The Solomon River, often referred to as the "Solomon Fork", is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data
The National Map
accessed March 29, 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 w ...

in the central Great Plains of North America. The entire length of the river lies 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 sove ...

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to th ...

. It 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 ...

of the

Smoky Hill River The Smoky Hill River is a river in the central Great Plains of North America, running through Colorado and Kansas.Smoky Hill River. (2009). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved July 22, 2009, from Encyclopædia Britannica Online: http://www.br ...

Names

The

Native Native may refer to: People * Jus soli, citizenship by right of birth * Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory ** Native Americans (disambiguation) In arts and entert ...

name for the river was Nepaholla, meaning "Water on the Hill" in reference to

Waconda Spring Waconda Spring, or Great Spirit Spring, was a natural artesian spring located in Mitchell County, near the communities of Glen Elder and Cawker City in the U.S. state of Kansas. It was a sacred site for Native American tribes of the Great ...

which was located in the river valley. In 1744, French explorers named the river ''Salmon'', later corrupted into ''Solomon'', after Edme Gatien de Salmon, a prominent colonial official of

French Louisiana The term French Louisiana refers to two distinct regions: * first, to colonial French Louisiana, comprising the massive, middle section of North America claimed by France during the 17th and 18th centuries; and, * second, to modern French Louisi ...

at the time. Other names for the river include Mahkineohe, Riviere de Soucis, Solomons Creek, Wiskapalla River, and Solomons Fork.

Geography

The Solomon River is formed by the confluence of the North Fork Solomon River and

South Fork Solomon River The South Fork Solomon River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed March 29, 2011 river in the central Great Plains of North America. The entire length of the river lies in ...

at Waconda Lake in northwestern

Mitchell County, Kansas Mitchell County (standard abbreviation: MC) is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. As of the 2020 census, the county population was 5,796. The largest city and county seat is Beloit. History Early history For many millennia, the ...

. Both forks originate in the High Plains of northwestern Kansas. From Waconda Lake, the Solomon flows southeast for through the

Smoky Hills The Smoky Hills are an upland region of hills in the central Great Plains of North America. They are located in the Midwestern United States, encompassing north-central Kansas and a small portion of south-central Nebraska. The hills are a disse ...

region and joins the

immediately south of

Solomon, Kansas Solomon is a city in Dickinson and Saline counties in the U.S. state of Kansas. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 993. It is located approximately 6 miles west of Abilene. History The first post office at Solomon was es ...

in western

Dickinson County Dickinson County is the name of three counties in the United States: * Dickinson County, Iowa * Dickinson County, Kansas * Dickinson County, Michigan See also * Dickenson County, Virginia Dickenson County is a county located in the Commonw ...

. The Solomon River drainage basin covers an area of 6,835 square miles (17,703 km²). Via the Smoky Hill,

, and

Missouri Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...

Rivers, it is part 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 fl ...

watershed. Kansas towns along the Solomon River include Cawker City, Beloit, and

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

History

Before American colonization, the Solomon River valley was a popular hunting and trapping area for the Plains Indians. Tribes that camped along the river included the

Pawnee Pawnee initially refers to a Native American people and its language: * Pawnee people * Pawnee language Pawnee is also the name of several places in the United States: * Pawnee, Illinois * Pawnee, Kansas * Pawnee, Missouri * Pawnee City, Nebraska ...

Cheyenne The Cheyenne ( ) are an Indigenous people of the Great Plains. Their Cheyenne language belongs to the Algonquian language family. Today, the Cheyenne people are split into two federally recognized nations: the Southern Cheyenne, who are enr ...

, and Kansa. French explorer Etienne Venyard de Bourgmont visited the area in 1712, claiming it for

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

. Other French explorers returned in 1744 to survey the area and gave the river its name. After the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the ...

, it became part of the

Viceroyalty of New Spain New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( es, Virreinato de Nueva España, ), or Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain during the Spanish colonization of the Amer ...

. With the

Louisiana Purchase The Louisiana Purchase (french: Vente de la Louisiane, translation=Sale of Louisiana) was the acquisition of the territory of Louisiana by the United States from the French First Republic in 1803. In return for fifteen million dollars, or app ...

in 1803, the region became part of the territory of 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 territori ...

. In 1806, explorer

Zebulon Pike Zebulon Montgomery Pike (January 5, 1779 – April 27, 1813) was an American brigadier general and explorer for whom Pikes Peak in Colorado was named. As a U.S. Army officer he led two expeditions under authority of President Thomas Jefferson ...

led an expedition through the area, camping on the Solomon's North Fork near the site of modern

Downs, Kansas Downs is a city in Osborne County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 800. History Downs had its start in the year 1879 when the Central Branch Railroad was extended to that point. It was named for Wi ...

. American settlers began to arrive in the 1850s, hunters and trappers initially followed by homesteaders. In 1861, the area became part of the state of

. In 1969, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation finished construction of Glen Elder Dam, a

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use ...

for

flood control Flood control methods are used to reduce or prevent the detrimental effects of flood waters."Flood Control", MSN Encarta, 2008 (see below: Further reading). Flood relief methods are used to reduce the effects of flood waters or high water level ...

immediately above Glen Elder, Kansas on the Solomon River, creating Waconda Lake.

In literature

Willa Cather Willa Sibert Cather (; born Wilella Sibert Cather; December 7, 1873 – April 24, 1947) was an American writer known for her novels of life on the Great Plains, including '' O Pioneers!'', '' The Song of the Lark'', and '' My Ántonia''. In 192 ...

mentioned the Solomon River in her 1901 short story '' El Dorado: A Kansas Recessional''. Her description says, "it is one of the most futile little streams under the sun, and never gets anywhere. Its sluggish current splits among the sand bars and buries itself in the mud until it literally dries up from weariness and ennui, without ever reaching anything."

References

External articles

* Donald O. Whittemore, ''Determination of Waconda Lake Releases Needed for Diluting Saline Water in the Solomon River at Beloit for Municipal Water Supply''. A Report Prepared for the Kansas Department of Agriculture, Division of Water Resources and Kansas Department of Health and Environment, Kansas Geological Survey. Open-File Report 2003-49. * Mandrak, Nicholas E., ''Changes in fish assemblages, Solomon River basin, Kansas: habitat alterations, extirpations, and introductions''. Transactions of the Kansas Academy of Science, October 1, 2002 *Martha B. Caldwell, ''Exploring the Solomon River Valley in 1869''. *Theo. H. Scheffer, ''Old Fort Solomon at Lindsey''. {{authority control Rivers of Kansas Tributaries of the Kansas River Rivers of Mitchell County, Kansas Rivers of Dickinson County, Kansas