Heads in St. Joe National Forest, in the foothills of Benewah County, Idaho, 2.3 km (1.4 mi) southeast of Charles Butte, flows northwest for 89 km (55 mi) to the Spokane River, just west of Spokane, Washington.
The naming of Hangman Creek recognizes the site where Yakima Chief Qualchan was hanged by Colonel George Wright's men. Colonel Wright killed a number of Native Americans and approximately 800 of their horses to punish the Native Americans for their victory over Colonel Steptoe. "Latah" is a Native American word meaning "jumping fish", dating back to 1804 and the Lewis and Clark expedition. The native variant name "Snt’ut’u’lmkhwkwe'" is translated as "Suckers in the Water". A proposal to change the name Hangman Creek to Latah Creek was submitted in April 1997; the proposal was rejected by the U.S. Board on Geographic Names (USBGN) on 9 September 1999 because local use was not strong enough and there was no new evidence to overturn a 1959 USBGN decision.