University of Louisville Waterways of Jefferson County Course Fall 2012
Floyds Fork...
An Adventure Waiting for You
Recreation Along Floyds Fork
By: Erica
Floyds Fork is located in a largely uninhabited part of Jefferson County. The number of people who live around the area is relatively small. Currently along Floyds Fork, there is not much in the way of recreation. Therefore, not many people go to Floyds Fork to exercise and enjoy nature. There are several canoe access points and the Floyds Fork Park near Fisherville, KY. Also, Floyds Fork Park has many soccer fields and a playground and picnic area. However, in the coming years there will be much more to do along the stream. 21st Century Parks is a company thanow owns and is constructing a conglomeration of parks, called the Parklands, along the stream. They wish to increase the amount of people that visit Floyds Fork and conserve the area immediately surrounding the waterway from the increasing suburban sprawl in eastern Jefferson County. If they follow through with all of their plans, there will be much more recreational activities to enjoy along Floyds Fork. Their current projection is that all of the parks will be open in 2015. Only the northern most portion, Beckley Creek Park, is open at this time (The Parklands).
As Floyds Fork is one of the larger streams in Jefferson County, one of the main activities will be canoeing and kayaking along the stream. There are several access points open along Floyds Fork currently, but there are plans in place to increase that number. There are also plans to run a canoe/kayak rental for the public in the planned River Operation Center building on the southern edge of Beckley Creek Park. There are about 19 miles of stream in the Parklands' property to paddle (Recreation Plan 39).
Another activity in and around the stream is fishing. The stream has a very good water quality, so there are many fish that live in the stream. There are also many ponds that are in place or planned for the Parklands. These ponds have been stocked with fish, such as trout, so that there are plenty of fish. There will also be fishing gear to rent at the center (Recreation Plan 39). These are just a few examples of how the actual stream will be used in the park.
Another activity planned for the Parklands is hiking. There are some trails open already, such as the Coppiced Woods Trail. Along this trail, as the name suggests there are many coppiced trees. Coppicing occurs when the tree is cut down and several new trunks grow from the remaining stump. This trail is about 2 miles long and it skirts along the eastern boundary of the Parklands' property in Beckley Creek Park. This is just one of the many new trails that are planned for the Parklands. It is planned to have nearly 100 miles of trails to hike, bike, or ride horses (The Parklands).
As with any park, children love to have a playground to run around on and climb on the various structures, like swings or slides. Beckley Creek Park has a spray ground for many children to enjoy during the hot summer. There is also a small playground in that same park. Children can learn very early that parks are great places to be and then when they mature, those beliefs will stay with them throughout their lives and then they will want to preserve parks and nature. At least, that is one belief of 21st Century Parks (The Parklands).
It is the hope of 21st Century Parks that they will be a model for future parks across America. Their inspiration was Fredrick Law Olmstead, whose Central Park in New York City is still widely used and important today. They hope to educate many people about nature and the stream. They also hope that if more people enjoy the stream, then more people will want to protect it and preserve the stream. In the future, when the city of Louisville has grown out to that part of the county, the Parklands might be a large recreational preserve in the suburban sprawl. (The Parklands).
Floyds Fork Cultural History
By: Erica
There is a long rich history surrounding the natural beauty of the Floyds Fork watershed. Even before the area was settled, Native Americans, most likely of the Shawnee tribe, lived and hunted on the land. Once the settlers came the watershed changed, though not as much as others in Jefferson County because the area is still largely agrarian or forest. This has left the watershed to be mostly healthy, and now there are actions to be taken to preserve its natural state.
Floyds Fork is named for the pioneer and surveyor John Floyd. John Floyd was born in 1750 in Virginia. He led a very adventurous life. He was a surveyor of land around the Falls of the Ohio and many other places in Kentucky. He led many settlers into Kentucky. During his journeys in Kentucky, there were several conflicts with Native Americans. In 1776, he participated in a rescue of three girls who were abducted by Native Americans. In 1778, he married Jane Buchanan, and a year later they and their infant son settled down in their land in what is now eastern Jefferson County, near the middle fork of Beargrass Creek. He led several skirmishes with natives, and in 1781 he was placed in command of all of the militias in Jefferson County. In a Native American ambush on April 8, 1783, Floyd was fatally wounded, and later died on April 10. He left behind three sons, the youngest, named John, eventually became the governor of Virginia. (Floyd, John 300).
In the years since the settlers came to this part of the country, many settlements have cropped up around the Floyds Fork watershed. Some of the largest communities are Jeffersontown, Middletown, and Fern Creek. They are on the edge of the watershed so that part of the water that runs off in those communities runs into the Floyds Fork and the rest runs into Beargrass Creek. This was advantageous for those communities when the settlers first created them because they were built on higher ground. The high ground meant that there was much less flooding in those communities. (Owens). Two communities were established immediately adjacent to the banks of Floyds Fork. These towns are Fisherville, and what used to be Seatonville. Fisherville is still an existing town. Seatonville was a mainly very small agricultural community, so that when transportation improved larger farms put this small farming community out of business. Today there are some houses in that area, but there is no longer a town called Seatonville (“Seatonville” 796-797).
Fisherville was originally named Currey after the man who opened the first post office in that town in 1833. It was later renamed for Robert Fisher who, along with his father John, established a grist mill on the banks of Floyds Fork. The town prospered in 1850 as travelers coming through visited the town. In the late 1800s and early 1900s Fisherville was a popular vacation spot for Louisvillians. When the railroad was built, it became even easier to visit Fisherville. The Blue Rock Hotel was established in 1903 by Stephen Beard when some of his employees found a mineral water well. This water was used to attract guests to the hotel and it was also bottled and shipped out for consumption. The well dried up in 1914, so the number of guests declined drastically. The hotel was demolished in 1939. Fisherville was no longer as popular of a vacation spot as it once was. After Taylorsville Road was built in the 1980s, Fisherville was bypassed completely by travelers, but still remains a quaint town on the banks of Floyds Fork (“Fisherville” 293).
As the suburbs of Louisville grow, they will grow towards Floyds Fork watershed. Currently, only a small amount of the eastern portion of the watershed is inhabited. Louisville will grow in the coming years to the east, and begin a new era in the history of Floyds Fork. 21st Century Parks is establishing a very long conglomeration of park along the banks of the stream. This new coalition of parks might become a centerpiece of the watershed community in the coming years.
What Happens When We Pollute Our Water Streams? + Marlene's Story
By: Janna
Geological History of Floyds Fork Area
By: Adria
The Floyds Fork Watershed has a rich natural history that includes period of great biodiversity. The Ordovician period, defined below, is such a period of great biodiversity in the Kentucky region.
“The term Ordovician was introduced by Lapworth in 1879 for what is known as the Lower Silurian, but by some called upper Cambrian. To escape the ambiguity thereby caused, as to whether in any given case Lower Silurian means the lower part of the whole Silurian, or of the Silurian proper, i. e., Upper Silurian, the term Ordovician is now generally used for the system before known as Lower Silurian.”
The period occurred from approximately 505-438 million years ago during the Paleozoic era. Throughout Kentucky, the Upper Ordovician period is of great interest to geologists because of the fossil formations made from this period. There is also reference in future readings to a rock formation known as Cincinnatian. This is the common name for the Upper Ordovician formations in Kentucky. This rock is from 458 to 438 million years old. In the Jefferson County area, this rock is very common and is often found in creek beds, such as in Floyds Fork.
As a group, we collected fossils from the Floyds Fork’s creek side. It would appear that these fossils are brachiopods and possibly the species Austinella scovillei. This species is common to the Upper Ordovician period and has been noted in other areas throughout the Ohio and Kentucky region. Pictures of these fossils can be seen on our pictures page. Please note that the species listed above is only a hypothesis due to the similarities in fossil structure. Austinella scovillei are characterized by having a shell asymmetric to the other side of the shell (this is unlike a clam).
Impervious Surfaces and Water Quality of Floyds Fork
By: Adria
Impervious surface is defined as “hard surfaces that prevent water from soaking into the ground.” Impervious surface comes in many common forms such as streets, sidewalks, parking lots, and rooftops. Though we often do not consider the impacts impervious surface have on the watershed, they can in fact be an excellent indicator of water quality. Because impervious surfaces do not allow water to soak into the earth directly below them, the aquifer does not refill at the same pace at which we withdraw from it. However, this is not the only complication. As our aquifers decrease in size, simultaneously ground water sources become increasingly polluted from a large amount of impervious surface. Most effects from impervious surface are more related to the hydrology of the ground water stream, itself, rather than direct pollution.
The hydrology of streams drastically changes as more impervious surface is added to a watershed. When it rains, instead of the water filtering through earth and microbes, it flows directly from the storm drains or roofs into the stream corridor. This increases the flow rate in the stream causing negative effects on the corridor. These impacts include: stream banks eroding, greater sediment deposition into the streams, and aquatic habitats being destroyed. Below, the USGS hydrograph can be seen for the Floyds Fork area. Please note the intense peaks in the last 365 days are from rain events that cause such large spikes.
The amount of impervious surface in urban areas tends to be very large. “In urban areas, it is common to find more than 60% impervious cover.” Currently, the coverage on Floyds Fork is low especially streamside because the majority of this area is farmland or golf courses. Though these areas have problems of their own, there is minimal impervious surface coverage (compared to Beargrass Creek in Jefferson County, KY) in the watershed because of the rural nature of the area. However, the current construction occurring in the Parklands from 21st Century Parks would increase the impervious surface creek-side dramatically. The 21st Century Parks will be continually monitoring flow rate and oxygen levels in the stream. There are alternatives, though, to using impervious surface that will not increase flow rate and will replenish the aquifer. Obviously the pervious surface options include rain gardens and vegetation, but in general these are not used for parking lots and are not wheelchair accessible. In fact, impervious surfaces tend to be more durable than pervious ones, which require maintenance and may be impassable by wheelchairs. The following is some information about possible pervious surfaces that may or may not be useful in every situation.
“Porous, or pervious pavement/concrete- Permeable pavement surfaces are underlayed by a stone base (reservoir) that temporarily stores runoff before it filters into the subsoil. Looks like traditional asphalt and concrete but manufactured without fine particles and with small spaces to allow water infiltration. This is an option where soils drain well; the pavement is 2-5 feet above the seasonally high water table, and storm water is not heavily contaminated.
Enhanced/reinforced soils - A proprietary technique in which polypropylene fibers (in some cases made from recycled plastic) are incorporated into a 4-12 inch layer of sandy soil that is seeded or covered with sod to create a stronger soil that bears loads, resists sinking and rutting, and infiltrates water. Resilience of buried plastic fibers prevents compaction and by flexing under pressure may improve soils by keeping them porous.
Solid or porous pavers - Natural stone, bricks, individual concrete blocks are installed on a pervious base with spaces filled with sand between each unit. Water flows into gaps and infiltrates the subsurface. Consider use, load bearing, soil type and site location to determine whether there is a need for a gravel sub-base or under drain to increase water capacity.” (Impervious Surface Methodology)
