Author Institution: U.S.D.A. Soil Conservation Service, Sandusky, OhioAn abandoned stream valley, here called Florence Valley, was found in eastern Erie County, Ohio. Florence Valley is about one mile long and connects the valleys of Chappel Creek and the Vermilion River. There is evidence that Florence Valley was formed as a result of the capture of a tributary of the Vermilion River by Chappel Creek. Chappel Creek, at the junction of Florence Valley and the valley of Chappel Creek, has a rightangled bend, which displays morphology characteristic of an "elbow-of-capture." The gradient of the eastern two-thirds of Florence Valley slopes toward the Vermilion River. Because the Vermilion River is more deeply entrenched than is Chappel Creek, this stream capture must have taken place at a time when the base level was at a higher elevation, when Chappel Creek had a shorter course and steeper gradient than did the Vermilion River. These conditions are believed to have existed during the time of Lake Maumee III
