The Sandusky River ( wyn, saandusti; sjw, Potakihiipi ) 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 drai ...

Lake Erie Lake Erie ( "eerie") is the fourth largest lake by surface area of the five Great Lakes in North America and the eleventh-largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also ha ...

in north-central

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

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 States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. It is about longU.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data
The National Map
accessed May 19, 2011 and flows into

at the southwest side of Sandusky Bay. The Sandusky River, like the

Maumee River The Maumee River (pronounced ) ( sjw, Hotaawathiipi; mia, Taawaawa siipiiwi) is a river running in the United States Midwest from northeastern Indiana into northwestern Ohio and Lake Erie. It is formed at the confluence of the St. Joseph and ...

to the west, is home to the annual

walleye The walleye (''Sander vitreus'', synonym ''Stizostedion vitreum''), also called the yellow pike or yellow pickerel, is a freshwater perciform fish native to most of Canada and to the Northern United States. It is a North American close relat ...

run in the spring, specifically March–April. The river also receives a run of

white bass The white bass, silver bass, or sand bass (''Morone chrysops'') is a freshwater fish of the temperate bass family Moronidae. commonly around 12-15 inches long. The species' main color is silver-white to pale green. Its back is dark, with white s ...

around the same time in the spring. The numbers of walleye that return to spawn upstream are not as great as those that return to the Maumee River. The Ballville Dam, built on the Sandusky River in Fremont, Ohio, blocked migration for walleye and other fish. As fish can swim farther upstream in the Maumee, they have access to more spawning areas and have developed a larger population than in the Sandusky River. Opponents of the dam projected that its removal would improve access for walleye and other migratory fish to areas upstream and lead to an increase in their population, as has happened on other rivers where dams have been removed. The Ballville Dam was no longer used for power generation or navigation improvements. The city of Fremont undertook a study to explore the options of tearing it down or repairing it. A 2014 study found that removal would have little adverse effect on city conditions and would strongly improve the fisheries. In 2016 voters approved taking down the dam. (Note: The Balville dam was demolished in July 2018). The river's name derives from the Wyandot words ''saandusti'', meaning "water (within water-pools)" or from ''andusti'', meaning "cold water". It was transliterated in various spellings by French and English colonists.

Course

The Sandusky River begins at the juncture of Paramour Creek and Allen Run at the unincorporated community of Leesville in

Crawford County Crawford County is the name of eleven counties in the United States: * Crawford County, Arkansas * Crawford County, Georgia * Crawford County, Illinois * Crawford County, Indiana * Crawford County, Iowa * Crawford County, Kansas * Crawford Count ...

west of Crestline, and initially flows westwardly, passing through the town of Bucyrus. In Wyandot County, the river turns northward for the remainder of its course, flowing through Seneca and Sandusky counties and passing the towns of

Upper Sandusky Upper Sandusky is a city and the county seat of Wyandot County, Ohio, United States, along the upper Sandusky River, which flows north to Sandusky Bay and Lake Erie. The city is approximately 59 mi (96 km) south of Toledo and 62 m ...

, Tiffin and Fremont before entering Sandusky Bay. In 1970, the river's course between Upper Sandusky and Fremont was designated as a State Scenic River by the government of Ohio.

Little Sandusky River

The Little Sandusky River is a minor tributary of the Sandusky. It flows northward from near Brush Ridge in northern Marion County and joins the Sandusky in southern Wyandot County.Maccracken, Jim,
Wyandot County Ohio Fishing & Floating Guide Book: Complete fishing and floating information for Wyandot County Ohio
', Recreational Guides, Jul 1, 2017.

Variant names

According to the

Geographic Names Information System The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is a database of name and locative information about more than two million physical and cultural features throughout the United States and its territories, Antarctica, and the associated states of ...

, the Sandusky River has also been known as: * Potake Sepe * Riviere Blanc * Riviere Sanduski * San-doo-stee River

References

External links

Ohio DNR Sandusky State Scenic River website

Sandusky River Watershed Coalition

Sandusky River - Ohio History Central
{{authority control Rivers of Ohio Sandusky, Ohio Tributaries of Lake Erie Rivers of Erie County, Ohio Rivers of Richland County, Ohio Rivers of Crawford County, Ohio Rivers of Wyandot County, Ohio Rivers of Seneca County, Ohio Rivers of Sandusky County, Ohio

Course

Little Sandusky River

Variant names

See also

References

External links