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Darby Creek Watershed

Darby Creek, located in southeastern Pennsylvania, flows into the Delaware River just south of the Schuylkill River and the City of Philadelphia. The watershed spans over 77 square miles and crosses the Fall Line, a distinct geological boundary separating the flat Coastal Plain—exemplified by the John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum—from the rolling hills of the Piedmont region.

Encompassing parts of Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia Counties, the Darby Creek Watershed includes all or portions of 31 municipalities, with the majority of its area situated in Delaware County. Major tributaries feeding into Darby Creek include Cobbs Creek, Naylors Run, Indian Creek, Langford Run, Little Darby Creek, Julip Run, Ithan Creek, Meadowbrook Run, Wigwam Run, Foxes Run, Muckinipattis Creek, Hermesprota Run, Stony Creek, and Whetstone Run. These waterways merge into the tidal portion of Darby Creek at the John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge, near its confluence with the Delaware River, south of Little Tinicum Island. The refuge is Pennsylvania’s largest remaining freshwater tidal wetland, and tidal influences extend throughout the lower Darby Creek and its tributaries, reaching upstream into waterways such as Muckinipattis, Stony, and Hermesprota Creeks, as well as historic impoundment areas along the main stem of Darby Creek and Cobbs Creek.