Cape Fear River
The Cape Fear River, shown highlighted, with its tributaries
Origin	North Carolina
Mouth	Atlantic Ocean
Basin countries	United States
Length	202 mi (325 km)
Avg. North Carolina ( is a state located on the Atlantic Seaboard in the southeastern United States A drainage basin is an extent of Land where Water from Rain or Snow melt drains downhill into a body of water such as a River, The United States of America —commonly referred to as the discharge	3,885 cu ft/s (110 m³/s)

The Cape Fear River at Smith Creek in Wilmington, NC. In Hydrology, the discharge or outflow of a River is the volume of Water transported by it in a certain amount of time

The Cape Fear River is a 202 miles (325 km) long^[1] blackwater river in east central North Carolina in the United States. A blackwater river is a river with a deep slow-moving channel that flows through forested Swamps and Wetlands. North Carolina ( is a state located on the Atlantic Seaboard in the southeastern United States The United States of America —commonly referred to as the It flows into the Atlantic Ocean near Cape Fear, from which it takes its name. See also Geography of North Carolina The overall water quality of the river is continuously measured and monitored by the Lower Cape Fear River Program and conducted by the UNCW Aquatic Ecology Laboratory, UNCW Benthic Ecology Laboratory, and the UNCW Icthyology and Fish Ecology Laboratory. The Cape Fear Shiner is endemic to the river basin. The Cape Fear Shiner, Notropis mekistocholas, is a species of Ray-finned fish in the Cyprinidae family Endemism is the Ecological state of being unique to a place Endemic species are not naturally found elsewhere

Course

It is formed at Haywood, near the county line between Lee and Chatham counties, by the confluence of the Deep and Haw rivers just below Jordan Lake. Haywood is an unincorporated community in southeastern Chatham County, North Carolina, United States. Lee County is a County located in the US state of North Carolina. Chatham County is a County located in the US state of North Carolina. The Deep River is a tributary of the Cape Fear River, approximately 125 miles (200 km long in north central North Carolina in the United States. The Haw River is a tributary of the Cape Fear River, approximately 110 mi (177 km long that is entirely contained in north central North Carolina in the Jordan Lake is a reservoir located west of Raleigh and south of Chapel Hill in Chatham County North Carolina, in the United States It flows southeast past Lillington, Fayetteville, and Elizabethtown, then receives the Black River approximately 10 miles (16 km) northwest of Wilmington. Lillington is a town in Harnett County, North Carolina, United States. Fayetteville is a city located in Cumberland County, North Carolina. Elizabethtown is a town in Bladen County, North Carolina, United States. The Black River is a tributary of the Cape Fear River, approximately 50 mi (80 km long in southeastern North Carolina in the United States. Wilmington is a city in and the County seat of New Hanover County, North Carolina, United States. At Wilmington, it receives the Northeast Cape Fear River and turns south, widening as an estuary and entering the Atlantic approximately 3 miles (5 km) west of Cape Fear. The Northeast Cape Fear River is a Blackwater river tributary of the Cape Fear River, approximately 130 mi (209 km long in southeastern North Carolina An estuary is a semi-enclosed Coastal body of Water with one or more Rivers or Streams flowing into it and with a free connection to the open

During the colonial era, the river provided a principal transportation route to the interior of North Carolina. The Province of North Carolina was originally part of the Province of Carolina, which was chartered by eight Lords Proprietors. Today the river is navigable as far as Fayetteville through a series of locks and dams. A lock is a device for raising and lowering boats between stretches of water of different levels on river and canal Waterways. A dam is a barrier that divides waters. Dams generally serve the primary purpose of retaining water while other structures such as Floodgates, Levees The estuary of the river furnishes a segment of the route of the Intracoastal Waterway. The Intracoastal Waterway is a 4800-km (3000-mile Waterway along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the United States.

See also

• List of North Carolina rivers

References

Sources and external links

• Cape Fear River discharge data

The port in Wilmington on the Cape Fear River estuary

Lock and Dam No. 1 on the Cape Fear River in Bladen County

A cargo ship navigating the mouth of the Cape Fear River at Southport

A closeup of a cargo ship passing by Southport