Champoeg Creek is a tributary, roughly 6 miles (9.7 km) long, of the Willamette River

Willamette River

The Willamette River is a major tributary of the Columbia River, accounting for 12 to 15 percent of the Columbia's flow. The Willamette's main stem is long, lying entirely in northwestern Oregon in the United States...

 in the U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of Oregon

Oregon

Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...

. The creek is formed by the confluence of its two forks in the French Prairie

French Prairie

French Prairie is a prairie located in Marion County, Oregon, United States, in the Willamette Valley between the Willamette River and the Pudding River, north of Salem...

 region of the Willamette Valley

Willamette Valley

The Willamette Valley is the most populated region in the state of Oregon of the United States. Located in the state's northwest, the region is surrounded by tall mountain ranges to the east, west and south and the valley's floor is broad, flat and fertile because of Ice Age conditions...

 and flows generally northeast to meet the Willamette 45 miles (72.4 km) from the river's confluence with the Columbia River

Columbia River

The Columbia River is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, Canada, flows northwest and then south into the U.S. state of Washington, then turns west to form most of the border between Washington and the state...

. Its course lies entirely in Marion County

Marion County, Oregon

Marion County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oregon. It was originally named the Champooick District, after Champoeg, a meeting place on the Willamette River. On September 3, 1849, the territorial legislature renamed it in honor of Francis Marion, a Continental Army general of the...

.

The name "Champoeg" comes from the Kalapuyan

Kalapuyan languages

Kalapuyan is a small extinct language family that was spoken in the Willamette Valley of Western Oregon, United States. It consists of three languages.-Family division:Kalapuyan consists of...

 word [čʰámpuik], which might be an abbreviation of [čʰa-čʰíma-púičuk], referring to the edible root [púičuk], or yampa

Perideridia

Perideridia is a small genus of plants in the parsley family. Plants in this genus are known generally as yampah or yampa. They are native to western North America...

.

Course

The creek begins at the confluence of East Fork Champoeg Creek and West Fork Champoeg Creek in French Prairie and flows generally northeast. The East Fork is about 5 miles (8 km) long, and the West Fork is about 6 miles (9.7 km) long. Not far from its source, Champoeg Creek enters McKay Reservoir then Spada Reservoir, where it passes under St. Paul Highway Northeast. Shortly thereafter, it receives Murphy Creek from the left. It passes under McKay Road Northeast and Champoeg Road Northeast before receiving Case Creek from the right and Mission Creek

Mission Creek (Marion County, Oregon)

Mission Creek is a tributary, roughly long, of Champoeg Creek in Marion County in the U.S. state of Oregon. The creek arises southwest of St. Paul in the French Prairie region of the Willamette Valley and flows generally northeast to meet Champoeg Creek near Champoeg...

 from the left in Champoeg State Heritage Area

Champoeg, Oregon

Champoeg is a former town in the U.S. state of Oregon. Now a ghost town, it was an important settlement in the Willamette Valley in the early 1840s. It is positioned halfway between Oregon City and Salem and the site of the first provisional government of the Oregon Country...

. Less than 1 miles (1.6 km) later, it enters the Willamette River 45 miles (72.4 km) from the larger stream's mouth on the Columbia River.