Jacobs Creek is a 33.4 miles (53.8 km) tributary

Tributary

A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...

 of the Youghiogheny River

Youghiogheny River

The Youghiogheny River , or the Yough for short, is a tributary of the Monongahela River in the U.S. states of West Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania...

 beginning in Acme

Acme, Pennsylvania

Acme is an unincorporated community, identified by ZIP code 15610, in Mount Pleasant and Donegal Townships, both in Westmoreland County, and Bullskin Township in Fayette County, Pennsylvania, United States...

, Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

 and draining at its mouth in the town of Jacobs Creek into the Youghiogheny River. Jacobs Creek is the southwestern border of Westmoreland County

Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania

-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 369,993 people, 149,813 households, and 104,569 families residing in the county. The population density was 361 people per square mile . There were 161,058 housing units at an average density of 157 per square mile...

 and the northwestern border of Fayette County

Fayette County, Pennsylvania

Fayette County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of the2010 census, the population was 136,606. The county is part of the Pittsburgh Metropolitan Statistical Area....

.

Geography

Jacobs Creek, between Chaintown and its mouth, cuts a deep gorge through the Fayette Anticline, exposing many rock outcroppings and even exposures of the Freeport Coal seam.

The geography of Jacobs Creek allowed early civilization in the Jacobs Creek Valley as early as 1768 when western Pennsylvania

Western Pennsylvania

Western Pennsylvania consists of the western third of the state of Pennsylvania in the United States. Pittsburgh is the largest city in the region, with a metropolitan area population of about 2.4 million people, and serves as its economic and cultural center. Erie, Altoona, and Johnstown are its...

 was opened to settlement by the Treaty of Fort Stanwix

Treaty of Fort Stanwix

The Treaty of Fort Stanwix was an important treaty between North American Indians and the British Empire. It was signed in 1768 at Fort Stanwix, located in present-day Rome, New York...

. According to Ramblings in the Valley of Jacobs Creek (Medsger & Lowe):

Various industrial enterprises have been associated with the history of this valley. Among the first were the manufacture of salt and iron. By the treaty of Fort Stanwix in 1768 this region was opened for settlement and many people from the eastern part of the state were locating in this "land of promise". Both salt and iron were in demand, they were expensive and hard to procure, hence men of enterprise naturally sought means to supply these demands. George Dallas Albert in his "History of Westmoreland County", says that, "Foremost of the wants of these early settlers was the want of salt." He also states that "in the Youghiogheny region, twenty bushels of wheat was not thought an unfair exchange for a bushel of salt; or a cow and calf for a similar amount."

Other geographic features of the valley include two waterfalls: Freeman Falls and Creek Falls.

History

The valley of Jacobs Creek is home to an abundance of colonial and industrial history, including the home of the Alliance Furnace, the oldest standing iron furnace

Furnace

A furnace is a device used for heating. The name derives from Latin fornax, oven.In American English and Canadian English, the term furnace on its own is generally used to describe household heating systems based on a central furnace , and sometimes as a synonym for kiln, a device used in the...

 west of the Allegheny Mountains

Allegheny Mountains

The Allegheny Mountain Range , also spelled Alleghany, Allegany and, informally, the Alleghenies, is part of the vast Appalachian Mountain Range of the eastern United States and Canada...

. The Alliance Furnace was built before ownership of the land was obtained by William Turnbul, John Holker, and Peter Marmie on July 13, 1789. The furnace was blown in 1802.

Other sources of industry along the valley include salt mills, grist mills, coke ovens, strip mining, and iron ore mining.

Recreation

Recreation along Jacobs Creek includes smallmouth bass

Smallmouth bass

The smallmouth bass is a species of freshwater fish in the sunfish family of the order Perciformes. It is the type species of its genus...

 and trout

Trout

Trout is the name for a number of species of freshwater and saltwater fish belonging to the Salmoninae subfamily of the family Salmonidae. Salmon belong to the same family as trout. Most salmon species spend almost all their lives in salt water...

 fishing, seasonal whitewater kayaking

Whitewater kayaking

Whitewater kayaking is the sport of paddling a kayak on a moving body of water, typically a whitewater river. Whitewater kayaking can range from simple, carefree gently moving water, to demanding, dangerous whitewater. River rapids are graded like ski runs according to the difficulty, danger or...

, and swimming. It has been the inspiration of the guide Ramblings in the Valley of Jacobs Creek.

Kayaking

• Acme to Laurelville (Class III-IV)
• Chaintown to Youghiogheny River (Class II-III)
• Freeman Falls (Class IV)
• Creek Falls (Class V Backwards U-Type Waterfall)