INTKODUC'l ION. 



rocks. Some sandy loam is also found, but stretches of pure sand 

 are rare. There is considerable evidence to show that upon the 

 retreat of the ice-sheet a large share of the water from the melt- 

 ing ice was carried off through our region. Older and higher 

 river terraces are still plainly marked along the Chenango, Sus- 

 quehanna and Chemung, and the deep canyon through which the 

 Susquehanna leaves our region is said to owe much of its depth 

 to these floods. 



RIVERS AND STREAMS. 



The Susquehanna river rises in Otsego lake, in the north- 

 eastern part of this region, and flows in a southwestern direction 

 until shortly after it crosses the line into Pennsylvania. Here it 

 makes the "great bend" west and then northward, back into the 

 State of New York, where it again flows westward for about fifty 

 miles, a short distance from, and roughly parallel to the state 

 line, making its second and final entrance into the State of Penn- 

 sylvania a short distance below Waverly. Among its tributaries 

 mentioned in this volume may be noted the following: In Otsego 

 county, the Unadilla river flows southward, emptying into the 

 Susquehanna near Sidney, the Ouleout creek entering the Sus- 

 quehanna at Unadilla. In Wayne county, Starrucca creek rises, 

 and flowing northwestward through Susquehanna county empties 

 at Lanesboro. In Susquehanna county, Canawacta creek and 

 Drinker creek flow northward and empty at Susquehanna borough ; 

 Snake creek flows north and empties at Kirkwood in Broome 

 county; Chocofiut creek flows north and empties at Vestal in 

 Broome county ; Apalachin creek flows north and empties at 

 Apalachin in Tioga county (N. Y. ). In Broome county, the Little 

 Choconut creek flows south, emptying at East Union. In Tioga 

 county (N. Y. ), Owego creek flows south, emptying at Owego. 

 Cayuta creek, the outlet of Cayuta lake, flows southeast through 

 Chemung and Tioga counties, emptying at Sayre in Bradford 

 county. 



The first important river to join the Susquehanna is the 

 Chenango, which flows southwestward through Chenango and 

 Broome counties, emptying at Binghamton. Its principal tribu- 

 tary, the west branch, or Tioughnioga, flows southeast through 

 Cortland county and joins it at Chenango Forks, eleven miles 

 from its mouth. The Otselic river is the principal tributary of 



