Stony Brook at Watchung

Highest listed crest 24.50 ftFlood stage 14.0 ft7 crests since 1973

The Stony Brook at Watchung crested above flood stage 6 times among the 7 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1973 to 2014. The highest, 24.50 ft on August 2, 1973, was minor flooding, 10.50 feet above flood stage. 1 other gauge on the Stony Brook crested above flood stage within a week of it, 1 at its own highest listed crest.

The gauge

Highest listed crest: 24.50 ft; August 2, 1973; 10,500 cubic feet per second
Flood stage: 14.0 ft; No major stage set
Crests at major: 0; 6 above flood stage
Most recent flood crest: April 30, 2014; 14.29 ft, minor flooding
Location: Somerset County; Near North Plainfield (1.2 mi), Plainfield (2.4 mi), South Plainfield (4.7 mi)
Identifiers: NWS WTCN4; USGS 01403540

Flood stages

The thresholds the National Weather Service uses for this gauge today, and how many listed crests reached each.

Flood categories, Stony Brook at Watchung

Action stage	14.0	0	—	The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)	14.0	6	Apr 30, 2014	Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat

Every listed crest

7 crests from 1973 to 2014. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

These are the crests the local National Weather Service office lists for the gauge: the highest on record and recent crests. Lesser floods between them may be missing, so counts by decade are a floor.
Categories use today's flood stages. Levees, dams and channel changes since a crest can make old and new stages not directly comparable.

Highest crests

Highest listed crests, Stony Brook at Watchung

1	Aug 2, 1973	24.50	+10.50	Minor	10,500
2	Jul 14, 1975	20.40	+6.40	Minor	4,420
3	Sep 16, 1999	17.16	+3.16	Minor	5,380
4	Oct 19, 1996	15.27	+1.27	Minor	2,640
5	Apr 27, 2007	15.24	+1.24	Minor	—
6	Apr 30, 2014	14.29	+0.29	Minor	—
7	Aug 5, 2003	12.89	−1.11	Below flood stage	670

The worst floods along the Stony Brook

For this gauge's highest crests, the other gauges on the Stony Brook that crested above flood stage within a week.

August 2, 1973: 24.50 ft here, minor flooding

North PlainfieldNJ · Aug 2, 1973 · 10.65 ft · Minor · its highest

September 16, 1999: 17.16 ft here, minor flooding

PrincetonNJ · Sep 16, 1999 · 14.02 ft · Major
North PlainfieldNJ · Sep 16, 1999 · 8.36 ft · Minor

October 19, 1996: 15.27 ft here, minor flooding

North PlainfieldNJ · Oct 19, 1996 · 8.35 ft · Minor

Gauges on the Stony Brook

In USGS station-number order, which runs downstream within a river basin.

Flood gauges on the Stony Brook

Princeton	NJ	9.0	16.23 ft, Aug 28, 2011	3
Watchung this gauge	NJ	14.0	24.50 ft, Aug 2, 1973	0
North Plainfield	NJ	7.0	10.65 ft, Aug 2, 1973	0

Other gauges in Somerset County

Flood gauges in Somerset County

Seeley Mills	5.5	9.05 ft, Sep 2, 2021	0
Burnt Mills	11.0	16.79 ft, Sep 2, 2021	4
Bound Brook	11.0	20.66 ft, Sep 2, 2021	0
Burnt Mills	9.5	12.76 ft, Sep 2, 2021	1
Blackwells Mills	9.0	21.24 ft, Aug 28, 2011	11
Griggstown	10.0	24.21 ft, Aug 28, 2011	14
Millstone	10.0	22.45 ft, Sep 2, 2021	6
Weston	11.5	23.75 ft, Sep 2, 2021	7
North Branch Village	12.3	21.53 ft, Sep 16, 1999	0
South Branch	8.0	20.26 ft, Sep 2, 2021	14
Far Hills	6.0	7.60 ft, Jul 23, 1919	0
Raritan	10.0	19.52 ft, Sep 2, 2021	6
Millington	8.0	10.26 ft, Aug 29, 2011	2
Bound Brook	28.0	42.13 ft, Sep 17, 1999	13
Manville	14.0	27.66 ft, Sep 2, 2021	10
North Plainfield	7.0	10.65 ft, Aug 2, 1973	0
Martinsville	6.0	11.47 ft, Sep 2, 2021	0

Somerset County: every hazard · River floods across the country · New Jersey

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge WTCN4, retrieved October 30, 2026. Stages in feet on the gauge's own datum, not elevation. Crests are as the National Weather Service lists them; preliminary values may be revised.