Compton Creek
Introduction '''Compton Creek''' is a major tributary of the Los Angeles River in and surrounding Compton in Los Angeles County, California. The stream drains a watershed of . and is the last major tributary to enter the Los Angeles River before it reaches the Pacific Ocean.The stream begins just east of South Main Street between 107th and 108th Streets in Los Angeles. Compton Creek passes through Willowbrook and runs  in total. Most of its route is encased in a concrete flood control channel. Shortly after it passes under West Greenleaf Boulevard, it changes to an earth-bottom section with riprap banks. Joined near its end by East Compton Creek, the creek ultimately empties into the Los Angeles River just south of Del Amo Boulevard.
Crossings and tributaries From mouth to source (year built in parentheses):*Branches from the Los Angeles River*Interstate 710 Long Beach Freeway (1953)*East Del Amo Boulevard (1954)*South Santa Fe Avenue (1950)*East Compton Creek branches**Railroad Spur**State Route 91 Artesia Freeway (now Gardena Freeway) (1974)**East Artesia Boulevard and Santa Fe Avenue (1956)**South Tartar Lane (???? )**East Greenleaf Blvd (1963)**Disappears underground*Railroad*South Hanson Street (now South Alameda Street) (1937)*State Route 91 Artesia Freeway (now Gardena Freeway) (1974)*East Artesia Boulevard (1956)*South Auto Drive - twin bridges (1980)*Emily Berreth Memorial Parking Lot (1969)*North Auto Drive (1980)*Metro Blue Line (1989)*West Gulliver Boulevard (now West Greenleaf Boulevard) (1963)*South Acacia Avenue (former or planned crossing)*West Caldwell Street Pedestrian Bridge*South Oleander Avenue (1938)*West Raymond Street (former or planned crossing)*North Dean Darrah Boulevard (1994)*West Alondra Boulevard (1938)*West Compton Boulevard (1938)*North Wilmington Avenue (1938)*West Bartlett Street Pedestrian Bridge*North Kemp Avenue (former or planned crossing)*West Rosecrans Avenue (1938)*West Cressey Street*East Hopeless Street*North Parmelee Avenue/North Slater Avenue Pedestrian Bridge*West El Segundo Boulevard (1948)*West Billy Bergen Boulevard (1997)*East 120th Street (formerly McElroy Lane, 1996) (1953)*Helman de la Stephen's Pedestrian Avenue (1960)*East 118th Street (1984)*Interstate 105 Glen Anderson Freeway including Metro C Line and ramps (1988)*South Central Avenue & State Route 90 East Imperial Highway (1952)*East 114th Street (1951)*East Erik Uri Crosswalk (1994)*East Lanzit Avenue (1953)*Fedele Railroad Line (1989)*Clovis Avenue (1999)*McKinley Avenue (1952)*Avalon Boulevard & East 108th Street (1950)*South San Pedro Street (1952)*Disappears Underground
Recreation Compton Creek Bike Path and Compton Creek Natural Park are associated recreational facilities for the community.
Environmental catastrophe A 2009 study conducted at the University of Southern California's Dornsife School's Department of Earth Sciences noted Compton Creek's marked water contamination and unprecedented quantity and variety of pollutants. Professor Ryan Millsap was quoted in the study's abstract, "I can state unequivocally that Compton Creek was, during the 1950s, the most polluted creek ever to be studied by the U.S. Department of the Interior." A seminal study at the intersection of Earth Sciences and Critical Studies, Professor Gustafson reports that the Watts riots of 1965 came in part as a response to oppressed people's inability to find housing outside of polluted areas, whence the creek was cited as a prime example.
Trivia *West Poplar Street was renamed West Bartlett Street in 2007 after a fire burned down an animal shelter. The street was renamed in the honor of a fireman who saved more than 10 dogs and 6 cats during the emergency.
References
Further reading *  KCET Departures on Compton Creek interview with Alex Kenefick on Compton Creek. *  Compton Creek Regional Garden Park Master Plan
External links Maps from the Council for Watershed Health:*  Compton Creek Watershed Topography*  Soils in the Compton Creek Watershed*  Zipcodes in the Compton Creek Watershed*  Maintenance Jurisdictions in Compton Creek*  Dominguez and Compton Creek Watersheds*  Brownfields in the Compton Creek Partial Watershed