Sugar Creek is a 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 Tuscarawas River

Tuscarawas River

The Tuscarawas River is a principal tributary of the Muskingum River, 129.9 miles long, in northeastern Ohio in the United States...

 in northeastern Ohio

Ohio

Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...

 in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. It is 45 miles (72 km) long. Via the Tuscarawas, Muskingum

Muskingum River

The Muskingum River is a tributary of the Ohio River, approximately 111 miles long, in southeastern Ohio in the United States. An important commercial route in the 19th century, it flows generally southward through the eastern hill country of Ohio...

, and Ohio

Ohio River

The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...

 Rivers, it is part of the watershed

Drainage basin

A drainage basin is an extent or an area of land where surface water from rain and melting snow or ice converges to a single point, usually the exit of the basin, where the waters join another waterbody, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea, or ocean...

 of the Mississippi River

Mississippi River

The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...

, draining an area of 356 square miles (922 km²) on glaciated and unglaciated portions of the Allegheny Plateau

Allegheny Plateau

The Allegheny Plateau is a large dissected plateau area in western and central New York, northern and western Pennsylvania, northern and western West Virginia, and eastern Ohio...

.

It is the namesake of Sugarcreek, Ohio

Sugarcreek, Ohio

Sugarcreek is a village in Tuscarawas County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,174 at the 2000 census. It is known as "The Little Switzerland of Ohio."-History:...

 and of townships in Stark, Tuscarawas and Wayne counties Ohio.

Path of the river

It rises in north-central Wayne County

Wayne County, Ohio

Wayne County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States, and is named for General "Mad" Anthony Wayne. As of the 2010 census, the population was 114,520. Its county seat is Wooster....

, approximately five miles (8 km) northwest of Smithville

Smithville, Ohio

Smithville is a village in Wayne County, Ohio, United States. The population was 1,333 at the 2000 census.Smithville is home to the historic "Smithville Inn" and "The Barn" restaurants, as well as the...

, and flows southeastwardly through southwestern Stark County

Stark County, Ohio

Stark County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2010 census, the population was 375,586. It is included in the Canton-Massillon, Ohio Metropolitan Statistical Area....

 and northwestern Tuscarawas County

Tuscarawas County, Ohio

Tuscarawas County is a county located in the eastern part of the state of Ohio. As of the 2010 census, the population was 92,582. Its county seat is New Philadelphia...

, past the communities of Smithville, Brewster

Brewster, Ohio

Brewster is a village in Stark County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,324 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Canton–Massillon Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Brewster is located at , along Sugar Creek....

, Beach City

Beach City, Ohio

Beach City is a village in Stark County, Ohio, United States. The population was 1,137 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Canton–Massillon Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Beach City is located at , along Sugar Creek....

 and Strasburg

Strasburg, Ohio

Strasburg is a village in Tuscarawas County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,310 at the 2000 census.Strasburg is the location of the Lynn Auto Theatre.-Geography:Strasburg is located at , along Sugar Creek....

 to Dover

Dover, Ohio

Dover is a city in Tuscarawas County, Ohio, United States. The population was 12,210 at the 2000 census.-History and features:Dover was originally part of a grant to Col. James Morrison of Kentucky, who had received it from the federal government for Revolutionary War services...

, where it joins the Tuscarawas River from the west.

Along its course Sugar Creek collects several tributaries that have been given derivative names:

• Little Sugar Creek flows northwardly through southeastern Wayne County.
• North Fork Sugar Creek, which flows to the south of Sugar Creek, rises in southeastern Wayne County and flows eastwardly into southwestern Stark County.
• Middle Fork Sugar Creek rises in northeastern Holmes County
  Holmes County, Ohio
  As of the census of 2000, there were 38,943 people, 11,337 households, and 9,194 families residing in the county. The population density was 92 people per square mile . There were 12,280 housing units at an average density of 29 per square mile...
  
   and flows northeastwardly into Stark County, where it joins Sugar Creek from the south at Brewster.
• South Fork Sugar Creek rises in northeastern Holmes County and flows north-northeastwardly into northwestern Tuscarawas County, through the community of Sugarcreek
  Sugarcreek, Ohio
  Sugarcreek is a village in Tuscarawas County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,174 at the 2000 census. It is known as "The Little Switzerland of Ohio."-History:...
  
  .

Beach City Dam, in Tuscarawas County southeast of Beach City and just downstream of the mouth of the South Fork, was constructed in 1936 by the United States Army Corps of Engineers

United States Army Corps of Engineers

The United States Army Corps of Engineers is a federal agency and a major Army command made up of some 38,000 civilian and military personnel, making it the world's largest public engineering, design and construction management agency...

 for the purpose of flood

Flood

A flood is an overflow of an expanse of water that submerges land. The EU Floods directive defines a flood as a temporary covering by water of land not normally covered by water...

 control.

Variant names

According to the Geographic Names Information System

Geographic Names Information System

The Geographic Names Information System is a database that contains name and locative information about more than two million physical and cultural features located throughout the United States of America and its territories. It is a type of gazetteer...

, Sugar Creek has also been known historically as:

• Margarets Creek
• Margets Creek
• Margret's Creek
• Margrets Creek