Swatara Creek
40°11′5″N 76°43′56″W / 40.18472°N 76.73222°W
| Swatara Creek | |
|---|---|
Waterville Bridge over Swatara Creek | |
| Nickname(s) | Swatty |
| Location | |
| State | Pennsylvania |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Mouth | Susquehanna River |
| Length | 72 miles (116 km) |
Swatara Creek (nicknamed the Swatty) is a 72-mile-long (116 km) tributary of the Susquehanna River in east-central Pennsylvania in the United States. It rises in the Appalachian Mountains in central Schuylkill County and passes through northwest Lebanon County before draining into the Susquehanna at Middletown in Dauphin County.
The name "Swatara" is said to derive from a Susquehannock word, Swahadowry or Schaha-dawa, which means "where we feed on eels". Ancient Native Americans built dozens of eel-weirs, V-shaped rock barriers designed to funnel eels to facilitate capture, on the Susquehanna and its tributaries.