﻿26 
  NEW 
  YORK 
  STATE 
  MUSEUM 
  

  

  DRAINAGE 
  

  

  Considered 
  as 
  a 
  great 
  watershed, 
  New 
  York 
  State 
  takes 
  rank 
  as 
  

   one 
  of 
  the 
  most 
  noteworthy 
  in 
  the 
  United 
  States. 
  The 
  waters 
  of 
  

   the 
  State, 
  except 
  for 
  a 
  little 
  in 
  the 
  southeast, 
  enter 
  the 
  sea 
  at 
  five 
  

   widely 
  separated 
  places, 
  namely, 
  Gulf 
  of 
  St 
  Lawrence, 
  New 
  York 
  

   bay, 
  Delaware 
  bay, 
  Chesapeake 
  bay, 
  and 
  the 
  Gulf 
  of 
  Mexico, 
  

   through 
  the 
  five 
  well-known 
  rivers, 
  namely, 
  St 
  Lawrence, 
  Hudson, 
  

   Delaware, 
  Susquehanna, 
  and 
  Mississippi 
  (through 
  the 
  Allegheny 
  

   and 
  Ohio 
  rivers). 
  

  

  Mohawk-Hudson 
  basin. 
  The 
  principal 
  stream 
  of 
  this, 
  the 
  largest 
  

   drainage 
  basin 
  of 
  the 
  State, 
  is 
  the 
  Hudson 
  river 
  which 
  is 
  especially 
  

   noteworthy 
  in 
  two 
  ways, 
  first 
  because 
  it 
  is 
  by 
  far 
  the 
  largest 
  stream 
  

   whose 
  course 
  is 
  wholly 
  within 
  the 
  borders 
  of 
  the 
  State, 
  and 
  second 
  

   because 
  soon 
  after 
  emerging 
  from 
  the 
  Adirondacks 
  (near 
  Glens 
  

   Falls), 
  its 
  course, 
  for 
  nearly 
  200 
  miles 
  to 
  its 
  mouth, 
  is 
  remarkably 
  

   straight 
  in 
  spite 
  of 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  it 
  traverses 
  the 
  principal 
  struc- 
  

   tural 
  lines 
  of 
  a 
  highly 
  folded 
  and 
  disturbed 
  region. 
  Its 
  apparently 
  

   anomalous, 
  deep, 
  narrow, 
  granite-walled 
  channel 
  across 
  the 
  High- 
  

   lands 
  of 
  the 
  Hudson 
  (see 
  plate 
  10) 
  will 
  be 
  explained 
  in 
  chapter 
  6. 
  

   The 
  chief 
  tributary 
  and 
  essential 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  Hudson, 
  the 
  Mohawk 
  

   river, 
  has 
  its 
  headwaters 
  in 
  the 
  very 
  center 
  of 
  the 
  State 
  and 
  reaches 
  

   the 
  Hudson 
  after 
  flowing 
  eastward 
  for 
  more 
  than 
  100 
  miles. 
  

  

  The 
  drainage 
  of 
  the 
  southern 
  Adirondacks, 
  even 
  as 
  far 
  north 
  

   as 
  Mount 
  Marcy, 
  and 
  of 
  the 
  eastern 
  Catskills 
  passes 
  into 
  the 
  Hud- 
  

   son 
  river. 
  Except 
  for 
  very 
  minor 
  contributions 
  from 
  the 
  edge 
  of 
  

   New 
  England 
  and 
  New 
  Jersey, 
  the 
  whole 
  river 
  system 
  derives 
  its 
  

   water 
  from 
  within 
  the 
  boundaries 
  of 
  the 
  State. 
  

  

  St 
  Lawrence 
  basin. 
  This 
  drainage 
  basin 
  comprises 
  all 
  the 
  north- 
  

   western 
  Adirondacks 
  and 
  reaches 
  well 
  into 
  the 
  heart 
  of 
  the 
  moun- 
  

   tains. 
  All 
  the 
  larger 
  streams, 
  which 
  are 
  of 
  very 
  moderate 
  size, 
  

   flow 
  northwestward 
  in 
  remarkably 
  parallel 
  courses 
  until, 
  emerging 
  

   upon 
  the 
  floor 
  of 
  the 
  St 
  Lawrence 
  valley, 
  they 
  swing 
  around 
  to 
  

   northeasterly 
  courses 
  and 
  generally 
  flow 
  for 
  a 
  good 
  many 
  miles 
  

   parallel 
  to 
  the 
  great 
  river 
  itself 
  (before 
  entering 
  it. 
  This 
  latter 
  

   phenomenon 
  is, 
  no 
  doubt, 
  to 
  he 
  explained 
  on 
  the 
  basis 
  of 
  topo- 
  

   graphic 
  changes 
  due 
  to 
  the 
  great 
  Ice 
  age. 
  The 
  largest 
  and 
  longest 
  

   stream 
  in 
  the 
  basin 
  is 
  the 
  Raquette 
  river 
  which, 
  after 
  a 
  devious 
  

   course 
  of 
  more 
  than 
  100 
  miles, 
  including 
  passage 
  through 
  two 
  or 
  

   three 
  large 
  lakes, 
  enters 
  the 
  St 
  Lawrence 
  at 
  the 
  northern 
  State 
  

   boundary. 
  

  

  Ontario 
  basin. 
  All 
  the 
  streams 
  of 
  this 
  basin 
  enter 
  Lake 
  Ontario 
  

   and 
  pursue 
  courses 
  that, 
  if 
  continued, 
  would 
  tend 
  to 
  converge 
  at 
  a 
  

  

  