170 m) |
| Length | 8 mi (13 km)approximately |
| Basin size | 447 sq mi (1,160 km2)total watershed |
| Discharge | |
| • location | Buffalo, NY |
| Basin features | |
| Tributaries | |
| • left | Cayuga Creek |
| • right | Buffalo Creek (New York), Cazenovia Creek |
The Buffalo River has been important to the development of western New York, including as the terminus for the Erie Canal beginning in 1825, and later as an industrial area with uses including grain elevators, steel mills and chemical production. When shipping began to bypass the Erie Canal in the 1950s, and later heavy industry declined, the transportation and industrial uses of the river were greatly reduced. Many adjacent factories and grain mills were abandoned. The river and adjacent sites have been the focus of efforts over several decades to improve water quality and restore habitat, most recently in 2011 with the commencement of the Buffalo River Restoration Project.