The Belle River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data
The National Map
, accessed November 7, 2011

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

, flowing into the

St. Clair River The St. Clair River (french: Rivière Sainte-Claire) is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed November 7, 2011 river in central North America which flows from Lake Huron int ...

in Marine City at . The North Branch Belle River rises out of Long Lake at in

section Section, Sectioning or Sectioned may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Section (music), a complete, but not independent, musical idea * Section (typography), a subdivision, especially of a chapter, in books and documents ** Section sign ...

22 of Attica Township in southeast

Lapeer County Lapeer County is a county located in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 88,619. The county seat is Lapeer. The county was created on September 18, 1822, and was fully organized on February 2, 1835. The name ...

. Long Lake is fed by the Long Lake Drain, which drains marshy areas to the south of the lake. From Long Lake, the river flows eastward around the north side of

Imlay City Imlay City is a city in Lapeer County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 3,869 at the 2000 census and 3,585 at the 2020 census. History Imlay City was founded on April 1, 1850 by Charles Palmer, the chief engineer of the Port Huro ...

. It is fed by the Hunt, Pennell, and Clark Corner drains on the northeast of Imlay City and turns southward, where it joins the main branch of the river at , now near the intersection of

Interstate 69 Interstate 69 (I-69) is an Interstate Highway in the United States currently consisting of 10 unconnected segments with an original continuous segment from Indianapolis, Indiana, northeast to the Canadian border in Port Huron, Michigan, at ...

and M-53. The main branch of the Belle River rises in the south of Dryden Township at , in a marshy area near the boundary between Lapeer and

Oakland Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay A ...

counties. It flows mostly north and east until joined by the north branch, after which it flows mostly south and east into St. Clair County. It passes the north side of

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memp ...

, then turns southeast and passes through the northeast corner of

Macomb County Macomb County ( ) is a county located in the eastern portion of the U.S. state of Michigan, bordering Lake St. Clair, and is part of northern Metro Detroit. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 881,217, making it the third-most populous co ...

Interstate 94 Interstate 94 (I-94) is an east–west Interstate Highway connecting the Great Lakes and northern Great Plains regions of the United States. Its western terminus is just east of Billings, Montana, at a junction with I-90; its eastern ter ...

crosses the river in the northeast corner of Casco Township. The river continues east by southeast through China Township and into East China Township, where it turns south less than a half mile from the

and parallels the St. Clair for a few miles before its mouth in downtown Marine City. The river's watershed drains portions of Lapeer, Macomb,

, and St. Clair counties.

References

External links

EPA Watershed Profile
{{Authority control Rivers of Michigan Rivers of Lapeer County, Michigan Rivers of Macomb County, Michigan Rivers of Oakland County, Michigan Rivers of St. Clair County, Michigan Tributaries of Lake Erie