| Stonecoal Creek | |
| Map Size: | 300 |
| Pushpin Map: | USA West Virginia |
| Pushpin Map Size: | 300 |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location of the mouth of Stonecoal Creek in Weston, West Virginia |
| Subdivision Type1: | Country |
| Subdivision Name1: | United States |
| Subdivision Type2: | State |
| Subdivision Name2: | West Virginia |
| Subdivision Type3: | Counties |
| Subdivision Name3: | Lewis, Upshur |
| Length: | 12.8miles |
| Source1 Location: | northwestern Upshur County |
| Source1 Coordinates: | 39.0131°N -80.3131°W |
| Source1 Elevation: | 1453feet[1] |
| Mouth: | West Fork River |
| Mouth Location: | Weston, WV |
| Mouth Coordinates: | 39.0433°N -80.4619°W |
| Mouth Elevation: | 1010feet |
| Basin Size: | 41sqmi |
| Tributaries Left: | Right Fork Stonecoal Creek |
Stonecoal Creek is a tributary of the West Fork River, 12.8miles long,[2] in north-central West Virginia in the United States. Via the West Fork, Monongahela and Ohio Rivers, it is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River, draining an area of 41sqmi[3] on the unglaciated portion of the Allegheny Plateau. The stream is believed to have been named in the late 1760s by a group of explorers and settlers (including Jesse Hughes), who found coal in nearby hills and mixed with pebbles in the stream.[4]
Stonecoal Creek rises approximately five miles (8 km) west-northwest of Buckhannon in northwestern Upshur County and flows westwardly into northern Lewis County, where it joins the West Fork River from the east in the city of Weston.[5] Its principal tributary, the 9.7miles[2] Right Fork Stonecoal Creek,[6] was dammed in Lewis County to form Stonecoal Lake in 1972 by Allegheny Energy for the purpose of providing water to a power plant in Harrison County. The 550adj=onNaNadj=on lake is privately owned, but is managed by the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, as is a Wildlife Management Area surrounding the lake.[7]
According to the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection, approximately 77% of Stonecoal Creek's watershed is forested, mostly deciduous. Approximately 19% is used for pasture and agriculture, and approximately 2% is urban.[3]
According to the Geographic Names Information System, Stonecoal Creek has also been known historically as:[8]