The Little Kanawha River is a tributary of the Ohio River, approximately 160 mi (257 km) long, in northwestern West Virginia in the United States. The river has served as an important commercial water route in the history of the state, particularly in the timber and petroleum industries.

It rises in the Appalachian Mountains in southern Upshur County, approximately 25 mi (40 km) south of Buckhannon. It follows a meandering course through the mountains generally west. It is joined by the short Buckhannon River in northeast Braxton County, near the Lewis County line. It flows northwest through the Burnsville Lake reservoir, then past Glenville and Grantsville.

In its lower reaches it follows a highly meandering course through the mountains. At Creston , it turns northwest. It receives the Hughes River approximately 12 mi (19 km) Hughes southeast of Parkersburg, where it joins the Ohio.

See also

• Kanawha River
• List of West Virginia rivers

External link

• Little Kanawha River history