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Fox River (Illinois River tributary)
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| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Fox River |
| image | Fox River Bridge 060908.jpg |
| image_caption | The Fox River near South Elgin, Illinois |
| map | Fox River Map.png |
| map_alt | Fox River and its watershed |
| map_caption | Fox River and its watershed |
| map_size | 260px |
| source1_location | 1 mi southeast of Colgate, Wisconsin |
| source1_coordinates | |
| source1_coord_ref | |
| mouth_location | Illinois River at Ottawa, Illinois |
| mouth_coordinates | |
| mouth_coord_ref | |
| progression | Fox River → Illinois → Mississippi → Gulf of Mexico |
| subdivision_type1 | Country |
| subdivision_name1 | United States |
| subdivision_type2 | States |
| subdivision_name2 | Wisconsin, Illinois |
| length | 202 mi |
| source1_elevation | 942.78 ft |
| mouth_elevation | 460.28 ft |
| discharge1_location | mouth |
| discharge1_avg | 2346.01 cuft/s (estimate) |
| river_system | Mississippi River |
| tributaries_left | Poplar Creek, Morgan Creek |
| tributaries_right | Nippersink Creek, Tyler Creek, Ferson Creek, Big Rock Creek, Indian Creek |
| waterbodies | Chain O'Lakes |
the Illinois River tributary, beginning in southeastern Wisconsin
The Fox River is a 202 mi tributary of the Illinois River, flowing from southeastern Wisconsin to Ottawa, Illinois in the United States. The Wisconsin section was known as the Pishtaka River in the 19th century. There is another Fox River in Wisconsin that flows through Lake Winnebago into Green Bay. There are also two other "Fox Rivers" in southern Illinois: the Fox River (Little Wabash tributary) and a smaller "Fox River" that joins the Wabash River near New Harmony, Indiana.
The Fox River (Illinois River tributary) is known locally as an excellent fishery with opportunities for smallmouth bass, flathead catfish, and walleye. The river’s watershed encompasses 1720 square miles in Illinois and 938 square miles in Wisconsin.
Wisconsin
The Fox River rises in the Halbach Swamp, 1 mi southeast of the community of Colgate, Wisconsin and flows past Brookfield, Waukesha, Big Bend, Waterford, Rochester, Burlington, Wheatland, Silver Lake and Wilmot, for a total of 84 mi in Wisconsin.
A major dam in Waterford forms a 1200 acre navigable waterway which is one of the busiest in southeastern Wisconsin. The river is generally navigable from the Iron Bridge (now a concrete bridge) in Tichigan, Wisconsin (just south of Big Bend) down to the dam. The river connects several small lakes in this section, and one large lake, Tichigan Lake and one smaller lake, Buena Lake. The entire area including connected lakes and the Fox are often referred to as Tichigan Lake.
At the southern end of this section, Foxwood Isle separates the main dam to its west and a spillway to the east.
A small dam is present just a few miles south in downtown Rochester. The river then flows unobstructed through Burlington, where it joins the White River, and on to Wilmot. This is a popular and picturesque day-canoe trip never straying far from the road, but often just out of sight of it.
Flooding is common on this section of the river, especially near Wheatland to the border.
The Fox River watershed encompasses 938 square miles in Wisconsin.
Illinois
The river enters Illinois where it widens into a large area of interconnected lakes known as the Chain O'Lakes. Fox Lake is the largest village in this area. From the chain, the river flows generally southward for 118 mi,
Native American tribes that lived near the Fox River included the Potawatomi, Sauk and Meskwaki tribes.
The Fox River has 15 dams, including McHenry Dam, which raises the river slightly to maintain depth in the Chain O'Lakes in northern Illinois, the Montgomery Dam and the Dayton Dam, a hydroelectric dam near Ottawa. In September 2023, the United States Army Corps of Engineers issued a draft report recommending the removal of nine of these dams for environmental reasons.
In the winter, bald eagles can be found nesting along the banks.
Early in the history of Illinois, the Fox River provided water for the Illinois and Michigan Canal via a feeder canal, allowing the canal to pass over the Fox River on an aqueduct.
The Fox River watershed encompasses 1720 square miles in Illinois.
References
References
- [[United States Environmental Protection Agency]]. "Watershed Report: Fox River".
- U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. [http://viewer.nationalmap.gov/viewer/ The National Map] {{webarchive. link. (2012-03-29 , accessed May 13, 2011)
- Increase A. Lapham. (1855). "Ancient Works in The Basin of the Pishtaka River". The Antiquities of Wisconsin.
- Effects of Lowhead Dams on Unionids in Fox River, Illinois
- {{cite gnis. 408636. Fox River. 15 August 2012
- https://www.lakecountyil.gov/2401/Fox-River-Watershed Stormwater Management Commission, Lake county, Illinois Retrieved 5/24/21
- (2001). "Major Watersheds of Illinois". Illinois Dept. of Natural Resources.
- (2023). "Fox River Connectivity & Habitat Study Section 519, Illinois River Basin Restoration". IUS Army Corps of Engineers, Chicago District.
This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.
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