| Red River | |
|---|---|
| Physical characteristics | |
| Main source | Olio Township, Woodford County, Illinois 40°42′51″N89°13′06″W / 40.7141667°N 89.2183333°W |
| River mouth | Olio Township, Woodford County, Illinois 630 ft (190 m) 40°40′21″N89°10′47″W / 40.6725362°N 89.1798039°W Coordinates: 40°40′21″N89°10′47″W / 40.6725362°N 89.1798039°W |
| Length | 7.5 mi (12.1 km) |
| Basin features | |
| Progression | Red River → Panther Creek → Mackinaw → Illinois → Mississippi → Gulf of Mexico |
| GNIS ID | 416464 |
The Red River is a 7.5-mile-long (12.1 km) [1] tributary of Panther Creek in Woodford County, Illinois. [2] Its headwaters are located southeast of Eureka, and after draining several townships it flows into Panther Creek in Palestine Township. Soon afterwards, Panther Creek itself flows into the Mackinaw River near Congerville. [3] Via the Mackinaw River, the Red River of Illinois is part of the Illinois River and Mississippi River watershed.
Woodford County is a county located in the state of Illinois. The 2010 United States Census listed its population at 38,664. Its county seat is Eureka.
Eureka is a city in Olio Township, Woodford County, Illinois, United States. The population was 5,295 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Woodford County. Eureka is part of the Peoria, Illinois Metropolitan Statistical Area.
The Mackinaw River is a 130-mile-long (210 km) tributary of the Illinois River in the U.S. state of Illinois. Its watershed covers approximately 1,136 square miles (3,000 km2), and contains some of the most productive agricultural land in the United States. The river itself maintains some of the highest quality streams in the state and provides habitat for 60-70 native fish species and 25-30 species of mussels. Its name, also spelled Mackinac, is derived from the Ojibwe word mikinaak meaning "turtle".
The Red River's drainage pattern is an unusual example of a watercourse officially designated as a river flowing into and feeding a larger watercourse that is officially designated as a creek. Usually the etymology flows the other way: smaller creeks feed larger rivers.
A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of water. Small rivers can be referred to using names such as stream, creek, brook, rivulet, and rill. There are no official definitions for the generic term river as applied to geographic features, although in some countries or communities a stream is defined by its size. Many names for small rivers are specific to geographic location; examples are "run" in some parts of the United States, "burn" in Scotland and northeast England, and "beck" in northern England. Sometimes a river is defined as being larger than a creek, but not always: the language is vague.
A stream is a body of water with surface water flowing within the bed and banks of a channel. The stream encompasses surface and groundwater fluxes that respond to geological, geomorphological, hydrological and biotic controls.
Etymology is the study of the history of words. By extension, the term "the etymology " means the origin of the particular word and for place names, there is a specific term, toponymy.
