title: Pistol Creek
text: # Pistol Creek
  
  Pistol Creek is a 13-mile-long (21 km) tributary of the Little River, located entirely within Blount County, Tennessee.
  
  ## Features
  
  Pistol Creek arises from several springs in the Carpenter's Campground section of Blount County, flowing first northeast, then northwest to Pearson Springs within the city of Maryville. At Pearson Springs, the Maryville Alcoa Greenway begins to parallel Pistol Creek, which then flows east through Pearson Springs Park and Sandy Springs Park. On the south side of Maryville, the creek passes the ruins of an early 20th-century dam and mill race that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Further downstream it passes Fort Craig spring, site of Maryville's founding settlement. It then hooks around the downtown area and contributes, along with Brown Creek, to the impounded Greenbelt lake on the north side of town. From the Greenbelt it flows north into Alcoa and joins the Little River a mile south of Rockford.
  
  Pistol Creek has been designated an "impaired" stream by the Tennessee Department of Natural Resources. The stream suffers from a large amount of runoff from the cities of Maryville and Alcoa. Both cities have spent considerable funds, time and effort seeking to clean up and beautify the Pistol Creek watershed.
  
  