Everything about Wisconsin River totally explained
The
Wisconsin River is a
tributary of the
Mississippi River in the state of
Wisconsin in the
United States. At approximately 430 mi (692 km) long, it's 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 spectacular
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 mi (4.8 km) south of
Prairie du Chien. Although the river was originally navigable up to the city of
Portage, 200 mi (320 km) from its mouth, it's now considered non-navigable beyond the lock and dam at
Prairie du Sac.
Geology
Geologists say that 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. Curiously, 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. 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 mi (3.2 km) distant, so the explorers could
portage from the Fox to the Wisconsin River. They then continued downstream 200 mi (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, would form a major transportation route between the
Great Lakes and the Mississippi River. (
See: French colonization of the Americas).
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 and has been called "the hardest-working river in America."
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.
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. Some of the towns along the river that provide access to the river, in addition to the above mentioned, include Arena, Spring Green, Lone Rock, Boscobel, Muscoda, and Blue River.
Cities and villages along the river
Further Information
Get more info on 'Wisconsin River'.
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