Wisconsin River

Radhe Krishna 07-09-08
Wisconsin river
Wisconsin River
The Wisconsin River is a tributary of the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. At approximately 430 miles (692 km) long, it is the state's longest river. The river's name, first recorded in 1673 by Jacques Marquette as "Meskousing," is rooted in the Algonquian languages used by the area's American Indian tribes, but its original meaning is obscure. French explorers who followed in the wake of Marquette later modified the name to "Ouisconsin." This was simplified to "Wisconsin" in the early 19th century before being applied to Wisconsin Territory and finally the state of Wisconsin.

The Wisconsin River originates in the forests of the Lake District of northern Wisconsin, in Lac Vieux Desert near the border of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. It flows south across the glacial plain of central Wisconsin, passing Wausau and Stevens Point. In southern Wisconsin it encounters the terminal moraine formed during the last ice age, where it forms the Dells of the Wisconsin River. North of Madison at Portage, the river turns to the west, flowing through Wisconsin's hilly Western Upland and joining the Mississippi approximately 3 miles (4.8 km) south of Prairie du Chien. Although the river was originally navigable up to the city of Portage 200 miles (320 km) from its mouth, it is now considered non-navigable beyond the lock and dam at Prairie du Sac.[1]

Wisconsin and the Wisconsin River
Origin Lac Vieux Desert
Mouth Mississippi River near Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin
Basin countries United States
Length 430 mi (692 km)
Source elevation 1,683 ft (513 m)
Avg. discharge 12,000 ft³/s (340 m³/s) at mouth
Basin area 12,280 mi² (31,805 km²)
Contents [hide]
1 Geology
2 History
3 Lower Wisconsin River state riverway
4 Cities and villages along the river
5 See also
6 Notes
7 External links

Geology
The modern Wisconsin River was formed in several stages. The lower, westward-flowing portion of the river is located in the unglaciated Driftless Area, and this section of the river's course likely predates the rest by several million years. The lower reach of the river is narrower than its upstream valley, leading to the suggestion the upper portions of the ancestor of the river flowed east previous to the Pleistocene.[2] The remaining length of the river was formed gradually as glaciers advanced and retreated over Wisconsin. The stretch of river from Stevens Point north to Merrill was a drainage route for meltwater flowing away from glaciers which covered northern Wisconsin during the Wisconsin Glaciation. As the glaciers retreated further northward, the river also grew in that direction. South from Stevens Point, the meltwater would have flowed into Glacial Lake Wisconsin, a prehistoric proglacial lake that existed in the central part of the state. As temperatures warmed around 15,000 years ago, the ice dam holding the lake in place burst, unleashing a catastrophic flood that carved the Dells of the Wisconsin River and joined the upper stretches of the river with the pre-existing lower river valley that today flows from Portage to Prairie du Chien.

History

The first documented exploration of the Wisconsin River by Europeans took place in 1673, when Jacques Marquette and Louis Jolliet of France canoed from Lake Michigan up the Fox River until reaching the present-day site of Portage in early June. At this location the Wisconsin and Fox rivers are only 2 miles (3.2 km) distant, so the explorers could portage from the Fox to the Wisconsin River. They then continued downstream 200 miles (320 km) to the Wisconsin's mouth, entering the Mississippi on June 17. Other explorers and traders would follow the same route, and for the next 150 years the Wisconsin and Fox rivers, collectively known as the Fox-Wisconsin Waterway, formed a major transportation route between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River.

Industry began to form on the Wisconsin in the early 19th century, as loggers started using the river to raft logs downstream from northern forests to sawmills in new cities like Wausau. By the 1880s, logging companies were damming the river to ensure the river had enough capacity for the logs being floated downstream. Later, at the start of the 20th century, more dams were constructed to provide for flood control and hydroelectricity. The dams also spurred tourism, creating reservoirs such as Lake Wisconsin that are popular areas for recreational boating and fishing. Today the Wisconsin is impounded in 26 places.

Despite this, a 93-mile (150 km) stretch of the Wisconsin between its mouth and the hydroelectric dam at Prairie du Sac is free of any dams or barriers and is relatively free-flowing. In the late 1980s, this portion of the river was designated as a state riverway, and development alongside the river has been limited to preserve its scenic integrity.

Lower Wisconsin River state riverway
The Lower Wisconsin River State Riverway is a state-funded project designed to protect the southern portion of the Wisconsin River from Sauk City about 93 miles all the way to the point where the Wisconsin River joins and empties into the Mississippi, about 10 miles south of the town of Prairie du Chien. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources manages protected lands of over 75,000 acres, including the river itself, islands, and some lands adjacent to the river. [3]

There are no dams or manmade obstructions to the natural flow of water from the hydroelectric dam just north of Sauk City all the way to where the Wisconsin joins the Mississippi. This long stretch of free-flowing river provides important natural habitats for a variety of wildlife, including white-tail deer, otter, beaver, turtles, sand hill cranes, eagles, hawks, and a variety of fish species.

There are many different recreation opportunities on the lower Wisconsin River from fishing and canoeing to tubing and camping.

Cities and villages along the river

Merrill
Merrimac
Mosinee
Muscoda
Nekoosa
Okee
Plover
Port Edwards
Portage
Prairie du Sac
Rhinelander
Rothschild
Sauk City
Schofield
Spring Green
Stevens Point
Tomahawk
Wausau
Whiting
Wisconsin Dells
Wisconsin Rapids


List of Wisconsin rivers

This list is arranged by drainage basin, with respective tributaries indented under each larger stream's name.
Great Lakes Drainage
Lake Michigan
Menominee River
Wausaukee River
Pike River
Pemebonwon River
Little Popple River
Pine River
Popple River
Brule River
Peshtigo River
Little Peshtigo River
Thunder River
Rat River
Oconto River
Little River
Pensaukee River
Little Suamico River
Suamico River

Fox River
East River
Fond du Lac River
Wolf River
Pine River
Rat River
Little River
Waupaca River
Crystal River
Tomorrow River
Little Wolf River
Embarrass River
Pigeon River
Shioc River
Red River
Evergreen River
Lily River
Hunting River
White River
Mecan River
Grand River
Montello River
Red River
Mink River
Ahnapee River
Kewaunee River
East Twin River
West Twin River
Devils River
Neshota River
Manitowoc River
Branch River
Killsnake River
Pigeon River
Meeme River
Sheboygan River
Onion River
Mullet River
Black River
Milwaukee River
Kinnickinnic River
Menomonee River
Little Menomonee River
Ulao Creek
Cedar Creek
Root River
Pike River

Lake Superior
Presque Isle River
Black River
Montreal River
Bad River
White River
Potato River
Marengo River
Brunsweiler River
Tyler Forks River
Iron River
Kakagon River
Fish Creek
Sioux River
Little Sioux River
Onion River
Raspberry River
Sand River
Siskiwit River
Bark River
Cranberry River
Flag River
Iron River
Bois Brule River
Little Boise Brule River
Poplar River
Middle River
Amnicon River
Nemadji River
Black River
St. Louis River
Pokegama River
Little Pokegama River
Red River
Thompsons Creek**

Mississippi River Drainage
Mississippi River
Illinois River (IL)
Fox River
White River
Mukwonago River
Des Plaines River
Root River

Rock River
Pecatonica River
Sugar River
Little Sugar River
East Branch Pecatonica River
Yellowstone River
Yahara River
Bark River
Scuppernong River
Crawfish River
Beaver Dam River
Maunesha River
Oconomowoc River
Coney River
Ashippun River
Rubicon River
Kohlsville River
Apple River
Galena River
Sinsinawa River
Little Menominee River
Menominee River
Platte River
Little Platte River
Grant River
Little Grant River

Wisconsin River
Kickapoo River
Big Green River
Little Green River
Blue River
Pine River
Baraboo River
Lemonweir River
Little Lemonweir River
Yellow River
Little Yellow River
Plover River
Little Eau Claire River
Little Eau Pleine River
Big Eau Pleine River
Eau Claire River
Big Rib River
Little Rib River
Trappe River
Little Trappe River
Pine River
Prairie River
Copper River
New Wood River
Spirit River
Somo River
Little Somo River
Little Rice River
Tomahawk River
Willow River
Pelican River
Eagle River
Deerskin River
Bad Axe River
La Crosse River
Little La Crosse River
Black River
Trempealeau River
Buffalo River

Chippewa River
Eau Galle River
Red Cedar River
Hay River
Yellow River
Vermillion River
Sweeny Pond
Brill River
Eau Claire River
Wolf River
Yellow River
Jump River
Little Jump River
Mondeaux River
Flambeau River
South Fork Flambeau River
Elk River
Little Elk River
Turtle River
Little Turtle River
Bear River
Manitowish River
Trout River
Thornapple River
Little Thornapple River
Brunet River
Couderay River
North Fork Chief River
Teal River
Moose River
Rush River
Trimbelle River
Wind River
Big River

St. Croix River
Kinnickinnic River
Willow River
Apple River
Straight River
Trade River
Wood River
Clam River
Yellow River
Upper Tamarack River
Spruce River
Namekagon River
Totagatic River
Ounce River
Moose River
Eau Claire River

Alphabetically

Ahnapee River
Amnicon River
Apple River, tributary of Mississippi River
Apple River, tributary of St. Croix River
Ashippun River
Bad Axe River
Bad River
Baraboo River
Bark River, tributary of Lake Superior
Bark River, tributary of Rock River
Bear River
Beaver Dam River
Big Green River
Big Rib River
Big River
Black River, tributary of Mississippi River
Black River, tributary of Nemadji River
Black River, tributary of Lake Michigan
Black River, tributary of Lake Superior via upper Michigan
Blue River
Bois Brule River
Branch River
Brill River
Brule River
Brunet River
Brunsweiler River
Buffalo River
Chippewa River
Clam River
Coney River
Copper River
Couderay River
Cranberry River
Crawfish River
Crystal River
Deerskin River
Des Plaines River
Devils River
Eagle River
East Branch Pecatonica River
East River
East Twin River
Eau Claire River, tributary of Chippewa River
Eau Claire River, tributary of St. Croix River
Eau Claire River, tributary of Wisconsin River
Eau Galle River
Eau Pleine River
Elk River
Embarrass River
Flag River
Flambeau River
Fond du Lac River of Wisconsin
Fox River of Illinois and Wisconsin
Fox River of Wisconsin
Galena River
Grand River
Grant River
Hay River
Iron River, tributary of Bad River
Iron River, tributary of Lake Superior
Jump River
Kakagon River
Kewaunee River
Kickapoo River
Killsnake River
Kinnickinnic River, tributary of Lake Michigan
Kinnickinnic River, tributary of St. Croix River
Kohlsville River
La Crosse River
Lemonweir River
Little Boise Brule River
Little Eau Pleine River
Little Elk River
Little Grant River
Little Green River
Little Lemonweir River
Little Menominee River
Little Menomonee River
Little Peshtigo River
Little Platte River
Little Pokegama River
Little Rib River
Little Rice River
Little River, tributary of Oconto River
Little River, tributary of Wolf River
Little Sioux River
Little Somo River
Little Sugar River
Little Thornapple River
Little Trappe River
Little Turtle River
Little Wolf River
Little Yellow River
Manitowish River
Manitowoc River
Marengo River
Maunesha River
Mecan River
Meeme River
Menominee River, tributary of Lake Michigan
Menominee River, tributary of Mississippi River
Menomonee River
Middle River
Milwaukee River
Mink River
Mississippi River
Mondeaux River
Montello River
Montreal River
Moose River, tributary of Chippewa River
Moose River, tributary of St. Croix River
Mukwonago River
Mullet River
Namekagon River
Nemadji River
Neshota River
New Wood River
North Fork Chief River
Oconomowoc River
Oconto River
Onion River, tributary of Lake Superior
Onion River, tributary of Sheboygan River
Ounce River
Pecatonica River
Pelican River
Pemebonwon River
Pensaukee River
Peshtigo River
Pigeon River, tributary of Embarrass River
Pigeon River, tributary of Lake Michigan
Pike River, tributary of Lake Michigan
Pike River, tributary of Menominee River
Pine River, tributary of Menominee River
Pine River, tributary of Wisconsin River
Pine River, tributary of Wisconsin River
Pine River, tributary of Wolf River
Platte River
Plover River
Pokegama River
Poplar River
Popple River
Potato River
Prairie River
Presque Isle River
Raspberry River
Rat River (Peshtigo River), tributary of Peshtigo River
Rat River (Wolf River), tributary of Wolf River
Red Cedar River
Red River, tributary of Lake Michigan
Red River, tributary of St. Louis River
Red River, tributary of Wolf River
Rock River
Root River, tributary of Des Plaines River
Root River, tributary of Lake Michigan
Rubicon River
Rush River
St. Croix River
St. Louis River
Sand River
Scuppernong River
Sheboygan River
Shioc River
Sinsinawa River
Sioux River
Siskiwit River
Somo River
Spirit River
Spruce River
Straight River
Suamico River
Sugar River
Sweeny Pond
Teal River
Thornapple River
Tomahawk River
Tomorrow River
Totagatic River
Trade River
Trappe River
Trempealeau River
Trimbelle River
Trout River
Turtle River
Upper Tamarack River
Vermillion River
Waupaca River
West Twin River
White River, tributary of Bad River
White River, tributary of Fox River
Willow River, tributary of St. Croix River
Willow River, tributary of Tomahawk River
Wind River
Wisconsin River
Wolf River, tributary of Eau Claire River (Chippewa River)
Wolf River, tributary of Winnebago Pool
Wood River
Yahara River
Yellow River, tributary of Chippewa River
Yellow River, tributary of Red Cedar River
Yellow River, tributary of St. Croix River
Yellow River, tributary of Wisconsin River
Yellowstone River