Ecorse River
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The Ecorse River is an 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 southern
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 ...
. Because of its small size, it is often identified as Ecorse Creek. It flows through the
Downriver Downriver is the unofficial name for a collection of 18 cities and townships in Wayne County, Michigan, south of Detroit, along the western shore of the Detroit River. The place is sometimes referred to as South Detroit. Etymology The name ...
section of
Metro Detroit The Detroit metropolitan area, often referred to as Metro Detroit, is a major metropolitan area in the U.S. State of Michigan, consisting of the city of Detroit and its surrounding area. There are varied definitions of the area, including the ...
, and is a tributary of the
Detroit River The Detroit River flows west and south for from Lake St. Clair to Lake Erie as a strait in the Great Lakes system. The river divides the metropolitan areas of Detroit, Michigan, and Windsor, Ontario, Windsor, Ontario—an area collectively refe ...
. The early French settlers named it the ''Rivière aux Écorces'' ("bark river"). They named the river after the custom they observed of the local Native American tribe, who wrapped their dead in
birch A birch is a thin-leaved deciduous hardwood tree of the genus ''Betula'' (), in the family Betulaceae, which also includes alders, hazels, and hornbeams. It is closely related to the beech-oak family Fagaceae. The genus ''Betula'' contains 30 ...
or
elm Elms are deciduous and semi-deciduous trees comprising the flowering plant genus ''Ulmus'' in the plant family Ulmaceae. They are distributed over most of the Northern Hemisphere, inhabiting the temperate and tropical-montane regions of North ...
bark, and buried them at the mouth of the river.City of Wyandotte
--> The river has two branches, which meet at Council Point Park in the city of Lincoln Park, where chief
Pontiac Pontiac may refer to: *Pontiac (automobile), a car brand *Pontiac (Ottawa leader) ( – 1769), a Native American war chief Places and jurisdictions Canada *Pontiac, Quebec, a municipality ** Apostolic Vicariate of Pontiac, now the Roman Catholic D ...
held a council in 1763 before attacking
Fort Detroit Fort Pontchartrain du Détroit or Fort Detroit (1701–1796) was a fort established on the north bank of the Detroit River by the French officer Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac and the Italian Alphonse de Tonty in 1701. In the 18th century, Fre ...
.


Description

The river system consists of a South Branch ( when including the Sexton-Kilfoil Drain) and a North Branch, which combine and run another to the Detroit River. Elevations run from above sea level in the northwest corner of the watershed to at the Detroit River. Over a year, it has a mean flow of per second. The Ecorse River has a watershed of . The north branch drains and has tributaries designated the Trouton Drain, Freeman Drain, Black Creek, and the Douglas and Kelly Drain. The south branch has a drainage area of , and tributaries include the Grams Drain in Southgate and the Brighton, Bondie, and the Sloss and Ganong Drains in Taylor. The rest of the watershed is drained by enclosed underground drains, the largest of which is the La Blanc Drain which enters the north branch about north of the junction of the north and south branches. The La Blanc Drain drains . The north branch flows through
Romulus Romulus () was the legendary foundation of Rome, founder and King of Rome, first king of Ancient Rome, Rome. Various traditions attribute the establishment of many of Rome's oldest legal, political, religious, and social institutions to Romulus ...
,
Dearborn Heights Dearborn Heights is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. With a population of 63,292 at the 2020 census., Dearborn Heights is part of the Detroit metropolitan area, and is considered a bedroom community. History Dearborn Heigh ...
,
Allen Park Allen Park is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 28,638. Ford Motor Company is an integral part of the community. Many of the company's offices and facilities lie within the city limit ...
, along a small portion of the southern border of Melvindale, Lincoln Park and then along the border of Lincoln Park and
Ecorse Ecorse ( ') is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 9,512 at the 2010 census. Ecorse is part of the Downriver community within Metro Detroit. The city shares a northwestern border with the city of Detroit ...
. The south branch flows through Romulus,
Taylor Taylor, Taylors or Taylor's may refer to: People * Taylor (surname) ** List of people with surname Taylor * Taylor (given name), including Tayla and Taylah * Taylor sept, a branch of Scottish clan Cameron * Justice Taylor (disambiguation) Pl ...
, Allen Park and Lincoln Park. It is joined by the Sexton and Kilfoil Drain in Taylor. After the two branches join in Lincoln Park, the river flows along the boundary between Ecorse and Wyandotte to its mouth on the
Detroit River The Detroit River flows west and south for from Lake St. Clair to Lake Erie as a strait in the Great Lakes system. The river divides the metropolitan areas of Detroit, Michigan, and Windsor, Ontario, Windsor, Ontario—an area collectively refe ...
. A marina occupies both banks of the river at its mouth. The river has a very low gradient and is subject to heavy silting which worsens the seasonal flooding. Much of the watershed contains
clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4). Clays develop plasticity when wet, due to a molecular film of water surrounding the clay par ...
soil deep which limits ground absorption, and 85% of the land in the entire watershed is developed as residential or commercial/industrial which decreases the available land surface for absorption. Homes near the river are required to carry
flood insurance Flood insurance is the specific insurance coverage issued against property loss from flooding. To determine risk factors for specific properties, insurers will often refer to topographical maps that denote lowlands, floodplains and other areas tha ...
, and damaging flooding is a common occurrence. A storm on May 21, 2004, that produced of rain resulted in the river rising over in only three hours. The Ecorse River flows into the Detroit River about midway along that river's course. The next river north of the Ecorse is the Rouge River, while the next river south is the Huron River. The watershed is heavily developed, with a population density of 3,711 people per square mile in 2000. It is also heavily industrialized with both light and heavy industry. Contamination is a problem, both from ongoing industrial and residential sources and as a legacy of the steel works along its lower length.


Flood control

It was reported in September 2008 that the Wayne County Department of Environment will begin the first phase of a $239 million project to protect the nine municipalities along the north branch of the creek from
flash flooding A flash flood is a rapid flooding of low-lying areas: washes, rivers, dry lakes and depressions. It may be caused by heavy rain associated with a severe thunderstorm, hurricane, or tropical storm, or by meltwater from ice or snow flowing o ...
. The first phase, to begin in early 2009, is to cost $7 to $10 million and will be funded by special assessments on the 48,000 properties in the watershed. It will consist of changes to the 80 paths that cross the creek, as well as constructing new drains and basins.


Note

Some sources designate the North and South branches as Ecorse Creek and the only short combined stream as Ecorse River. As of April 14, 2009, a high amount of '' E. coli'' bacteria from human waste was found to be in the creek water. Officials were urging citizens to stay out and away from the water.


See also

*
List of rivers of Michigan This list of Michigan rivers includes all streams designated rivers although some may be smaller than those streams designated creeks, runs, brooks, swales, cuts, bayous, outlets, inlets, drains and ditches. These terms are all in use in Michigan. ...


References


External links


Ecorse Creek Watershed Inter-Municipality CommitteeWater quality report from Environmental QualityEcorse Creek Flood Control
{{Authority control Detroit River Rivers of Wayne County, Michigan Rivers of Michigan