The Redwood River is a
tributary
A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage ...
of the
Minnesota River
The Minnesota River ( dak, Mnísota Wakpá) is a tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately 332 miles (534 km) long, in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It drains a watershed of in Minnesota and about in South Dakota and Iowa.
It ris ...
, long, in southwestern
Minnesota
Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...
in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
. Via the Minnesota River, it is part of the
watershed of the
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it f ...
, draining an area of in an agricultural region. The river's name is believed to refer to the reddish bark of
dogwood
''Cornus'' is a genus of about 30–60 species of woody plants in the family Cornaceae, commonly known as dogwoods, which can generally be distinguished by their blossoms, berries, and distinctive bark. Most are deciduous trees or shrub ...
growing along streams in the region.
Course
The headwaters of the Redwood River are in
Aetna Township in northeastern
Pipestone County, approximately west of
Ruthton, on the
Coteau des Prairies
The Coteau des Prairies is a plateau approximately 200 miles in length and 100 miles in width (320 by 160 km), rising from the prairie flatlands in eastern South Dakota, southwestern Minnesota, and northwestern Iowa in the United States. ...
, a
morainic
A moraine is any accumulation of unconsolidated debris (regolith and rock), sometimes referred to as glacial till, that occurs in both currently and formerly glaciated regions, and that has been previously carried along by a glacier or ice she ...
plateau
In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; ), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Often one or more sides ha ...
dividing the Mississippi and
Missouri River watersheds. It flows initially eastwardly as an intermittent stream, through Ruthton and into northwestern
Murray County, then northwardly into
Lyon County, where it turns northeastward and flows through
Russell,
Lynd, and
Marshall
Marshall may refer to:
Places
Australia
* Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria
Canada
* Marshall, Saskatchewan
* The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia
Liberia
* Marshall, Liberia
Marshall Islands
* Marshall Islands, an i ...
. Between Russell and Marshall, the river flows off the Coteau in a wooded valley, dropping in ;
Camden State Park
Camden State Park is a List of Minnesota state parks, state park on the Redwood River in southwestern Minnesota near Marshall, Minnesota, Marshall. It is used for picnics, camping, hiking, and other outdoor recreation.
The park, originally known ...
is located along this stretch of the river.
Downstream of Marshall, the Redwood flows through a flat
till plain
Till plains are an extensive flat plain of glacial till that forms when a sheet of ice becomes detached from the main body of a glacier and melts in place, depositing the sediments it carried. Ground moraines are formed with melts out of the glacie ...
and turns eastward into
Redwood County, passing
Vesta and
Seaforth; sections of the river in this stretch have been straightened to form agricultural
ditch
A ditch is a small to moderate divot created to channel water. A ditch can be used for drainage, to drain water from low-lying areas, alongside roadways or fields, or to channel water from a more distant source for plant irrigation. Ditches ar ...
es. In
Redwood Falls, the county seat of Redwood County, the river enters the wooded valley of the Minnesota River, falling in over granite ledges in Alexander Ramsey City Park. It flows into the Minnesota shortly downstream of the city.
A dam forming Redwood Lake in Redwood Falls was formerly used for
hydroelectricity
Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is Electricity generation, electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other Renewabl ...
generation. It is presently maintained to preserve the lake for recreational use.
[
Approximately 82% of the land in the Redwood River watershed is used for agriculture, primarily for the cultivation of ]corn
Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago. Th ...
and soybean
The soybean, soy bean, or soya bean (''Glycine max'') is a species of legume native to East Asia, widely grown for its edible bean, which has numerous uses.
Traditional unfermented food uses of soybeans include soy milk, from which tofu an ...
s. Hundreds of miles of streams in the watershed have been converted to agricultural ditches, disrupting habitat and reducing the ability of the land to absorb flooding.[
]
Flow rate
At the United States Geological Survey
The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, ...
's stream gauge
A stream gauge, streamgage or stream gauging station is a location used by hydrologists or environmental scientists to monitor and test terrestrial bodies of water. Hydrometric measurements of water level surface elevation ("stage") and/or volu ...
near Redwood Falls, upstream from the river's mouth, the annual mean flow of the river between 1909 and 2005 was 153 cubic feet per second
Cubic may refer to:
Science and mathematics
* Cube (algebra), "cubic" measurement
* Cube, a three-dimensional solid object bounded by six square faces, facets or sides, with three meeting at each vertex
** Cubic crystal system, a crystal system ...
(4 m³/s). The highest recorded flow during the period was 19,700 ft³/s (558 m³/s) on June 18, 1957. Readings of zero were recorded on numerous days in 1940 and 1959.[
At an upstream gauge near Marshall, the annual mean flow between 1940 and 2005 was 69.5 ft³/s (2 m³/s). The highest recorded flow during the period was 6,380 ft³/s (181 m³/s) on May 9, 1993. Readings of zero were recorded on numerous days during several years.]
See also
* List of rivers in Minnesota
References
External links
*
{{authority control
Rivers of Minnesota
Tributaries of the Minnesota River
Rivers of Lyon County, Minnesota
Rivers of Murray County, Minnesota
Rivers of Pipestone County, Minnesota
Rivers of Redwood County, Minnesota