Otter Point Creek Subbasin
The Otter Point Creek Subbasin or watershed is 63 square miles in size and is one of three subbasins within the Bush River Basin along with the
Bush Creek Subbasin and the
Church Creek Subbasin.
38% of the watershed is forested, 37% is developed and 25% of the land is used
for agriculture. The tributaries to Otter Point Creek include Winters Run,
approximately 56 square miles, and Ha Ha Branch, approximately 3 square miles.
There are additional named tributaries to Winters Run including Mountain Branch,
West Branch, and Plumtree Run. The U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the U.S. Board on Geographic Names maintains a database of stream names and is responsible for reviewing/approving requests for name additions and modifications.
The Plumtree Run Subwatershed contains the greatest amount of development within Harford County, with approximately 60% of the land developed. Of that developed land, well over half is residential. The headwaters to Plumtree Run begin within the Town of Bel Air, drain past Target and Home Depot, continue south past the Upper Chesapeake Medical Center, past the Festival of Bel Air, and join Winters Run about one mile north of Atkisson Dam.
When buggies and wagons were the primary mode of transportation, J. C. Hollingsworth and Sons Company operated a very successful wheel manufacturing plant on Winters Run near what is now Atkisson Dam. The plant produced 25 sets of wheels per day and operated for over 50 years. Wheel Road owes its name to this factory.
In 1942, the U.S. Army built Atkisson Dam and Reservoir to ensure adequate water supply for Edgewood Arsenal. After World War II the military importance of the reservoir diminished and the land was declared surplus. In 1948, the Harford County Board of Education signed a deed with the War Assets Administration to lease the land around the reservoir above the 130-foot contour line for 25 years as a continuous permanent vocational program in agriculture and conservation. In 1973, the land became property of the Board of Education and all rights of the U.S. government to take over the land terminated. However, the dam, the reservoir, and the land around it up to the 130-foot contour line (approximately 151 acres) have been retained under Army ownership. The Board of Education currently operates its environmental education program from this facility known as Harford Glen Environmental Education Center.
The Atkisson Reservoir Drainage Area is 45.1 square miles (28,879 acres) in size. By 1980, the reservoir had lost 81% of its water storage capacity due to sedimentation.
Ha Ha Branch, a tributary to Otter Point Creek, is located west of Abingdon, near
William Paca/Old Post Road Elementary School. Legend has it that for 200 years a horse carrying a headless horseman haunted a stream ford, and at times uttered a blood curdling taunt of “Ha! Ha!” (thus the name of the stream). If a rider approached this stream, and his horse pointed its ears and refused to cross the ford, then it was believed that the horse saw the apparition. If the rider then gazed between the horse’s ears, he might also see the headless horseman of Ha Ha Branch.
The Otter Point Creek Component of the Maryland Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve is located on two areas of land, one on the north shore and one on the south shore of Otter Point Creek. One of the areas of land is Leight Park which consists of 93 acres. 61 acres were donated in 1982 by Anita C. Leight and 32 acres were purchased in 2001 with funds from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the creators of the Reserve System, Maryland Program Open Space, and donations to the Harford Land Trust. Leight Park is owned by Harford County Parks and Recreation. The Anita C. Leight Estuary Center, located in Leight Park, opened in September 1996 and serves as the research and education facility for Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve.
The second area of land that makes up the Otter Point Creek Component is the Bosely Conservancy, which consists of 350 acres. 243 acres were donated in 1985 by the Zilkha Corporation and 107 acres were donated by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. The Izaak Walton League of America, Harford County Chapter, owns the Bosely Conservancy. There are 261 acres of state owned water between the two areas of land.
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