Kanawha River
The Kanawha River ( ) is a tributary of the Ohio River, approximately 97 mi (156 km) long, in the U.S. state of West Virginia. The largest inland waterway in West Virginia, its valley has been a significant industrial region of the state since early in the 19th century.

It is formed at the town of Gauley Bridge in northwestern Fayette County, approximately 35 mi (56 km) SE of Charleston, by the confluence of the New and Gauley rivers. It flows generally northwest, in a winding course on the unglaciated Allegheny Plateau, through Fayette, Kanawha, Putnam, and Mason counties, past the cities of Charleston and St. Albans, and numerous smaller communities. It joins the Ohio at Point Pleasant.

Paleo-Indians, the earliest indigenous peoples, lived in the valley and the heights by 10,000 BC as evidenced by archaeological artifacts such as Clovis points. A succession of prehistoric cultures developed, with the Adena culture beginning the construction of numerous skilled earthwork mounds and enclosures more than 2000 years ago. Some of the villages of the Fort Ancient culture survived into the times of European contact.

The area was a place of competition among historical American Indian nations. Invading from their base in present-day New York, the Iroquois drove out or conquered Fort Ancient culture peoples, as well as such tribes as the Huron and Conoy. By right of conquest, the Iroquois, Lenape (Delaware), and Shawnee reserved the area as a hunting ground. They resisted European-American settlement during the colonial years. Eventually the settlers took over by right of conquest.

The river valley contains significant deposits of coal and natural gas. In colonial times, the wildly fluctuating level of the river prevented its use for transportation. The removal of boulders and snags on the lower river in the 1840s allowed navigation, which was extended upriver after the construction of locks and dams starting in 1875. The river is now navigable to Deepwater, an unincorporated community about upriver from Charleston. A thriving chemical industry along its banks provides a significant part of the local economy.
Q4915
Ohio River
LOC
Q35657
U.S. state
Concept
Q1371
West Virginia
LOC
Q2245446
Gauley Bridge
LOC
Q504830
Fayette County
LOC
Q44564
Charleston
LOC
Q723748
confluence
Concept
Q952823
New
LOC
Q1496014
Gauley
LOC
Q654947
Allegheny Plateau
LOC
Q501800
Kanawha
LOC
Q501809
Putnam
LOC
Q501830
Mason
LOC
Q2710676
St. Albans
LOC
Q1011524
Point Pleasant
LOC
Q888099
Paleo-Indians
Concept
Q103817
indigenous peoples
Concept
Q23498
archaeological
Concept
Q140654
Clovis points
Concept
Q355841
Adena culture
Concept
Q1349587
earthwork
Concept
Q5375483
enclosure
Concept
Q2040969
Fort Ancient culture
LOC
Q36747
American Indian
Concept
Q1384
New York
LOC
Q68518
Iroquois
Concept
Q2040969
Fort Ancient culture
LOC
Q213396
Huron
Concept
Q9060109
Conoy
Concept
Q82048
Lenape
Concept
Q253436
Shawnee
Concept
Q36963
hunting
Concept
Q4895359
right of conquest
Concept
Q24489
coal
Concept
Q40858
natural gas
Concept
Q3478307
Deepwater
LOC
Q918867
Kanawha River
LOC
2000-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
2000
DATE
1840-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
1840
DATE
1875-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
1875
DATE
+97^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#decimal
97
NUMBER
+156^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#decimal
156
NUMBER
+19^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#decimal
19
NUMBER
+35^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#decimal
35
NUMBER
+56^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#decimal
56
NUMBER
mouth of the watercourse
length
located in the administrative territorial entity
located in the administrative territorial entity