North Branch Kishwaukee River

Last updated

North Branch Kishwaukee River
North Branch Kishwaukee River
Physical characteristics
Source 
  location McHenry County northeast of Harvard, Illinois
  coordinates 42°26′49″N88°32′17″W / 42.4469444°N 88.5380556°W / 42.4469444; -88.5380556 (North Branch Kishwaukee River origin)
  elevation966 ft (294 m)
Mouth  
  location
Confluence with the Kishwaukee east of Marengo, Illinois
  coordinates
42°15′57″N88°33′04″W / 42.2658333°N 88.5511111°W / 42.2658333; -88.5511111 (North Branch Kishwaukee River mouth)
  elevation
810 ft (250 m)
Length17 mi (27 km)
Basin features
ProgressionNorth Branch Kishwaukee River → Kishwaukee → Rock → Mississippi → Gulf of Mexico
GNIS ID 414567

The North Branch Kishwaukee River is a 17.1-mile-long (27.5 km) [1] tributary of the Kishwaukee River in northern Illinois. [2] [3]

Contents

Course

The North Branch Kishwaukee River northeast of Harvard, Illinois and flows south through McHenry County. [4] to join the Kishwaukee River east of Marengo. [1] It drains approximately 40 square miles (100 km2) of land area, [4] flowing for 17 miles. [1]


Description

The North Branch Kishwaukee River flows in an east–west direction from its point of origin and has a generally unimpeded flow, save a dam at Belvidere, Illinois. [5] The North Branch has an average width of 50 feet (15 m), but in Boone County the stream becomes both wider and deeper. [5] Nearer its point of origin the North Branch has a substrate of gravel, the substrate becomes sand and silt going further downstream. [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Calumet River</span> System of rivers and canals in Illinois and Indiana, United States

The Calumet River is a system of heavily industrialized rivers and canals in the region between the south side of Chicago, Illinois, and the city of Gary, Indiana. Historically, the Little Calumet River and the Grand Calumet River were one, the former flowing west from Indiana into Illinois, then turning back east to its mouth at Lake Michigan at Marquette Park in Gary. Now the system is part of the Chicago Area Waterway System and through the use of locks flows away from Lake Michigan to the Cal-Sag Channel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rock River (Mississippi River tributary)</span> Tributary of the Mississippi River in the US

The Rock River is a tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately 299 miles (481 km) long, in the U.S. states of Wisconsin and Illinois. The river was known as the Sinnissippi to Sauk and Meskwaki peoples; the name means "rocky waters".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pecatonica River</span> River

The Pecatonica River is a tributary of the Rock River, 194 miles (312 km) long, in southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">DuPage River</span> River

The DuPage River is a 28.3-mile-long (45.5 km) tributary of the Des Plaines River in the U.S. state of Illinois.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">La Moine River</span> River

La Moine River is a 125-mile-long (201 km) tributary of the Illinois River in western Illinois in the United States. Its watershed covers approximately 2,000 square miles (5,000 km2), and it is the sixth-largest tributary to the Illinois River. It is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Embarras River (Illinois)</span> River in Illinois, United States

The Embarras River is a 195-mile-long (314 km) tributary of the Wabash River in southeastern Illinois in the United States. The waters of the Embarras reach the Gulf of Mexico via the Wabash, Ohio, and Mississippi Rivers. The river drains a watershed around 1,566,450 acres (6,339.2 km2) in an agricultural region. It arises near Champaign-Urbana and flows south to near Vincennes, Indiana. The name comes from French explorers, who used the French word, embarras, for river navigation obstacles, blockages, and difficulties relating to logjams.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Little Wabash River</span> Wabash River tributary in Illinois

The Little Wabash River is a 240-mile-long (390 km) tributary of the Wabash River in east-central and southeastern Illinois in the United States. Via the Wabash and Ohio rivers, it is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River. It is the third largest tributary after the White River and the Embarras River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vermilion River (Illinois River tributary)</span> River

The Vermilion River is a 74.8-mile-long (120.4 km) tributary of the Illinois River in the state of Illinois, United States. The river flows north, in contrast to a second Vermilion River in Illinois, which flows south to the Wabash River. The Illinois and Wabash rivers each have a tributary named the Little Vermilion River as well.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Middle Fork Vermilion River</span> River in Illinois, United States

The Middle Fork of the Vermilion River is a tributary of the Vermilion River in Illinois. The Middle Fork rises in Ford County and flows southeast to join the Vermilion near Danville.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kishwaukee River</span> River in Illinois, United States

The Kishwaukee River, locally known as simply The Kish, is a 63.4-mile-long (102.0 km) river in the U.S. state of Illinois. It is a tributary of the Rock River and its name derives from the Potawatomi word for "river of the sycamore".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elkhart River</span> River

The Elkhart River is a 48.3-mile-long (77.7 km) tributary of the St. Joseph River in northern Indiana in the United States. It is almost entirely contained in Elkhart County. It begins as the South Branch Elkhart River from Port Mitchell Lake and the North Branch Elkhart River from Waldron Lake and merge to form the Elkhart River west of Wawaka, Indiana. It flows generally westward through Benton and then turns northward. It then flows through Baintertown and Waterford Mills into the Goshen Dam Pond. From there it flows northwest through Goshen, Dunlap and Elkhart. It flows into the St. Joseph River at Island Park just north of downtown Elkhart.

Piscasaw Creek is a 31.6-mile-long (50.9 km) tributary of the Kishwaukee River in the U.S. states of Wisconsin and Illinois. Rising in Walworth County, Wisconsin, it passes through McHenry County, Illinois before discharging into the Kishwaukee in Boone County, Illinois. Piscasaw Creek's mouth is located near Belvidere, Illinois.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Linganore Creek</span> River in Maryland, United States

Linganore Creek is a 13.5-mile-long (21.7 km) tributary of the Monocacy River in Frederick County, Maryland. The stream is formed from the confluence of the north and south forks of the Linganore, about 10 miles (16 km) east-northeast of the city of Frederick. The creek runs roughly southwest to the Monocacy River, which drains to the Potomac River. The watershed area of the creek is 83.1 square miles (215 km2). High water in the creek can result in flooding of Gas House Pike, an east–west road running between Monocacy Boulevard and Green Valley Road.

Killbuck Creek is a 28-mile-long (45 km) tributary of the Kishwaukee River in northern Illinois, United States.

Rush Creek is a 14.9-mile-long (24.0 km) tributary of the Kishwaukee River in northern Illinois.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Branch Kishwaukee River</span> River

The South Branch Kishwaukee River is a 63.6-mile-long (102.4 km) tributary of the Kishwaukee River in northern Illinois. The South Branch is the main branch of the Kishwaukee River, joining it 10.6 miles (17.1 km) above its confluence with the Rock River. The South Branch flows through DeKalb County; in 2007 flooding along the tributary inundated areas of DeKalb County and Sycamore, Illinois.

Mokeler Creek is a 10.1-mile-long (16.3 km) tributary of Piscasaw Creek, itself a tributary of the Kishwaukee River, in northern Illinois.

Coon Creek is a 28.1-mile-long (45.2 km) tributary of the Kishwaukee River in northern Illinois.

Owens Creek is a 15.0-mile-long (24.1 km) stream in the Kishwaukee River watershed in northern Illinois. It is a tributary of the South Branch Kishwaukee River.

East Branch South Branch Kishwaukee River, in northern Illinois, is a 23.7-mile-long (38.1 km) tributary of the Kishwaukee River, by way of the South Branch Kishwaukee River.

References

  1. 1 2 3 U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. The National Map, accessed May 19, 2011
  2. James, L. Allan. Management and Restoration of Fluvial Systems with Broad Historical Changes and Human Impacts, (Google Books link), Geological Society of America , 2009, pp. 110-111, ( ISBN   0813724511), ( ISBN   9780813724515).
  3. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: North Branch Kishwaukee River
  4. 1 2 Kishwaukee River Area Assessment, Volume 2: Water Resources , Illinois Department of Natural Resources , Office of Scientific Research and Analysis, 1998, p. 1, accessed January 22, 2011.
  5. 1 2 3 Kishwaukee River Basin: An Inventory of the Regions Resources Archived 2012-03-18 at the Wayback Machine , Regional Watershed Assessment, Illinois Department of Natural Resources , p. 2 Archived 2012-03-18 at the Wayback Machine .