American Fork (river)

The river rises at the head of American Fork Canyon in the Wasatch Mountains about {{convert|35|mi}} southeast of Salt Lake City. The unnamed stream, which is the source of the American Fork, flows from Mineral Basin, through the length of the American Fork Canyon and has several named tributaries (Silver Creek, Deer Creek, and Cattle Creek). The river runs through northern Utah County and empties into Utah Lake on its north shore.

The city of American Fork is named after this river.{{Cite web |url=http://afcity.org/Default.aspx |title=American Fork City - American Fork Utah |access-date=2008-12-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081224024220/http://afcity.org/default.aspx |archive-date=2008-12-24 |url-status=dead }}

The description "American" in the river's name is to distinguish it from the Spanish Fork (river) that also originates in the Wasatch Range; alternatively, it could have been named after the American Fur Company.{{cite web|title=Place Names on the Uinta National Forest|url=https://www.fs.usda.gov/r04/uinta-wasatch-cache|publisher=USDA Forest Service|quote=it was named to avoid confusion with the Spanish Fork River to the south, another [source claims] that it was named by early trappers and mountain men who worked the creek for beaver in the early 1800s, in reference to the American Fur Company.}}

Fly fishermen commonly target smaller rainbow trout (measuring 6–12 in.) – and to a lesser extent brown trout – in the river during summer and fall, when strong runoff and snowfall do not limit access.

In addition to fish, a rich community of mayflies, stoneflies, and caddisflies is also present in the American Fork river.Judson, S.W., Nelson, C.R. (December 2010). Provo, UT: Monte L. Bean Life Science Museum, Brigham Young University. DIVERSITY, PHENOLOGY, AND ELEVATIONAL DISTRIBUTION OF EPHEMEROPTERA, PLECOPTERA, AND TRICHOPTERA IN AMERICAN FORK CANYON, UTAH. Retrieved from https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/41718097.pdf

The abandoned Pacific Mine adjacent to the North Fork of the river has been a source of metals that enter the river when it is gaining stream.{{Cite journal |last=Lachmar |first=Thomas E. |last2=Burk |first2=Neil I. |last3=Kolesar |first3=Peter T. |date=2006-06-01 |title=Groundwater Contribution of Metals from an Abandoned Mine to The North Fork of The American Fork River, Utah |url=https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11270-005-9031-8 |journal=Water, Air, and Soil Pollution |language=en |volume=173 |issue=1 |pages=103–120 |doi=10.1007/s11270-005-9031-8 |issn=1573-2932|url-access=subscription }} Spill events contributing toxic metals to the river have deemed waters dangerous to humans at times,{{Cite web |last=Penrod |first=Emma |title=9 months after toxic spill, American Fork deemed no longer dangerous |url=https://archive.sltrib.com/article.php?id=5276678&itype=CMSID |access-date=2024-12-04 |website=The Salt Lake Tribune |language=en-US}} but work has also been done by the U.S. Forest Service to remove tailings from mining sites.{{Cite journal |last=Lachmar |first=Thomas E. |last2=McDonough |first2=Hannah L. |last3=Burk |first3=Neil I. |last4=Kolesar |first4=Peter T. |last5=Doucette |first5=William J. |date=2019-03-01 |title=Effect of Ore Mineralogy and Bedrock Lithology on Metal Loading Rates and Acid-Mine Drainage: Bayhorse Creek, Idaho and the North Fork of the American Fork River, Utah |url=https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10230-018-00574-1 |journal=Mine Water and the Environment |language=en |volume=38 |issue=1 |pages=3–15 |doi=10.1007/s10230-018-00574-1 |issn=1616-1068|url-access=subscription }}

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• List of rivers of Utah

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{{commons category-inline|American Fork (river)}}

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Category:Rivers of Utah

Category:Wasatch Front

Category:Rivers of Utah County, Utah

Category:Tributaries of Utah Lake

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