Illinois River - wikipedia Illinois River This article is about the river in Illinois. For the rivers of Illinois, see List of rivers of Illinois. For other uses, see Illinois River ( disambiguation ). Illinois River River Illinois River valley, Abraham Lincoln Memorial Bridge, and LaSalle Rail Bridge near LaSalle, Illinois Country United States State Illinois Source Confluence of the Kankakee and Des Plaines Rivers - location Grundy County, Illinois, United States - elevation 505 ft ( 154 m ) - coordinates 41 ° 23 ′ 37 '' N 88 ° 15 ′ 37 '' W ﻿ / ﻿ 41.39361 ° N 88.26028 ° W ﻿ / 41.39361 ; - 88.26028 Mouth Mississippi River - location Grafton, Illinois, United States - elevation 417 ft ( 127 m ) - coordinates 38 ° 58 ′ 13 '' N 90 ° 27 ′ 15 '' W ﻿ / ﻿ 38.97028 ° N 90.45417 ° W ﻿ / 38.97028 ; - 90.45417 Coordinates : 38 ° 58 ′ 13 '' N 90 ° 27 ′ 15 '' W ﻿ / ﻿ 38.97028 ° N 90.45417 ° W ﻿ / 38.97028 ; - 90.45417 Length 273 mi ( 439 km ) Basin 28,070 sq mi ( 72,701 km ) Discharge for Valley City, about 61.8 mi ( 99.5 km ) from the mouth - average 23,280 cu ft / s ( 659 m / s ) - max 123,000 cu ft / s ( 3,483 m / s ) - min 1,330 cu ft / s ( 38 m / s ) Map of the Illinois River watershed The Illinois River ( Miami - Illinois language : Inoka Siipiiwi ) is a principal tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately 273 miles ( 439 km ) long, in the U.S. state of Illinois. The river drains a large section of central Illinois, with a drainage basin of 28,756.6 square miles ( 74,479 km ). The drainage basin extends into Wisconsin and Indiana. This river was important among Native Americans and early French traders as the principal water route connecting the Great Lakes with the Mississippi. The French colonial settlements along the rivers formed the heart of the area known as the Illinois Country. After the construction of the Illinois and Michigan Canal and the Hennepin Canal in the 19th century, the role of the river as link between Lake Michigan and the Mississippi was extended into the era of modern industrial shipping. It now forms the basis for the Illinois Waterway. Contents 1 Hydrography 2 Geology 3 History 4 Interpretation 5 Modern use 6 In popular culture 7 Cities and towns 8 See also 9 Notes 10 References 11 External links Hydrography The Illinois River is formed by the confluence of the Kankakee River and the Des Plaines River in eastern Grundy County, approximately 10 miles ( 16 km ) southwest of Joliet. This river flows west across northern Illinois, passing Morris and Ottawa, where it is joined by the Mazon River and Fox River. At LaSalle, the Illinois River is joined by the Vermilion River, and then it flows west past Peru, and Spring Valley. In southeastern Bureau County it turns south at an area known as the `` Great Bend '', flowing southwest across western Illinois, past Lacon, Henry and downtown Peoria, the chief city on the river. South of Peoria, the Illinois River goes by East Peoria and Creve Coeur, and then Pekin, Illinois, in Tazewell County, Illinois. It is then joined by the Mackinaw River and then passes through the Chautauqua National Wildlife Refuge. Across from Havana, the Illinois is joined by the Spoon River coming from Fulton County, Illinois, and across from Browning, it is joined by the Sangamon River, which passes through the state capital, Springfield, Illinois. The La Moine River flows into it approximately five miles ( 8 kilometers ) southwest of Beardstown, which is south of Peoria and Pekin and north of Lincoln and Springfield. Near the confluence of the Illinois with the La Moine River, it turns south, flowing roughly parallel to the Mississippi across southwestern Illinois. Macoupin Creek joins the Illinois on the border between Greene and Jersey counties, approximately 15 miles ( 24 km ) upstream from the confluence with the Mississippi. For the last 20 miles ( 32 km ) of its course, the Illinois is separated from the Mississippi River by only about five miles, by a peninsula of land that makes up Calhoun County. The Illinois joins the Mississippi near Grafton, approximately 25 miles ( 40 km ) northwest of downtown St. Louis and about 20 miles upstream from the confluence of the Missouri River and the Mississippi. Geology South of Hennepin, the Illinois River is following the ancient channel of the Mississippi River. The Illinoian Stage, about 300,000 to 132,000 years ago, blocked the Mississippi near Rock Island, diverting it into its present channel. After the glacier melted, the Illinois River flowed into the ancient channel. The Hennepin Canal roughly follows the ancient channel of the Mississippi upstream of Rock Island. The modern channel of the Illinois River was shaped in a matter of days by the Kankakee Torrent. During the melting of the Wisconsin Glacier about 10,000 years ago, a lake formed in present - day Indiana, comparable to one of the modern Great Lakes. The lake formed behind the terminal moraine of a substage of that glacier. Melting ice to the north eventually raised the level of the lake so that it overflowed the moraine. The dam burst, and the entire volume of the lake was released in a very short time, perhaps a few days. Because of the manner of its formation, the Illinois River runs through a deep canyon with many rock formations. It has an `` underutilized channel '', one far larger than would be needed to contain any conceivable flow in modern times. Flooding along the Illinois River Late October 2009 ( before the flood ). Early November 2009 ( during the flood ). History The Illinois River as mapped in 1718, modern Illinois state highlighted. The Illinois River valley was one of the strongholds of the Illinois Confederation of Native Americans. The French first met the natives here in 1673. The first European settlement in the state of Illinois was the Jesuit mission founded in 1675 by Father Jacques Marquette on the banks of the Illinois across from Starved Rock at the Grand Village of the Illinois. Marquette wrote of the river, `` We have seen nothing like this river that we enter, as regards its fertility of soil, its prairies and woods ; its cattle, elk, deer, wildcats, bustards, swans, ducks, parroquets, and even beaver. There are many small lakes and rivers. That on which we sailed is wide, deep, and still, for 65 leagues. '' In 1680, René - Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle built the first fort in Illinois, Ft. St. Louis, at Starved Rock. Later it was relocated to the present site of Creve Coeur, near Peoria, where the Jesuits relocated. Interpretation The Peoria Riverfront Museum contains a gallery, `` Illinois River Encounter, '' that attempts to interpret the museum through an aquarium tank and displays of the river 's geology, ecology, social history, engineering, and commercial use. Modern use River tow leaving the Starved Rock Lock headed down river. The Illinois River, as seen from Starved Rock State Park. The dam ( upper - left center ) is part of the infrastructure of the Illinois Waterway From 1905 to 1915, more freshwater fish were harvested from the Illinois River than from any other river in the United States except for the Columbia River. The Illinois River was once a major source of mussels for the shell button industry. Overfishing, habitat loss from heavy siltation, and water pollution have eliminated most commercial fishing except for a small mussel harvest to provide shells to seed pearl oysters overseas. It is commercially fished downstream of the Rt. 89 bridge at Spring Valley. However, an infestation of invasive Asian Carp has crowded out many game fish in the river. The Illinois River is still an important sports fishing waterway with a good sauger fishery. The Illinois forms part of a modern waterway that connects the Great Lakes at Chicago to the Mississippi River. The waterway was originally established by the building of the Illinois and Michigan Canal that connected the Illinois River to the Chicago River. When the Sanitary District of Chicago later reversed the flow of the Chicago River, the pollution and sewage of the city of Chicago flowed down into the Illinois River. The Illinois and Michigan Canal has since been replaced by the Illinois Waterway, including the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. River traffic and flood control is managed by eight locks and dams operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. As of 2011, all locks and dams on this waterway are closed to visitors for security reasons, except the Starved Rock Visitor Center, which offers an excellent interpretation of the entire system. The waterway is heavily used by barges transporting bulk goods such as grain and oil. It is used in the summer and early fall by tourists in pleasure boats cruising the Great Loop. The Illinois River is an important part of the Great Loop, the circumnavigation of Eastern North America by water. The City of Peoria is developing a long - term plan to reduce combined sewer overflows to the Illinois River, as required by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency. During dry weather, sewage flows safely through the city 's sewers to the Greater Peoria Sanitation District wastewater treatment plant. However, about 28 times a year, melting snow or rainwater can overwhelm the sewers, causing untreated sewage to overflow into the Illinois River. Peoria was required to examine the sewer overflows and prepare a long - term control plan to meet Clean Water Act requirements and protect the Illinois River. The city had to submit its plan by December 2008 to U.S. EPA and Illinois EPA.. The issue was still under discussion as recently as 2016. In popular culture The American folk, country, and bluegrass musician John Hartford 's song `` Long Hot Summer Days '', on his 1976 album Mark Twang, is about a man who works on a towboat on the Illinois River. The chorus of the song includes the lyrics, `` For every day I work on the Illinois River / Get a half a day off with pay / Ol ' towboat makin ' up barges / On a long hot summer day ''. Cities and towns Aerial view looking west along the Illinois River, with Marseilles ( bottom ) and Ottawa ( center frame ). Bath Beardstown Browning Chillicothe Chicago Creve Coeur East Peoria Florence Hardin Havana Hennepin Henry Kampsville Kingston Mines LaSalle Lacon Liverpool Marseilles Meredosia Morris Naples Naplate North Utica Oglesby Ottawa Pekin Peoria Peoria Heights Peru Rome Seneca Spring Bay Spring Valley Valley City See also Asian carp in North America Channahon State Park Gebhard Woods State Park Illinois and Michigan Canal List of crossings of the Illinois River List of rivers of Illinois Shabbona Trail Notes Jump up ^ `` USGS Gage # 05586100 on the Illinois River at Valley City, IL '' ( PDF ). National Water Information System. U.S. Geological Survey. 1939 -- 2012. Retrieved 2013 - 11 - 09. Jump up ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System : Illinois River Jump up ^ Rivergauges.com Archived 8 April 2009 at the Wayback Machine. Jump up ^ Aacimotaatiiyankwi : a Myaamia Community Bog Jump up ^ Riverweb Illinois River basics Archived 1 June 2016 at the Wayback Machine. Jump up ^ NHDPlus v2. 1 Watershed Characterization Report ( http://ofmpub.epa.gov/waters10/watershed_characterization.control?pComID=3601974 ) Jump up ^ `` Of Time and the River ''. Illinois DNR. Archived from the original on 21 February 2015. Jump up ^ `` Historic Illinois Intro ''. www.museum.state.il.us. Retrieved 2018 - 02 - 22. Jump up ^ `` Illinois River Encounter ''. Peoria Riverfront Museum. Retrieved January 6, 2015. Jump up ^ Loo, N. and Grimes, P. ( Oct. 13, 2014 ). `` This Illinois town has more Asian carp than any place else on Earth '' WGN - TV. Accessed : http://wgntv.com/2014/10/13/ground-zero-for-asian-carp/ Jump up ^ `` Clean River - Healthy Riverfront Program ''. City of Peoria. Archived from the original on 10 May 2009. Retrieved 28 December 2008. Jump up ^ http://www.pjstar.com/news/20160318/city-council-to-consider-plan-to-handle-peorias-combined-sewer-overflow-issue References Illinois Glacial History External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to Illinois River. Starved Rock Marina Windy City Paddlers club National Weather Service River Watch Illinois Basin `` River heals as lawsuit against Big Poultry looms - U.S. news - Environment - msnbc.com ''. MSN ( AP ). 20 September 2009. Retrieved 8 August 2010. `` Illinois, a river of the United States ''. The American Cyclopædia. 1879. GND : 4427400 - 2 NARA : 10038795 VIAF : 240072725 Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Illinois_River&oldid=851131527 '' Categories : Rivers of Illinois Tributaries of the Mississippi River Illinois River Bodies of water of Bureau County, Illinois Bodies of water of Calhoun County, Illinois Bodies of water of Cass County, Illinois Rivers of Cook County, Illinois Bodies of water of Fulton County, Illinois Bodies of water of Greene County, Illinois Bodies of water of Grundy County, Illinois Bodies of water of Jersey County, Illinois Rivers of LaSalle County, Illinois Bodies of water of Marshall County, Illinois Bodies of water of Morgan County, Illinois Bodies of water of Pike County, Illinois Bodies of water of Peoria County, Illinois Bodies of water of Putnam County, Illinois Bodies of water of Schuyler County, Illinois Bodies of water of Scott County, Illinois Rivers of Tazewell County, Illinois Rivers of Woodford County, Illinois Bodies of water of Mason County, Illinois Mississippi River watershed Hidden categories : Webarchive template wayback links Use dmy dates from July 2013 Coordinates on Wikidata Geobox usage tracking for river type Wikipedia articles incorporating a citation from The American Cyclopaedia Wikipedia articles incorporating a citation from The American Cyclopaedia with a Wikisource reference Wikipedia articles with GND identifiers Wikipedia articles with NARA identifiers Wikipedia articles with VIAF identifiers Talk Contents About Wikipedia تۆرکجه Беларуская Български Català Чӑвашла Cebuano Čeština Deutsch Español فارسی Français Frysk Hrvatski Bahasa Indonesia Italiano עברית Basa Jawa Lietuvių 日本 語 Norsk Piemontèis Polski Português Русский Simple English Suomi Svenska Тоҷикӣ Українська اردو Tiếng Việt 中文 24 more Edit links This page was last edited on 20 July 2018, at 08 : 49 ( UTC ). 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Question: where do the illinois and mississippi rivers meet
Answer: near Grafton, approximately 25 miles (40 km) northwest of downtown St. Louis and about 20 miles upstream from the confluence of the Missouri River and the Mississippi