Big Sioux River
Big Sioux River | |
---|---|
Etymology | Lakota people |
Native name | Tehankasandata (Lakota) |
Location | |
Country | United States |
State | South Dakota, Iowa |
Physical characteristics | |
Source | Coteau des Prairies |
• location | Roberts County, South Dakota |
Rock River, Broken Kettle Creek | |
• right | Skunk Creek |
The Big Sioux River is a tributary of the Missouri River in eastern South Dakota and northwestern Iowa in the United States.[2] It flows generally southwardly for 419 mi (674 km),[3] and its watershed is 9,006 sq mi (23,330 km2).[1] The United States Board on Geographic Names settled on "Big Sioux River" as the stream's name in 1931.[4] The river was named after the Lakota people[5] which was known by them as Tehankasandata, or Thick Wooded River.[6]
The Big Sioux River rises in Roberts County, South Dakota[4] on a low plateau known as the Coteau des Prairies and flows generally southwardly through Grant, Codington, Hamlin, Brookings, Moody, and Minnehaha counties, past the communities of Watertown, Castlewood, Bruce, Flandreau, Egan, Trent, Dell Rapids, and Baltic to Sioux Falls, where it passes over a waterfall in Falls Park, which gives that city its name. Downstream of Sioux Falls and the community of Brandon, the Big Sioux defines the boundary between South Dakota and Iowa, flowing along the eastern borders of Lincoln and Union counties in South Dakota, and the western borders of Lyon, Sioux and Plymouth counties in Iowa, past the communities of Canton, Fairview, Hudson, Hawarden, North Sioux City, and Dakota Dunes in South Dakota and Beloit, Hawarden and Akron in Iowa. It joins the Missouri River from the north at Sioux City, Iowa.[7][8]
The Big Sioux River, at the USGS station in Sioux City, Iowa, has a mean annual discharge of approximately 3,793 cubic feet per second.[9]
Tributaries
The Big Sioux River collects the
Pollution
The Big Sioux is South Dakota's most populated river basin. Agriculture is the primary use of land along most of the river's course. To comply with the Clean Water Act, the state monitors water quality of its rivers. Most of the Big Sioux north of Sioux Falls was scored well in 2012. Portions near Lake Kampeska and between Willow and Stray Horse Creeks (Codington and Hamlin counties) exceeded federally allowable levels of E. coli and fecal coliform bacteria. However, the Big Sioux south of Sioux Falls is much more polluted with E. coli, fecal coliform, and suspended solids. Several portions heavily restrict fishing or human contact, and swimming is banned.[11]
Flood control
Between 1955 and 1961, an extensive
Flooding
The Big Sioux River experienced record-breaking flooding during the 2019 Midwestern U.S. floods.[14]
The Big Sioux River Flood Information System was used to model flooding during the March 2019 bomb cyclone event.[15]
The river overflowed its banks between September 12–15, 2019, flooding three blocks of Dell Rapids, South Dakota, and damaging up to a dozen homes.[16] Interstate 90 was shut down between Mitchell and Sioux Falls.[14]
See also
- Big Sioux Recreation Area
- Blood Run Site — Native American Settlement
- Floyd River
- List of river borders of U.S. states
- List of rivers of Iowa
- List of rivers of South Dakota
- Little Sioux River
- Siouxland
References
- ^ doi:10.3133/ofr85348. Retrieved 2021-09-08.
- ^ "Columbia Gazetteer of North America entry". Archived from the original on 2006-02-25. Retrieved 2006-06-06.
- ^ U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. The National Map Archived 2012-03-29 at the Wayback Machine, accessed March 30, 2011
- ^ a b U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Big Sioux River
- ^ Federal Writers' Project (1940). South Dakota place-names, v.3. University of South Dakota. p. 4.
- ^ State Department of History (1924). South Dakota Historical Collections Volume XII. Pierre, South Dakota: Hipple Printing Company. p. 304. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
- ^ ISBN 0-89933-214-5
- ^ ISBN 0-89933-330-3
- ^ USGS station
- ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Indian River
- ^ Andrews, John (March 2013). "Can We Save the Big Sioux?". South Dakota Magazine. Archived from the original on 2018-09-04. Retrieved 2020-02-04.
- ^ a b c d "Flood Control". City of Sioux Falls. Archived from the original on 2011-01-08. Retrieved 2010-04-19.
- ^ Jorgensen, Don. Sioux Falls diverts water to ease flooding [1] Archived 2011-09-27 at the Wayback Machine KELO-TV. March 15, 2010. (accessed April 19, 2010).
- ^ a b Nelson, Katie; Sneve, Joe; Ferguson, Danielle; Huber, Makenzie (September 12, 2019). "Big Sioux River surpasses March's record-breaking flood levels, I-90 closed from Plankinton to Sioux Falls". Argus Leader. Retrieved 2019-09-21.
- ^ "Big Sioux River Flood Information System Sees Heavy Use During Spring 2019". SDSU Extension. September 12, 2019. Archived from the original on September 21, 2019. Retrieved 2019-09-21.
- ^ Sneve, Joe (September 20, 2019). "Homes in Dell Rapids could be slated for demolition after floods". Argus Leader. Retrieved 2019-09-21.
42°29′27″N 96°26′47″W / 42.49083°N 96.44639°W
Further reading
- Durand, Paul C. (1994). Where the waters gather and the rivers meet : (ó-ki-zu wa-kpá) (to meet, to unite) : an atlas of the eastern Sioux. Robin Siev Durand. [Prior Lake, MN]: [P.C. Durand]. OCLC 32050105.