Rivers Of Texas
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The list of rivers of Texas is a list of all named waterways, including
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 ...
s and
streams A stream is a continuous body of water, body of surface water Current (stream), flowing within the stream bed, bed and bank (geography), banks of a channel (geography), channel. Depending on its location or certain characteristics, a stream ...
that partially pass through or are entirely located within 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 sove ...
of
Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
. Across the state, there are 3,700 named streams and 15 major rivers accounting for over of waterways. All of the state's waterways drain towards 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 ...
, the
Texas Gulf Coast Texas Gulf Coast is an intertidal zone which borders the coastal region of South Texas, Southeast Texas, and the Texas Coastal Bend. The Texas coastal geography boundaries the Gulf of Mexico encompassing a geographical distance relative bear ...
, or the
Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( and ), known in Mexico as the Río Bravo del Norte or simply the Río Bravo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The length of the Rio G ...
, with mouths located in seven major
estuaries An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environment ...
.


Major waterways

*
Angelina River The Angelina River is formed by the junction of Barnhardt and Shawnee creeks northwest of Laneville in southwest central Rusk County, Texas. The river flows southeast for and forms the boundaries between Cherokee and Nacogdoches, Angelina and ...
* Blanco River *
Bosque River The Bosque River ( ) is a long river in Central Texas fed by four primary branches. The longest branch, the North Bosque, forms near Stephenville, and flows toward Waco through Hamilton, Bosque and McLennan counties. It is subsequently joined ...
*
Brazos River The Brazos River ( , ), called the ''Río de los Brazos de Dios'' (translated as "The River of the Arms of God") by early Spanish explorers, is the 11th-longest river in the United States at from its headwater source at the head of Blackwater Dr ...
*
Colorado River The Colorado River ( es, Río Colorado) is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The river drains an expansive, arid drainage basin, watershed that encompasses parts of ...
*
Concho River The Concho River is a river in the U.S. state of Texas. ''Concho'' is Spanish for "shell"; the river was so named due to its abundance of freshwater mussels, such as the Tampico pearly mussel ('' Cyrtonaias tampicoensis''). Geography The Con ...
*
Canadian River The Canadian River is the longest tributary of the Arkansas River in the United States. It is about long, starting in Colorado and traveling through New Mexico, the Texas Panhandle, and Oklahoma. The drainage area is about .Guadalupe River * James River *
Lampasas River The Lampasas River ( ) is a river in the U.S. state of Texas. The river originates near the city of Hamilton, Texas, Hamilton and travels southeast for 75 miles through central Texas to a man-made reservoir called Stillhouse Hollow Lake. The river ...
*
Lavaca River The Lavaca River ( ) is a navigable river in the U.S. state of Texas. It begins in the northeastern part of Gonzales County, and travels generally southeast for until it empties into Lavaca Bay, which is a component of Matagorda Bay. History Th ...
*
Leon River The Leon River is a river in the U.S. state of Texas. It has three primary forks - the North, Middle, and South Leon Rivers, which meet near Eastland and then run for around until it meets with the Lampasas River and the Salado Creek to form ...
*
Little River Little River may refer to several places: Australia Streams New South Wales *Little River (Dubbo), source in the Dubbo region, a tributary of the Macquarie River * Little River (Oberon), source in the Oberon Shire, a tributary of Coxs River (Haw ...
*
Llano River The Llano River ( ) is a tributary of the Colorado River (Texas), Colorado River, about long, in Texas in the United States. It drains part of the Edwards Plateau in Texas Hill Country northwest of Austin, Texas, Austin. Two spring-fed tributa ...
*
Navidad River The Navidad River is a -long coastal river in the U.S. state of Texas that runs roughly parallel to its sister river, the Lavaca River. It is not spring fed, and all of its volume is runoff, which eventually provides for much of the water in Lake ...
*
Neches River The Neches River () begins in Van Zandt County west of Rhine Lake and flows for through the piney woods of east Texas, defining the boundaries of 14 counties on its way to its mouth on Sabine Lake near the Rainbow Bridge. Two major reservoirs, ...
*
Nolan River Nolan River is a river in north central Texas, running through Johnson County and Hill County and is part of the Brazos River drainage basin. The Nolan's headwaters are in farm land in northwest Johnson County. The river runs generally parallel ...
*
Nueces River The Nueces River is a river in the U.S. state of Texas, about long. It drains a region in central and southern Texas southeastward into the Gulf of Mexico. It is the southernmost major river in Texas northeast of the Rio Grande. ''Nueces'' ...
**
Frio River The Frio River is a river in the U.S. state of Texas. The word ''frío'' is Spanish for ''cold'', a clear reference to the spring-fed coolness of the river. Geography The Frio River has three primary tributaries; the East, West, and Dry Frio Ri ...
* Paluxy River * Pease River *
Pedernales River The Pedernales River ( ) is a tributary of the Colorado River, approximately long, in Central Texas in the United States. It drains an area of the Edwards Plateau, flowing west to east across the Texas Hill Country west of Austin. The name "Peder ...
*
Prairie Dog Town Fork Red River Prairie Dog Town Fork Red River is a sandy-braided stream about long, formed at the confluence of Palo Duro Creek and Tierra Blanca Creek, about northeast of Canyon in Randall County, Texas, and flowing east-southeastward to the Red River about ...
* Red River *
Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( and ), known in Mexico as the Río Bravo del Norte or simply the Río Bravo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The length of the Rio G ...
** Devils River **
Pecos River The Pecos River ( es, Río Pecos) originates in north-central New Mexico and flows into Texas, emptying into the Rio Grande. Its headwaters are on the eastern slope of the Sangre de Cristo mountain range in Mora County north of Pecos, New Mexico ...
* Sabine River *
San Antonio River The San Antonio River is a major waterway that originates in central Texas in a cluster of springs in midtown San Antonio, about 4 miles north of downtown, and follows a roughly southeastern path through the state. It eventually feeds into the ...
**
Medina River The Medina River is located in south central Texas, United States, in the Medina Valley. It was also known as the Rio Mariano, Rio San Jose, or Rio de Bagres (Catfish river). Its source is in springs in the Edwards Plateau in northwest Bander ...
*
San Bernard River The San Bernard River is a river in Texas. Course San Bernard River flows from a spring near New Ulm, TexasTexas Highways http://texashighways.com/travel/item/716-now-open-san-bernard-river to its mouth on the Gulf of Mexico, some to the so ...
* San Gabriel River * San Jacinto River *
San Marcos River The San Marcos River rises from the San Marcos Springs, the location of Aquarena Springs, in San Marcos, Texas. The springs are home to several threatened or endangered species, including the Texas blind salamander, fountain darter, and Texas wi ...
*
San Saba River The San Saba River is a river in the U.S. state of Texas. It is an undeveloped and scenic waterway located on the northern boundary of the Edwards Plateau. Course The river begins in two primary branches. The North Valley Prong runs east throu ...
* Sulphur River * Trinity River *
Wichita River The Wichita River ( ), part of the Red River watershed, lies in north-central Texas. Rising in northeastern Knox County at the confluence of its North and South Forks, the river flows northeast across Baylor, Archer, Wichita, and Clay count ...
* White River


Seasonal and restrictive waterways

*
Aransas River The Aransas River is a short river in south Texas in the United States. It drains an area of the south Texas coastal plains into the Gulf of Mexico. It rises in Bee County southwest of Beeville and north of Skidmore, from the confluence of thr ...
* Armand Bayou *
Arroyo Colorado Arroyo Colorado is a river in Hidalgo, Cameron and Willacy Counties, Texas, that flows mostly eastward some from Lake Llano Grande into the Laguna Madre. Arroyo Colorado is a name derived from Spanish meaning "red creek bed". See also * Arro ...
*
Attoyac Bayou The Attoyac River ( ) is a river in eastern Texas. It flows through Nacogdoches, San Augustine, Shelby and Rusk counties of east Texas. It is a tributary to the Angelina River which it enters within the Sam Rayburn Reservoir. See also *List of ...
* Austin Bayou *
Barton Creek Barton Creek is a tributary that feeds the Colorado River as it flows through the Texas Hill Country. The creek passes through some of the more scenic areas in Greater Austin, surrounded in many parts by a greenbelt of protected lands that serve ...
* Bastrop Bayou *
Bedias Creek Bedias Creek is a creek in Texas. The creek rises in Madison County and flows east into Houston County, where it empties into the Trinity River. See also *List of rivers of Texas The list of rivers of Texas is a list of all named waterways, ...
* Beech Creek * Big Cow Creek *
Big Cypress Bayou Cypress Bayou is the name applied to a series of wetlands at the western edge of Caddo Lake, in and around Jefferson, Texas, making up part of the largest Cypress forest in the world. The bayou is divided into three areas—each part of the wa ...
* Big Cypress Creek * Big Mineral Creek *
Big Pine Creek Big Pine Creek may refer to: * Big Pine Creek (California), Inyo County, California * Big Pine Creek (Indiana) Big Pine Creek is a creek in northwestern Indiana, USA. It begins in Round Grove Township in southwestern White County and flows gene ...
* Big Sandy Creek * Bois D'Arc Creek *
Buffalo Bayou Buffalo Bayou is a slow-moving body of water which flows through Houston in Harris County, Texas. Formed 18,000 years ago, it has its source in the prairie surrounding Katy, Fort Bend County, and flows approximately east through the Houston Ship ...
*Caney Creek (Red River tributary) * Catfish Creek * Cedar Bayou *
Chacon Creek Chacon Creek is a small stream of water located in Webb County, Texas, US, which runs through Laredo. The creek is formed 6 miles from Webb and runs southwest for 20 miles until it connects to the Rio Grande. Chacon was dammed in 1951 in east La ...
* Cibolo Creek * Clear Creek * Coffee Mill Creek * Coleto Creek *
Comal River The Comal River ( ) is the shortest navigable river in the state of Texas in the United States. Proclaimed the "longest shortest river in the world" by locals, it runs entirely within the city limits of New Braunfels in southeast Comal County. I ...
* Buffalo Soldier Draw * Denton Creek * Dickinson Bayou * Double Bayou, East Fork *
Garcitas Creek Garcitas Creek is a stream in Victoria County and Jackson County, Texas, 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 Continental United Sta ...
** Marcado Creek * Highland Bayou * Hurst Creek *
Keechi Creek Keechi Creek is a stream in Palo Pinto County, Texas. It originates two miles east of Graford, Texas, Graford, and empties into the Brazos River northwest of Mineral Wells, Texas, Mineral Wells. See also *List of rivers of Texas References *USG ...
* Lake Charlotte Creek (Lake Pass) * Little Cypress Bayou *
Navasota River The Navasota River is a river in east Texas, United States. It is about 125 miles (201 km) long, beginning near Mount Calm and flowing south into the Brazos River at a point where Brazos, Grimes, and Washington counties converge.''Merria ...
* Onion Creek * Oso Creek * Oyster Bayou * Oyster Creek * Palo Pinto Creek * Pecan Bayou *
Pine Island Bayou Pine Island Bayou is a tributary of the Neches River located in southeast Texas. It runs about 55 miles from the northwest corner of Hardin County, Texas and flows in a southeastern direction through western Hardin County, turning east and definin ...
* Rainwater Creek * Rincon Bayou *
Sabinal River The Sabinal River, formerly Arroyo de la Soledad, is a stream in Uvalde and Bandera counties of the U.S. state of Texas. The upper part of the river runs through the Lost Maples State Natural Area, being fed by Hale, Hollow, and Can Creeks. Th ...
*
Salado Creek Salado Creek ( ) is a waterway in San Antonio that runs from northern Bexar County for about to the San Antonio River near Buena Vista.Sanders Creek *
Spring Creek A spring creek is a type of free flowing river whose name derives from its origin: an underground spring or set of springs which produces sufficient water to consistently feed a unique river. The water flowing in a spring creek may additionally be ...
* Taylor Bayou * Turkey Creek * Village Creek * Walnut Branch *
Zacate Creek Zacate Creek is inside Laredo, Texas city limits and runs southwest for 10 miles until it connects to the Rio Grande. Zacate Creek has several ditches leading to it. The terrain surrounding the creek is mostly clay. The vegetation surrounding the ...


Waterways by drainage basin

This list is arranged by
drainage basin A drainage basin is an area of land where all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, t ...
, with tributaries indented under each larger stream's name listed in order from mouth to source.


Mississippi River

*''Mississippi River (LA, AR)'' ** Red River ***
Cross Bayou Cross Bayou is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed June 3, 2011 river in Texas and Louisiana. It is a tributary of the Red River, part of the Mississippi River watershed. ...
****''Twelvemile Bayou (LA)'' ***** Black Bayou *****
Big Cypress Bayou Cypress Bayou is the name applied to a series of wetlands at the western edge of Caddo Lake, in and around Jefferson, Texas, making up part of the largest Cypress forest in the world. The bayou is divided into three areas—each part of the wa ...
****** Little Cypress Bayou ****** Black Cypress Bayou ****** Big Cypress Creek *** Sulphur River **** White Oak Creek ****North Sulphur River ****South Sulphur River *** Pecan Bayou ***
Big Pine Creek Big Pine Creek may refer to: * Big Pine Creek (California), Inyo County, California * Big Pine Creek (Indiana) Big Pine Creek is a creek in northwestern Indiana, USA. It begins in Round Grove Township in southwestern White County and flows gene ...
*** Sanders Creek *** Bois D'Arc Creek **** Coffee Mill Creek ***Caney Creek (Red River tributary) ***
Washita River The Washita River () is a river in the states of Texas and Oklahoma in the United States. The river is long and terminates at its confluence with the Red River, which is now part of Lake Texoma () on the TexasOklahoma border. Geography The ...
*** Big Mineral Creek *** Little Wichita River ***
Wichita River The Wichita River ( ), part of the Red River watershed, lies in north-central Texas. Rising in northeastern Knox County at the confluence of its North and South Forks, the river flows northeast across Baylor, Archer, Wichita, and Clay count ...
**** Holliday Creek **** Beaver Creek ****North Wichita River *****Middle Fork Wichita River ****South Wichita River *** Pease River **** Catfish Creek **** North Pease River *****
Quitaque Creek Quitaque Creek is an intermittent stream about long, originating as a shallow draw on the high plains of the Llano Estacado in Floyd County, Texas, and flowing eastward to join the North Pease River in Motley County, Texas. Geography The upland ...
**** Middle Pease River ***** Tongue River ***
Wanderers Creek Wanderers Creek is a tributary of the Red River in Texas. See also *List of rivers of Texas The list of rivers of Texas is a list of all named waterways, including rivers and streams that partially pass through or are entirely located within th ...
*** Groesbeck Creek ***
North Fork Red River The North Fork Red River, sometimes called simply the "North Fork", is a tributary of the Red River of the South about long, heading along the eastern Caprock Escarpment of the Llano Estacado about southwest of Pampa, Texas.United States Board ...
****
Elm Fork Red River The Elm Fork Red River is a river in Oklahoma. It flows into the North Fork of the Red River near Quartz Mountain State Park Quartz Mountain State Park is located in southwest Oklahoma at the western end of the Wichita Mountains, east of Mangum, ...
**** Sweetwater Creek ****
McClellan Creek McClellan Creek is a river in Texas. Named after George B. McClellan, who with his future father-in-law, Randolph B. Marcy, made a survey of the area in 1851–52, looking for a route for the Southern Pacific Railroad.Carter, R.G., 1935, ''On the ...
***
Salt Fork Red River The Salt Fork Red River is a sandy-braided stream about long, heading on the Llano Estacado of West Texas about north of Claude of Armstrong County, Texas, flowing east across the Texas Panhandle and Western Oklahoma to join the Red River abo ...
***
Prairie Dog Town Fork Red River Prairie Dog Town Fork Red River is a sandy-braided stream about long, formed at the confluence of Palo Duro Creek and Tierra Blanca Creek, about northeast of Canyon in Randall County, Texas, and flowing east-southeastward to the Red River about ...
**** Buck Creek **** Mulberry Creek **** Tule Creek ****
Little Red River (Texas) The Little Red River is an intermittent stream about long, formed at the confluence of the North Prong and South Prong Little Red River in Briscoe County, Texas, and flowing east-northeastward to join the Prairie Dog Town Fork Red River in Hall ...
**** Palo Duro Creek **** Tierra Blanca Creek **''Arkansas River (AR, OK)'' ***
Canadian River The Canadian River is the longest tributary of the Arkansas River in the United States. It is about long, starting in Colorado and traveling through New Mexico, the Texas Panhandle, and Oklahoma. The drainage area is about .North Canadian River The North Canadian River is a river, long, in Oklahoma in the United States. It is a tributary of the Canadian River, draining an area of U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset/Watershed Boundary Dataset, area data covering North ...
***** Beaver River ****** Kiowa Creek ****** Palo Duro Creek ****** Coldwater Creek ***** Wolf Creek **** Punta de Agua Creek *****
Rita Blanca Creek Rita Blanca Creek, also known as Mustang Creek, forms in two branches in Union County, New Mexico. It enters Texas near Texline, and its branches join southeast of that location. It then continues about sixty-two miles generally southeast to fl ...
****** Carrizo Creek (New Mexico/Texas)


Gulf of Mexico Coastal

* Sabine River ** Big Cow Creek ** Big Sandy Creek ** Lake Fork Creek *** Rainwater Creek *
Neches River The Neches River () begins in Van Zandt County west of Rhine Lake and flows for through the piney woods of east Texas, defining the boundaries of 14 counties on its way to its mouth on Sabine Lake near the Rainbow Bridge. Two major reservoirs, ...
**
Pine Island Bayou Pine Island Bayou is a tributary of the Neches River located in southeast Texas. It runs about 55 miles from the northwest corner of Hardin County, Texas and flows in a southeastern direction through western Hardin County, turning east and definin ...
** Village Creek *** Beech Creek *** Big Sandy Creek **
Angelina River The Angelina River is formed by the junction of Barnhardt and Shawnee creeks northwest of Laneville in southwest central Rusk County, Texas. The river flows southeast for and forms the boundaries between Cherokee and Nacogdoches, Angelina and ...
*** Ayish Bayou ***
Attoyac Bayou The Attoyac River ( ) is a river in eastern Texas. It flows through Nacogdoches, San Augustine, Shelby and Rusk counties of east Texas. It is a tributary to the Angelina River which it enters within the Sam Rayburn Reservoir. See also *List of ...
*** Mud Creek ** Piney Creek * Taylor Bayou * Oyster Bayou * Double Bayou ** Double Bayou, East Fork **West Fork Double Bayou * Trinity River ** Lake Charlotte Creek (Lake Pass) **
Bedias Creek Bedias Creek is a creek in Texas. The creek rises in Madison County and flows east into Houston County, where it empties into the Trinity River. See also *List of rivers of Texas The list of rivers of Texas is a list of all named waterways, ...
**
Keechi Creek Keechi Creek is a stream in Palo Pinto County, Texas. It originates two miles east of Graford, Texas, Graford, and empties into the Brazos River northwest of Mineral Wells, Texas, Mineral Wells. See also *List of rivers of Texas References *USG ...
** Tehuacana Creek ** Richland Creek *** Chambers Creek ** Cedar Creek *** Kings Creek ** Red Oak Creek **East Fork Trinity River **
White Rock Creek White Rock Creek is a creek occupying a chain of four sub-watersheds within the Trinity River watershed. From its source near Frisco, Texas at , this creek runs south-by-south-east through suburban Dallas for where it widens into White Rock ...
** Turtle Creek **Elm Fork Trinity River ***
Bachman Branch Bachman Branch (also Bachman Creek) is the name of a medium-sized tributary of the Trinity River with headwaters in northwest Dallas, Texas (USA). The tributary is in length and rises at Forest Lane, west of the Dallas North Tollway. It runs ...
*** Denton Creek *** Clear Creek *** Furneaux Creek *** Isle du Bois Creek **** Range Creek **West Fork Trinity River *** Johnson Creek ***Clear Fork Trinity River *** Big Sandy Creek * Cedar Bayou * San Jacinto River **
Buffalo Bayou Buffalo Bayou is a slow-moving body of water which flows through Houston in Harris County, Texas. Formed 18,000 years ago, it has its source in the prairie surrounding Katy, Fort Bend County, and flows approximately east through the Houston Ship ...
*** Vince Bayou *** Whiteoak Bayou ***
Brays Bayou Brays Bayou is a slow-moving river in Harris County, Texas. A major tributary of Buffalo Bayou, the Brays flows for from the western edge of the county, south of Barker Reservoir along the border with Fort Bend County, east to its convergence ...
** East Fork San Jacinto River *** Peach Creek **** Caney Creek (San Jacinto River tributary) ** West Fork San Jacinto River ***
Spring Creek A spring creek is a type of free flowing river whose name derives from its origin: an underground spring or set of springs which produces sufficient water to consistently feed a unique river. The water flowing in a spring creek may additionally be ...
**** Cypress Creek *** Lake Creek * Clear Creek ** Armand Bayou * Dickinson Bayou * Highland Bayou *Chocolate Bayou * Bastrop Bayou * Cow Bayou ** Austin Bayou * Oyster Creek *
Brazos River The Brazos River ( , ), called the ''Río de los Brazos de Dios'' (translated as "The River of the Arms of God") by early Spanish explorers, is the 11th-longest river in the United States at from its headwater source at the head of Blackwater Dr ...
** Mill Creek **
Navasota River The Navasota River is a river in east Texas, United States. It is about 125 miles (201 km) long, beginning near Mount Calm and flowing south into the Brazos River at a point where Brazos, Grimes, and Washington counties converge.''Merria ...
**
Yegua Creek Yegua Creek is a river in Central Texas and is part of the Brazos River drainage basin. (Yegua is the Spanish word for mare.) Yegua Creek forms in Lee County at the confluence of the Middle Yegua Creek and East Yegua Creek about three miles west ...
**
Nolan River Nolan River is a river in north central Texas, running through Johnson County and Hill County and is part of the Brazos River drainage basin. The Nolan's headwaters are in farm land in northwest Johnson County. The river runs generally parallel ...
**Little Brazos River **
Little River Little River may refer to several places: Australia Streams New South Wales *Little River (Dubbo), source in the Dubbo region, a tributary of the Macquarie River * Little River (Oberon), source in the Oberon Shire, a tributary of Coxs River (Haw ...
*** San Gabriel River **** Brushy Creek ***
Leon River The Leon River is a river in the U.S. state of Texas. It has three primary forks - the North, Middle, and South Leon Rivers, which meet near Eastland and then run for around until it meets with the Lampasas River and the Salado Creek to form ...
***
Lampasas River The Lampasas River ( ) is a river in the U.S. state of Texas. The river originates near the city of Hamilton, Texas, Hamilton and travels southeast for 75 miles through central Texas to a man-made reservoir called Stillhouse Hollow Lake. The river ...
****
Cowhouse Creek Cowhouse Creek is a river in Texas. The stream rises west of Priddy in Mills County. Cowhouse Creek runs southeast for approximately 90 miles through Mills, Hamilton, and Coryell counties, flowing into Belton Lake north of Nolanville. See als ...
****
Sabana River The Sabana River is a river in Texas. See also *List of rivers of Texas The list of rivers of Texas is a list of all named waterways, including rivers and streams that partially pass through or are entirely located within the U.S. state of Texa ...
** Tehuacana Creek **
Bosque River The Bosque River ( ) is a long river in Central Texas fed by four primary branches. The longest branch, the North Bosque, forms near Stephenville, and flows toward Waco through Hamilton, Bosque and McLennan counties. It is subsequently joined ...
***North Bosque River ****East Bosque River **** Mustang Creek ***South Bosque River ****Middle Bosque River ** Aquilla Creek ** Paluxy River ** Palo Pinto Creek **
Clear Fork Brazos River The Clear Fork Brazos River is the longest tributary of the Brazos River of Texas. It originates as a dry channel or draw in Scurry County about northeast of Hermleigh and runs for about through portions of Scurry, Fisher, Jones, Shackelford ...
***
Hubbard Creek Hubbard Creek is a river that flows through Callahan, Shackelford and Stephens counties in Texas. The creek rises three miles north of Baird, flowing sixty-two miles northeast, through Shackelford County before meeting the Clear Fork of the B ...
*** Paint Creek *** Elm Creek *** Sweetwater Creek ** Elm Creek ** Millers Creek **
Double Mountain Fork Brazos River The Double Mountain Fork Brazos River is an ephemeral, sandy-braided stream about long, heading on the Llano Estacado of West Texas about southeast of Tahoka, Texas, flowing east-northeast across the western Rolling Plains to join the Salt Fork ...
***
North Fork Double Mountain Fork Brazos River The North Fork Double Mountain Fork Brazos River is an intermittent stream about long, heading at the junction of Blackwater Draw and Yellow House Draw in the city of Lubbock, flowing generally southeastward to its mouth on the Double Mountain For ...
****
Blackwater Draw Blackwater Draw is an intermittent stream channel about long, with headwaters in Roosevelt County, New Mexico, about southwest of Clovis, New Mexico, and flows southeastward across the Llano Estacado toward the city of Lubbock, Texas, where i ...
****
Yellow House Draw Yellow House Draw is an ephemeral watercourse about long, heading about southwest of Melrose, New Mexico, and tending generally east-southeastward across the Llano Estacado to the city of Lubbock, where it joins Blackwater Draw to form Yellow Ho ...
****
Yellow House Canyon Yellow House Canyon is about long, heading in Lubbock, Texas, at the junction of Blackwater Draw and Yellow House Draw, and trending generally southeastward to the edge of the Llano Estacado about east of Slaton, Texas; it forms one of three ma ...
**
Salt Fork Brazos River The Salt Fork Brazos River is a braided, highly intermittent stream about long, heading along the edge of the Llano Estacado about east-southeast of Lubbock, Texas. From its source, it flows generally east-southeastward to join the Double Mou ...
***
Croton Creek Croton Creek is a river in Texas. See also *List of rivers of Texas The list of rivers of Texas is a list of all named waterways, including rivers and streams that partially pass through or are entirely located within the U.S. state of Texas. A ...
*** Duck Creek *** White River ****
Running Water Draw Running Water Draw is an ephemeral watercourse about long, heading about west-northwest of Clovis, New Mexico, and trending generally east-southeast, into Texas, to join Callahan Draw at the head of the White River about west of Floydada and ...
*
San Bernard River The San Bernard River is a river in Texas. Course San Bernard River flows from a spring near New Ulm, TexasTexas Highways http://texashighways.com/travel/item/716-now-open-san-bernard-river to its mouth on the Gulf of Mexico, some to the so ...
* Caney Creek (Matagorda Bay) *
Colorado River The Colorado River ( es, Río Colorado) is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The river drains an expansive, arid drainage basin, watershed that encompasses parts of ...
** Cummins Creek ** Bull Creek ** Onion Creek **
Barton Creek Barton Creek is a tributary that feeds the Colorado River as it flows through the Texas Hill Country. The creek passes through some of the more scenic areas in Greater Austin, surrounded in many parts by a greenbelt of protected lands that serve ...
**
Pedernales River The Pedernales River ( ) is a tributary of the Colorado River, approximately long, in Central Texas in the United States. It drains an area of the Edwards Plateau, flowing west to east across the Texas Hill Country west of Austin. The name "Peder ...
**
Llano River The Llano River ( ) is a tributary of the Colorado River (Texas), Colorado River, about long, in Texas in the United States. It drains part of the Edwards Plateau in Texas Hill Country northwest of Austin, Texas, Austin. Two spring-fed tributa ...
*** Gentry Creek ***North Llano River ***South Llano River **
San Saba River The San Saba River is a river in the U.S. state of Texas. It is an undeveloped and scenic waterway located on the northern boundary of the Edwards Plateau. Course The river begins in two primary branches. The North Valley Prong runs east throu ...
*** Brady Creek ** Pecan Bayou ***
Jim Ned Creek Jim Ned Creek is a river in Texas. The stream rises outside of Tuscola and flows southeast for approximately 70 miles to Pecan Bayou at Lake Brownwood. The elevation is 434 metres. Jim Need Creek was dammed in 1966 to form Lake Coleman. The creek ...
**Home Creek *** Loss Creek **
Concho River The Concho River is a river in the U.S. state of Texas. ''Concho'' is Spanish for "shell"; the river was so named due to its abundance of freshwater mussels, such as the Tampico pearly mussel ('' Cyrtonaias tampicoensis''). Geography The Con ...
*** Kickapoo Creek ***
North Concho River The North Concho River is a river in west-central Texas and one of three tributaries of the Concho River. The river is long. The other two tributaries are the Middle Concho and South Concho Rivers. The Concho River flows into the Colorado River ( ...
***
South Concho River The South Concho River is one of the few rivers in Texas to run south to north for its entire length. Rising from Anson Springs some south of Christoval, Texas, in Tom Green County, it flows north through the town of Christoval, then continues no ...
****Spring Creek (Tom Green County, Texas) ****Middle Concho River ** Beals Creek ***Mustang Draw **** Johnson Draw **** McKenzie Draw **** Monument Draw **** Seminole Draw *** Sulphur Springs Draw * Tres Palacios Creek * Garancahua Creek *
Lavaca River The Lavaca River ( ) is a navigable river in the U.S. state of Texas. It begins in the northeastern part of Gonzales County, and travels generally southeast for until it empties into Lavaca Bay, which is a component of Matagorda Bay. History Th ...
**
Navidad River The Navidad River is a -long coastal river in the U.S. state of Texas that runs roughly parallel to its sister river, the Lavaca River. It is not spring fed, and all of its volume is runoff, which eventually provides for much of the water in Lake ...
*** Sandy Creek *
Garcitas Creek Garcitas Creek is a stream in Victoria County and Jackson County, Texas, 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 Continental United Sta ...
* Guadalupe River **
San Antonio River The San Antonio River is a major waterway that originates in central Texas in a cluster of springs in midtown San Antonio, about 4 miles north of downtown, and follows a roughly southeastern path through the state. It eventually feeds into the ...
*** Cibolo Creek **** Martinez Creek ***** Woman Hollering Creek *** Kicaster Creek *** Calaveras Creek ***
Medina River The Medina River is located in south central Texas, United States, in the Medina Valley. It was also known as the Rio Mariano, Rio San Jose, or Rio de Bagres (Catfish river). Its source is in springs in the Edwards Plateau in northwest Bander ...
**** Coker Creek ***
Salado Creek Salado Creek ( ) is a waterway in San Antonio that runs from northern Bexar County for about to the San Antonio River near Buena Vista.Rosillo Creek ** Coleto Creek ** Sandies Creek ** Peach Creek **
San Marcos River The San Marcos River rises from the San Marcos Springs, the location of Aquarena Springs, in San Marcos, Texas. The springs are home to several threatened or endangered species, including the Texas blind salamander, fountain darter, and Texas wi ...
*** Blanco River **
Comal River The Comal River ( ) is the shortest navigable river in the state of Texas in the United States. Proclaimed the "longest shortest river in the world" by locals, it runs entirely within the city limits of New Braunfels in southeast Comal County. I ...
* Capano Creek *
Mission River The Mission River is a river located in Texas, in the United States of America. It is formed by the confluence of Blanco and Medio creeks in central Refugio County (at 28°19' N, 97°19' W) and runs southeast, past Refugio, for to its mouth ...
**
Blanco Creek Blanco Creek is a river in Texas. See also *List of rivers of Texas The list of rivers of Texas is a list of all named waterways, including rivers and streams that partially pass through or are entirely located within the U.S. state of Texas. A ...
**
Medio Creek Medio Creek is a river in Texas. See also *List of rivers of Texas The list of rivers of Texas is a list of all named waterways, including rivers and streams that partially pass through or are entirely located within the U.S. state of Texas. Ac ...
*
Aransas River The Aransas River is a short river in south Texas in the United States. It drains an area of the south Texas coastal plains into the Gulf of Mexico. It rises in Bee County southwest of Beeville and north of Skidmore, from the confluence of thr ...
*
Nueces River The Nueces River is a river in the U.S. state of Texas, about long. It drains a region in central and southern Texas southeastward into the Gulf of Mexico. It is the southernmost major river in Texas northeast of the Rio Grande. ''Nueces'' ...
**
Frio River The Frio River is a river in the U.S. state of Texas. The word ''frío'' is Spanish for ''cold'', a clear reference to the spring-fed coolness of the river. Geography The Frio River has three primary tributaries; the East, West, and Dry Frio Ri ...
*** Atascosa River *** San Miguel Creek *** Leona River *** Hondo Creek **** Tehuacana Creek ***
Sabinal River The Sabinal River, formerly Arroyo de la Soledad, is a stream in Uvalde and Bandera counties of the U.S. state of Texas. The upper part of the river runs through the Lost Maples State Natural Area, being fed by Hale, Hollow, and Can Creeks. Th ...
** Turkey Creek **West Nueces River ** Rincon Bayou * Oso Creek *
Petronila Creek Petronila Creek is a river in Texas. See also *List of rivers of Texas The list of rivers of Texas is a list of all named waterways, including rivers and streams that partially pass through or are entirely located within the U.S. state of Texas ...
* San Fernando Creek **Santa Gertrudis Creek **Carreta Creek * Los Olmos Creek *
Arroyo Colorado Arroyo Colorado is a river in Hidalgo, Cameron and Willacy Counties, Texas, that flows mostly eastward some from Lake Llano Grande into the Laguna Madre. Arroyo Colorado is a name derived from Spanish meaning "red creek bed". See also * Arro ...


Rio Grande

*
Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( and ), known in Mexico as the Río Bravo del Norte or simply the Río Bravo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The length of the Rio G ...
**
Brownsville Ship Channel The Port of Brownsville is a deep water seaport in Brownsville, Texas, Brownsville, at the southern tip of Texas. Geography The port is the southern terminus of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway. The port is located near the river mouth of the Rio ...
** Devils River ***Dry Devils River **
Pecos River The Pecos River ( es, Río Pecos) originates in north-central New Mexico and flows into Texas, emptying into the Rio Grande. Its headwaters are on the eastern slope of the Sangre de Cristo mountain range in Mora County north of Pecos, New Mexico ...
*** Howard Draw *** Independence Creek ***
Tunas Creek Tunas Creek formerly known as Arroyo Escondido, is a stream tributary to the Pecos River, in Pecos County, Texas. Its source is at on the southwestern side of Big Mesa. History The San Antonio-El Paso Road met with and crossed Arroyo Escondid ...
*** Coyansa Draw *** Toyah Creek **** Barilla Draw **** Salt Draw ***
Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock (village), New York, Hancock, New York, the river flows for along the borders of N ...
** San Francisco Creek **
Maravillas Creek Maravillas Creek is a river in Texas. It is a tributary of the Rio Grande. See also * List of rivers of Texas * List of tributaries of the Rio Grande Tributaries and sub-tributaries are hierarchically listed in order from the mouth of the Rio Gr ...
**
Terlingua Creek Terlingua Creek is a stream in the U.S. state of Texas. It is a tributary of the Rio Grande. See also * List of rivers of Texas * List of tributaries of the Rio Grande Tributaries and sub-tributaries are hierarchically listed in order from the m ...
*** Calamity Creek **
Alamito Creek Alamito Creek is a stream in the U.S. state of Texas. It is a tributary of the Rio Grande, which is joins near Presidio, Texas. See also * List of rivers of Texas * List of tributaries of the Rio Grande Tributaries and sub-tributaries are hierar ...
**
Chacon Creek Chacon Creek is a small stream of water located in Webb County, Texas, US, which runs through Laredo. The creek is formed 6 miles from Webb and runs southwest for 20 miles until it connects to the Rio Grande. Chacon was dammed in 1951 in east La ...
*** San Ygnacio Creek **
Zacate Creek Zacate Creek is inside Laredo, Texas city limits and runs southwest for 10 miles until it connects to the Rio Grande. Zacate Creek has several ditches leading to it. The terrain surrounding the creek is mostly clay. The vegetation surrounding the ...
** San Ildefonso Creek **
Sombrerillito Creek Sombrerillito Creek is a small stream of water located in Webb County, Texas which runs through Laredo, Texas. The creek is formed 13 miles north of Laredo and runs southwest for 16 miles until connecting to the Rio Grande. Sombrerillito Creek was ...
**
Santa Isabel Creek Santa Isabel Creek is a small stream of water located in Webb County, Texas which runs through Laredo, Texas. The creek is formed 32 miles from Callaghan, Texas and runs southwest for until the creek connects to the Rio Grande. The terrain surroun ...


10 longest rivers

Of the following 10 rivers, all empty into the
Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an oceanic basin, ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of ...
. Four of the rivers are tributaries: The Pecos flows into the
Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( and ), known in Mexico as the Río Bravo del Norte or simply the Río Bravo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The length of the Rio G ...
, the
Red Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–740 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a secondar ...
into 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 ...
, and the
Sabine The Sabines (; lat, Sabini; it, Sabini, all exonyms) were an Italic people who lived in the central Apennine Mountains of the ancient Italian Peninsula, also inhabiting Latium north of the Anio before the founding of Rome. The Sabines divide ...
and Neches flow into
Sabine Lake Sabine Lake is a bay on the Gulf coasts of Texas and Louisiana, located approximately east of Houston and west of Baton Rouge, adjoining the city of Port Arthur. The lake is formed by the confluence of the Neches and Sabine Rivers and connec ...
which is connected to the Gulf of Mexico by
Sabine Pass Sabine Pass is the natural outlet of Sabine Lake into the Gulf of Mexico. It borders Jefferson County, Texas, and Cameron Parish, Louisiana. History Civil War Two major battles occurred here during the American Civil War, known as the First and ...
. The Canadian is a tributary of a tributary and flows into the
Arkansas River The Arkansas River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River. It generally flows to the east and southeast as it traverses the U.S. states of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The river's source basin lies in the western United Stat ...
which is itself a tributary of the Mississippi. #
Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( and ), known in Mexico as the Río Bravo del Norte or simply the Río Bravo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The length of the Rio G ...
– , of which are in Texas (although technically on the border between Texas and
Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
) # Red River – of which are in Texas #
Brazos River The Brazos River ( , ), called the ''Río de los Brazos de Dios'' (translated as "The River of the Arms of God") by early Spanish explorers, is the 11th-longest river in the United States at from its headwater source at the head of Blackwater Dr ...
– of which are in Texas, making it the longest section of river in Texas #
Pecos River The Pecos River ( es, Río Pecos) originates in north-central New Mexico and flows into Texas, emptying into the Rio Grande. Its headwaters are on the eastern slope of the Sangre de Cristo mountain range in Mora County north of Pecos, New Mexico ...
– most of which is in
New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...
#
Colorado River The Colorado River ( es, Río Colorado) is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The river drains an expansive, arid drainage basin, watershed that encompasses parts of ...
– almost entirely in Texas of which are not dry #
Canadian River The Canadian River is the longest tributary of the Arkansas River in the United States. It is about long, starting in Colorado and traveling through New Mexico, the Texas Panhandle, and Oklahoma. The drainage area is about .Trinity River – entirely in Texas # Sabine River – of which are in Texas #
Neches River The Neches River () begins in Van Zandt County west of Rhine Lake and flows for through the piney woods of east Texas, defining the boundaries of 14 counties on its way to its mouth on Sabine Lake near the Rainbow Bridge. Two major reservoirs, ...
– entirely in Texas #
Nueces River The Nueces River is a river in the U.S. state of Texas, about long. It drains a region in central and southern Texas southeastward into the Gulf of Mexico. It is the southernmost major river in Texas northeast of the Rio Grande. ''Nueces'' ...
– entirely in Texas The Trinity River is the longest river with its entire
drainage basin A drainage basin is an area of land where all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, t ...
in
Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
. The Colorado is the longest river with both its
source Source may refer to: Research * Historical document * Historical source * Source (intelligence) or sub source, typically a confidential provider of non open-source intelligence * Source (journalism), a person, publication, publishing institute o ...
based on river name and its
mouth In animal anatomy, the mouth, also known as the oral cavity, or in Latin cavum oris, is the opening through which many animals take in food and issue vocal sounds. It is also the cavity lying at the upper end of the alimentary canal, bounded on ...
in the state. The actual longest source of the Colorado is in
New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...
.


Shortest river

The
Comal River The Comal River ( ) is the shortest navigable river in the state of Texas in the United States. Proclaimed the "longest shortest river in the world" by locals, it runs entirely within the city limits of New Braunfels in southeast Comal County. I ...
is the shortest river in the state of Texas and the fifth-shortest river in the United States. Located entirely within the city limits of
New Braunfels New Braunfels ( ) is a city in Comal and Guadalupe counties in the U.S. state of Texas known for its German Texan heritage. It is the seat of Comal County. The city covers and had a population of 90,403 as of the 2020 Census. A suburb just north ...
in Central Texas, its spring-fed waters run a distance of 2.5 miles (4 kilometers).


See also

*
List of rivers in the United States The following list is a list of rivers of the United States. Alphabetical listing ''Listings of the rivers in the United States by letter of the alphabet:'' List of rivers in the United States: A, A - List of rivers in the United States: B, B ...
*
List of geographical regions in Texas Texas is the second-largest state in the United States, with an area of and a population of 29.14 million in 254 counties. This covers an area wide by long. Due to its location and size, it is a part of a large number of unique geological reg ...


External links


''The Handbook of Texas Online:'' Texas History Quiz -- Texas Rivers


References

*
USGS Geographic Names Information Service
*USGS Hydrologic Unit Map - State of Texas (1974) * {{Texas Texas rivers * Rivers