Schuylkill River at Pottstown Water Level
Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for Schuylkill River at Pottstown in PA, United States, built from official government gauge data.
- Location PA, United States
- Watershed schuylkill
- Primary gauge 01472000 (USGS)
About Schuylkill River at Pottstown
The Schuylkill River sits in the Schuylkill watershed in Pennsylvania.
The watershed
At this station, the upstream drainage area is 1,147 sq mi (2,971 km2). That is the land area feeding the gauge, not the whole watershed on a map. For anyone watching a yard, dock, intake, or gravel bar, that upstream area is what sets the stage for the level you see here.
What the numbers say
The record high is 16.78 ft (5.11 m) in September 2011, and the record low is 1.04 ft (0.32 m) in October 2007. Those two marks show the spread this river can cover at Pottstown. A high-water event can mean water moving into bankside access points and covering spots that are usually clear; a low-water period can leave shallow reaches tighter for passage and use.
The seasonal pattern is modest but real. The highest typical month is March at 3.28 ft (1 m), while the lowest typical month is September at 2.03 ft (0.62 m). The typical annual swing is 15 in (38.1 cm). For cottagers and anglers, that is the range a dock, mooring line, or fishing spot should be ready to handle through the year.
In this part of the region, winter and spring are the months to watch for annual peaks, while summer low flows are the rule. Late-summer floods can still arrive hard when tropical remnants pass through, even if the rest of the season is lean.
Reading the hero number
The hero number on this page is today’s reading compared with the median for this calendar day across the station record. That is more useful than raw elevation because the same water level can mean very different things in March than in September.
This station is operated by the U.S. Geological Survey, and the record here spans more than 50 years. Looking at today against the day-of-year median tells you whether the river is running near its usual seasonal state, above it, or below it.
How this page is built
Readings come from official government gauges and are rolled into daily records: the daily mean, high and low for every day on record. Each calendar day gets its own baseline from the full history, so the level you see is compared against what this specific date usually looks like rather than an annual average.
How Nibi Metrics works · Water stories
Nibi Metrics - live water levels, flow, and forecasts for lakes and rivers across Canada, the US and the UK
Real-time water levels, forecasts, and alerts for lakes and rivers across Canada, the US and the UK. Built on official government data.
Nibi Metrics tracks more than 13,000 gauged lakes and rivers across Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom, reading directly from official federal monitoring networks: the Water Survey of Canada, the United States Geological Survey, Quebec's provincial hydrometric network, and the Environment Agency for England. Every number on the platform is measured, not modelled - taken from a government gauge on the water itself and compared against that location's own historical record for this exact date.
What you can see for any monitored lake or river
The level right now, in feet or metres, updated as the source agency publishes new readings - for many stations that is every five to fifteen minutes. How today compares to typical: every location carries its own typical-for-this-date band built from its historical record, so a reading is never just a number - it is above, below, or near what this water usually does on this calendar day. Which way it is moving: a measured RISING, FALLING, or STEADY verdict computed from the gauge's own recent readings, with the rate of change - the difference between a flood ending and one beginning. What comes next: level forecasts up to 72 hours ahead, driven by the gauge's recent behaviour, upstream water, and quantitative precipitation forecasts, alongside live radar, lightning, and weather for the surrounding region.
Alerts that watch the water for you
Set a threshold on any location - a level, a distance above typical, or a rate of climb - and Nibi emails or notifies you the moment the gauge crosses it. Cottagers use it for spring freshet, anglers for river conditions, marinas and municipalities for operations. The scanning runs around the clock against the same measured data shown on every page.
Where Nibi comes from
Nibi means water in Anishinaabemowin. The platform began at a family cottage on Lake Muskoka, Ontario, where the spring melt floods the shoreline most years and the only forecast was standing on the dock, looking, and guessing. It grew into an independent, member-funded platform run by Muskoka Research Inc. - no investors, no data resale, and a privacy policy shorter than most cookie banners. The core data is free for everyone, forever; paid plans add automation like multi-location alerts, deep history, and reports.
Coverage
Nibi spans the continent: every Canadian province and territory with active federal gauges - from Vancouver Island rivers to the Muskoka lakes, prairie reservoirs, and Quebec's hydrometric network - and the United States from Maine to the Texas Hill Country, the Ohio Valley, and the Pacific Northwest. Coverage grows where the water news is: when a basin floods, its gauges join the platform with their full historical records attached. Many stations report every five to fifteen minutes; most report at least hourly; every page states exactly when its gauge last spoke.
Free forever, funded by members
The core promise is simple: the water data is free, for everyone, forever. Live levels, maps, radar, and recent history never sit behind a paywall. Paid plans fund the platform by adding automation - multi-location alerts, decades of history, longer forecasts, and PDF reports - so the people who need more carry the cost for everyone who just needs to check the lake before driving up. There are no investors and no advertising deals shaping what the data says.
Water Stories
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The science of snow water equivalent and why it drives the season ahead.
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One percent, every year, forever - unwrapping hydrology's most misunderstood phrase, and how it differs from our own percentiles.
How every number is computed - About the platform
