St. Joseph River (Lake Michigan): Difference between revisions

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The St. Joseph River (locally known as the St. Joe) is a river, approximately 210 mi (338 km) long, in southern Michigan and northern Indiana in the United States. It drains a primarily rural farming area in the watershed of Lake Michigan. It was enormously important in the days of Native Americans and the colonial settlement as a canoe route between Lake Michigan and the watershed of the Mississippi River.

Description of the Watershed

The St. Joseph River watershed drains 4,685 square miles from 15 counties: Berrien, Branch, Calhoun, Cass, Hillsdale, Kalamazoo, St. Joseph and Van Buren in Michigan and De Kalb, Elkhart, Kosciusko, LaGrange, Noble, St. Joseph and Steuben in Indiana. The watershed includes 3,742 river miles and flows through and near the Kalamazoo-Portage, Elkhart-Goshen, South Bend-Mishawaka, and St. Joseph/Benton Harbor metropolitan areas.^[1] The St. Joseph River main stem is 210 miles long, rising in southern Michigan in Hillsdale County near Baw Beese Lake, within 5 mi (8 km) of the headwaters of the other St. Joseph River of the eastward-flowing Maumee watershed. Baw Beese Lake was historically named for the Potawatomi Chief Baw Beese.

The river follows a zigzag route generally westward across southern Michigan, dipping into northern Indiana. From its headwaters it flows initially northwest past Hillsdale into southeastern Calhoun County, then turns abruptly southwest to flow past Tekonsha, Union City, and Sherwood. At Three Rivers it is joined from the north by the Rocky and Portage Rivers, then 3 mi (5 km) further southwest by the Prairie River from the east. The river continues southward into northern Indiana, flowing west through Elkhart and South Bend, where it turns abruptly to north to re-enter southwestern Michigan in southeastern Berrien County. In southwestern Michigan it follows a wide meandering route generally northwest through Niles and past Berrien Springs. It enters Lake Michigan between St. Joseph and Benton Harbor, receiving the Paw Paw River from the north approximately 1 mi (1.6) km from its mouth on Lake Michigan.

History

The St. Joseph River flows through downtown South Bend, Indiana. The abrupt turn of the river gives the city its name.

Early European explorers found Miami and Potawatomi peoples living near the mouth of the St. Joseph River at the site of present-day St. Joseph and Benton Harbor.^[2] In 1654, Médard Chouart des Groseilliers of France and a French companion were the first Europeans to travel the river.^[3] In 1675 Père Jacques Marquette had come up from the Mississipi River via the Illinois River, then to the Kankakee River and portaged to the St. Joseph River near modern-day South Bend, Indiana and then down to Lake Michigan. On November 1, 1679 René Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle sailed southeast across Lake Michigan and built Fort Miami at the mouth of the river.^[4]

At the end of 1679, La Salle reversed the path taken by Marquette, and explored up the St. Joseph River and portaged to the Kankakee River, exploring as far west on the Illinois River as modern-day Peoria, Illinois, before returning to Fort Miami. After giving up on the return of his ship, the Griffin, he became the first Euro-American to walk east across the Lower Peninsula of Michigan back to the Detroit River and Canada in April, 1680.^[4]^[5]

The river was one of the most significant early transportation routes both to Native Americans and to early French fur trappers in the Illinois Country. See Canadian Canoe Routes (early). It furnished two different portages that allowed nearly continuous travel by canoe among different watersheds of the region. The first major transfer point was at its headwaters in southwestern Michigan, where it furnished a portage to the St. Joseph River of the Maumee River watershed, which drained into Lake Erie.

The second major transfer point was at South Bend, Indiana, where a short portage to the nearby Kankakee River allowed access to the Illinois River and subsequently to the Mississippi.

Another major access point along river was at Niles, Michigan, where the Old Sauk Trail, a major east-west Indian trail crossed the river. The French established Fort St. Joseph there in 1691.

European American settlement of the St. Joseph river basin area began to increase after southwestern Michigan was surveyed in 1829.^[3] From the early 1830s until 1846, the river bore various commodities from upstream to a busy port at St. Joseph, where they were loaded onto lake boats for shipment to Chicago and elsewhere.^[2]

On April 11, 1893, a Lake Michigan seiche (a phenomenon similar to an ocean tsunami) pushed a wall of water, 3 to 5 feet (1.5 m) high, up the river at St. Joseph and Benton Harbor. This raised the level of the river by 4 to 5 feet (1.5 m). The cause of the seiche was unknown, but has been attributed to a sudden squall or change in atmospheric pressure.^[6]

In 1984, the abandoned East Race canal in South Bend, whose outlets were both at the river, was converted into the East Race Waterway 41°40′34″N 86°14′42″W / 41.676°N 86.245°W / 41.676; -86.245, North America's first artificial whitewater waterway^[7] and the first of four in the United States.^[8] Through the use of movable barriers and obstacles the East Race provides a configurable whitewater course for recreational and competitive canoeing, kayaking and rafting.

In 1995 Dorla Null was the first known woman to canoe the entire length of the river. ^{[citation needed]}

Historic sites

Two sites in the river basin, Moccasin Bluff and Fort St. Joseph, are listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. Carey Mission, Fort Miami, and Burnett Trading Post are listed as State Registered Historic Sites.^[3]

Ecology and Conservation

Before European settlement, the watershed was dominated by deciduous forests consisting of maple, ash, oak, elm, walnut, and beech species, along with pockets of white, red and jack pine species. There were also prairies up to several miles across which were grazed by elk (Cervus canadensis), white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), moose (Alces alces), and bison (Bison bison). By 1900 the virgin forests were mostly logged and the prairies largely converted to agricultural use as were many drained wetlands.^[1]

Among the unique natural features that remain in the watershed are prairie fens, coastal plain marshes, bogs, floodplain forests, hardwood swamps, and moist hardwood forests. Rare plants include prairie dropseed (Sporobolus heterolepis), rosinweed, tall beak rush, and umbrella grass.

Wetlands and floodplain forests provide habitat to nearly half of all migratory birds in Indiana and Michigan and are a vital habitat for resident species as well, such as wild turkey, coyote, fox, beaver (Castor canadensis), mink (Neovison vison), Indiana bat (Myotis sodalis), eastern box turtle (Terrapene carolina carolina), and the rare spotted turtle (Clemmys guttata) and Northern Redbelly Snake (Storeria occipitomaculata occipitomaculata), both protected by the State of Michigan. The lower Pigeon River is home to the federally endangered Indiana Bat.^[1]

In 1969, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) began stocking the lower 23 miles of the river for steelhead trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss), and Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) and Coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch). In 1975, Michigan constructed a fish ladder at the Berrien Springs Dam enabling these salmonids to run an additional 10 miles upstream to the Buchanan Dam. In 1980 the MDNR, Indiana Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) and United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) signed the "The St. Joseph River Interstate Cooperative Salmonid Management Plan", which led to construction of fish ladders at the Buchanan, Niles, South Bend and Mishawaka dams, which by 1992 extended the salmonid runs to the Twin Branch Dam in Indiana, a distance of 63 miles from Lake Michigan. This also enabled the trout and salmon to spawn in coldwater tributaries like McCoy Creek.^[9]^[1]

In 1994, the Friends of the St. Joe River (FotSJR), a non-profit conservation organization, was founded by Athens, Michigan residents Al and Margaret Smith, to organize the river communities to clean and restore the river. In 2002 FotSJR developed the St. Joseph River Watershed Management Plan, with grant support from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality. The river delivers significant pollutants to Lake Michigan - including sewage overflows from riverside communities, sediments and toxic substances such as mercury and polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB).^[1]

Recreation

The St. Joseph River is an exciting trout and salmon sport fishery, encompassing 47 miles of river in Michigan and 16 miles in Indiana. The economic benefits to local Michigan and Indiana communities are estimated at several million dollars annually.^[9]

Canoeists can travel the entire length of the main stem, if they are prepared to portage, and many of the larger tributaries offer excellent opportunities for paddling, hiking, hunting, and fishing.

Cities and towns along the St. Joseph River

The St. Joe River widens as it flows west through Elkhart.

Indiana

Michigan

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Andrew DeGraves (2005-06). St. Joseph River Watershed Management Plan (PDF) (Report). Friends of the St. Joe River Association. Retrieved 2011-04-23. {{cite report}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
^ ^a ^b Bogue, Margaret Beattie (1985). Around the Shores of Lake Michigan: A Guide to Historic Sites, p. 334. University of Wisconsin Press. ISBN 0-299-10004-9.
^ ^a ^b ^c Wesley, Jay K., & Duffy, Joan E. (1999). St. Joseph River Assessment, pp. 22-24. Michigan Department of Natural Resources, Fisheries Division. Retrieved on 2011-01-30.
^ ^a ^b Cite error: The named reference Howard was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Ida Amanda Johnson (1919). The Michigan fur trade, Parts 1-2. Michigan historical commission. p. 12. Retrieved 2011-04-22.
^ Hilton, George Woodman (2002). Lake Michigan Passenger Steamers, p. 13. Stanford University Press. ISBN 0-8047-4240-5.
^ South Bend Parks and Recreation "East Race Waterway." Retrieved on 2008-02-01.
^ The other three are Dickerson Whitewater Course, U.S. National Whitewater Center, and Adventure Sports Center International. A fifth course, Ocoee Whitewater Center, built in a modified riverbed for the 1996 Olympics, is no longer used for training or competition.
^ ^a ^b "Interstate Anadramous Fish Project". Michigan Department of Natural Resources. Retrieved 2011-04-23.

External links

[WMP-1] Andrew DeGraves (2005-06). St. Joseph River Watershed Management Plan (PDF) (Report). Friends of the St. Joe River Association. Retrieved 2011-04-23. {{cite report}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)

[bogue-2] Bogue, Margaret Beattie (1985). Around the Shores of Lake Michigan: A Guide to Historic Sites, p. 334. University of Wisconsin Press. ISBN 0-299-10004-9.

[wesley-3] Wesley, Jay K., & Duffy, Joan E. (1999). St. Joseph River Assessment, pp. 22-24. Michigan Department of Natural Resources, Fisheries Division. Retrieved on 2011-01-30.

[Howard-4] Cite error: The named reference Howard was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[5] Ida Amanda Johnson (1919). The Michigan fur trade, Parts 1-2. Michigan historical commission. p. 12. Retrieved 2011-04-22.

[6] Hilton, George Woodman (2002). Lake Michigan Passenger Steamers, p. 13. Stanford University Press. ISBN 0-8047-4240-5.

[erace-7] South Bend Parks and Recreation "East Race Waterway." Retrieved on 2008-02-01.

[8] The other three are Dickerson Whitewater Course, U.S. National Whitewater Center, and Adventure Sports Center International. A fifth course, Ocoee Whitewater Center, built in a modified riverbed for the 1996 Olympics, is no longer used for training or competition.

[MDNR-9] "Interstate Anadramous Fish Project". Michigan Department of Natural Resources. Retrieved 2011-04-23.

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@@ Line 137: / Line 137: @@
 In 1969, the [[Michigan Department of Natural Resources]] (MDNR) began stocking the lower 23 miles of the river for [[steelhead trout]] (''Oncorhynchus mykiss''), and [[Chinook salmon]] (''Oncorhynchus tshawytscha'') and [[Coho salmon]] (''Oncorhynchus kisutch''). In 1975, Michigan constructed a fish ladder at the Berrien Springs Dam enabling these [[salmonids]] to run an additional 10 miles upstream to the Buchanan Dam. In 1980 the MDNR, [[Indiana Department of Natural Resources]] (IDNR) and [[United States Fish and Wildlife Service]] (FWS) signed the "The St. Joseph River Interstate Cooperative Salmonid Management Plan", which led to construction of fish ladders at the Buchanan, Niles, South Bend and Mishawaka dams, which by 1992 extended the [[salmonid]] runs to the Twin Branch Dam in Indiana, a distance of 63 miles from Lake Michigan.  This also enabled the trout and salmon to spawn in coldwater tributaries like [[McCoy Creek (Michigan)|McCoy Creek]].<ref name=MDNR> {{cite web |title=Interstate Anadramous Fish Project |publisher=Michigan Department of Natural Resources |url=http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,1607,7-153-10364_52259_19092_19098---,00.html |accessdate=2011-04-23 }}</ref><ref name=WMP/>
-In 1994, the Friends of the St. Joe River (FotSJR), a non-profit conservation organization, was founded by [[Athens, Michigan]] residents Al and Margaret Smith, to organize the river communities to clean and restore the river. In 2002 FotSJR developed the St. Joseph River Watershed Management Plan, with grant support from the [[Michigan Department of Environmental Quality]]. The river delivers significant pollutants to Lake Michigan - including sewage overflows from riverside communities, discharges of [[atrazine]], an agricultural herbicide associated with cancer even at low levels and the most common contaminant of drinking water<ref> {{cite journal |title=Pesticide Atrazine Can Turn Male Frogs Into Females |author=University of California - Berkeley |date=2010-03-01 |journal=ScienceDaily. Retrieved April 24, 2011|url http://www.sciencedaily.com /releases/2010/03/100301151927.htm |accessdate=2011-04-24 }}</ref>, and sediments and toxic substances such as mercury and [[Polychlorinated biphenyl|polychlorinated biphenyl]] (PCB).<ref name=WMP/>
+In 1994, the Friends of the St. Joe River (FotSJR), a non-profit conservation organization, was founded by [[Athens, Michigan]] residents Al and Margaret Smith, to organize the river communities to clean and restore the river. In 2002 FotSJR developed the St. Joseph River Watershed Management Plan, with grant support from the [[Michigan Department of Environmental Quality]]. The river delivers significant pollutants to Lake Michigan - including sewage overflows from riverside communities, sediments and toxic substances such as mercury and [[Polychlorinated biphenyl|polychlorinated biphenyl]] (PCB).<ref name=WMP/>
 ==Recreation==