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Monongahela River The Monongahela River in Pittsburgh passing the South Side on the right and Uptown/The Bluff on the left just before entering Downtown Pittsburgh Country United States States Pennsylvania, West Virginia Major cities Pittsburgh, Morgantown Length 128 mi (206 km) [1] Watershed 7,340 sq mi (19,011 km²) [2] Discharge at Elizabeth, PA  - average 17,900 cu ft/s (507 m³/s) [3]  - maximum 81,100 cu ft/s (2,296 m³/s)  - minimum 2,900 cu ft/s (82 m³/s) Discharge elsewhere  - Masontown, PA 14,500 cu ft/s (411 m³/s) [4] Primary source Tygart Valley River  - location Pocahontas County, West Virginia  - coordinates 38°28′06″N 79°58′51″W / 38.46833, -79.98083 [5]  - elevation 4,540 ft (1,384 m) [6]  - length 160 mi (257 km) [5] Other source West Fork River  - coordinates 38°51′08″N 80°21′32″W / 38.85222, -80.35889 [7]  - elevation 1,309 ft (399 m) [8]  - length 103 mi (166 km) [9] Source confluence  - location Fairmont, Marion County, West Virginia  - coordinates 39°27′53″N 80°09′10″W / 39.46472, -80.15278 [10]  - elevation 863 ft (263 m) [7] Mouth Ohio River  - location Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania  - coordinates 40°26′30″N 80°00′58″W / 40.44167, -80.01611 [10]  - elevation 709 ft (216 m) [10] Major tributaries  - right Cheat River, Youghiogheny River Map of the Monongahela River basin, with the Monongahela River highlighted.

The South Tenth Street Bridge over the Monongahela River in Pittsburgh in 2005

The Monongahela River in Fairmont, West Virginia in 2006

Monongahela River Scene, 1857[11]

Opekiska Lock and Dam on the Monongahela River near Fairmont, West Virginia at river mile 115

The Monongahela River (pronounced IPA: /məˌnɒŋgəˈheɪlə/, also known locally as the Mon /ˈmɒn/) is a river on the Allegheny Plateau in North-Central West Virginia and south western Pennsylvania in the United States. At Pittsburgh, it meets the Allegheny River to form the Ohio River.

The Monongahela is formed by the confluence of the West Fork River and the Tygart Valley River at Fairmont, West Virginia. The river is navigable its entire length with a series of locks and dams that maintain a minimum depth of 9 feet (2.7 m) to accommodate coal-laden barges. In Pennsylvania, the Monongahela is met by two major tributaries: the Cheat River, which joins at Point Marion, and the Youghiogheny River, which joins at McKeesport.

The Monongahela Valley was the site of a famous, if small battle that was one of the first in the French and Indian War (Braddock Expedition). It resulted in a sharp defeat for British and Colonial forces against those of the French and their Native American allies.

The Monongahela Valley was the site of the Whiskey Rebellion in 1794.

In 1817, the Pennsylvania legislature authorized the Monongahela Navigation Company to build 16 dams with bypass locks to create a river transportation system between Pittsburgh and West Virginia. Originally planned to run as far south as the Cheat River, the system was extended to Fairmont, and bituminous coal from West Virginia was the chief product transported downstream. After a canal tunnel through Grant's Hill in Pittsburgh was completed in 1832, boats could travel between the Monongahela River and the Western Division Canal of Pennsylvania's principal east-west canal and railroad system, the Main Line of Public Works. In 1897, the Federal government took possession of the Monongahela Navigation through condemnation proceedings. Later, the dam-lock combinations were increased in size and reduced in number.^[12] In 2006, the navigation system, operated by the U.S. Corps of Engineers, had nine dam-locks along 128.7 miles (207.1 km) of waterway.^[13] The locks overcame a change in elevation of about 147 feet (44.8 m).^[12]

Briefly linked to the Monongahela Navigation was the Youghiogheny Navigation, a slack water system of 18.5 miles (29.8 km) between McKeesport and West Newton. It had two dam-locks overcoming a change in elevation of about 27 feet (8.2 m). Opening in 1850, it was destroyed by a flood in 1865.^[12]

During the 19th century, the Monongahela was heavily used by industry, and several U.S. Steel plants, including the Homestead Works, site of the Homestead Strike of 1892, were built along its banks. Following the killing of several workers in the course of the strike, anarchist Emma Goldman wrote: "Words had lost their meaning in the face of the innocent blood spilled on the banks of the Monongahela."

Two ships in the United States Navy have been named Monongahela for the river.

The river was the site of a famous airplane crash that has become the subject of numerous urban legends and conspiracy theories. Early in the morning of January 31, 1956, a B-25 bomber en route from Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada to Olmstead Air Force Base in Pennsylvania crashed into the river near the Glenwood Bridge in Homestead, Pennsylvania. All six crewmen survived the crash but two later succumbed to exposure and drowned. Despite the relative shallowness of the water, the aircraft was never recovered. [1]

• Monongalia County, West Virginia is named for the river using a variant spelling.

• "Monongahela" is uttered in the television show Seinfeld as one of Kramer's famous random expressions. The episode is the 23rd of the 6th season, "The Face Painter". The reference occurs around the 4th-5th minute of the show.

• The Monongahela River was immortalized in the spoken introduction to actor/comedian Guy Marks' parody hit "Loving You Has Made Me Bananas" (1968).

Sources:^[14][15]

According to the Geographic Names Information System, the Monongahela River has also been known historically as:^[10]

• List of crossings of the Monongahela River
• List of Pennsylvania rivers
• List of West Virginia rivers

• U.S. Geological Survey: PA stream gaging stations

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Monongahela River

• Mouth or other endpoint (Pittsburgh) is at coordinates 40°24′43″N 80°00′51″W / 40.4118, -80.0141
• Source (Fairmont, West Virginia) is at coordinates 39°27′53″N 80°09′13″W / 39.4647, -80.1537