Adams Creek is the new name for an 11-mile waterway in eastern Bureau County. One of our top local stories of 2021, the U.S. Board on Geographic Names voted on October 14th to change the name from Negro Creek. That name, given in 1829, referred to a Black settler who lived near the creek. Some people have used a much more offensive variant as a moniker.
The man’s first name isn’t known now, but his last name is believed to have been Adams. Former Bureau County resident Amy Urbanowski started the successful push to rename the creek about nine years after another resident tried and gave up. Most other people didn’t seem interested in 2012. Changing public sentiment from the national to local levels made the difference and it’s why we decided this is one of the top local stories.
Jennifer Runyon with the U.S. Geological Survey says it’ll take up to three years for the federal government to update all its maps. The new name will appear in digital products sooner than on printed maps. In any case, Adams Creek is officially the name for federal use for the creek that runs through Cherry, west of Ladd, through Seatonville, and east of DePue.