The Rainy River (; ) is a river, approximately long, forming part of the

Canada–United States border The international border between Canada and the United States is the longest in the world by total length. The boundary (including boundaries in the Great Lakes, Atlantic, and Pacific coasts) is long. The land border has two sections: Canada' ...

separating

Northwestern Ontario Northwestern Ontario is a secondary region of Northern Ontario in the Canadian province of Ontario which lies north and west of Lake Superior and west of Hudson Bay and James Bay. It includes most of subarctic Ontario. Its western boundary is the ...

and northern

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

History

The river issues from the west side of

Rainy Lake Rainy Lake ( French: '; Ojibwe: ') is a freshwater lake with a surface area of that straddles the border between the United States and Canada. The Rainy River issues from the west side of the lake. Today it is harnessed to make hydroelectricit ...

(French: ''lac à la Pluie''; Ojibwe: ''Gojiji-zaaga'igan'') and flows generally west-northwest, between

International Falls, Minnesota International Falls (sometimes referred to as I-Falls) is a city in and the county seat of Koochiching County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 5,802 at the time of the 2020 census. International Falls is located on the Rainy R ...

, and

Fort Frances, Ontario Fort Frances is a town in, and the seat of, Rainy River District in Northwestern Ontario, Canada. The population as of the 2021 census was 7,466 Fort Frances is a popular fishing destination. It hosts the annual Fort Frances Canadian Bass Cham ...

, and between

Baudette, Minnesota Baudette is a city in, and the county seat of, Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota, Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was 966. Baudette is known as the Walleye ...

, and Rainy River, Ontario. The Couchiching First Nation (the Ojibwe name spelled in transliterated form) is associated with this river, where it had traditional territory. The name of Koochiching County, Minnesota was derived from the Ojibwe term. Rainy Lake and the river were named by French colonists. These names were translated and adopted into English by British colonists. The town of Rainy River, Ontario was not developed until the late 19th century and not named until the early 20th century. The river enters the southern end of

Lake of the Woods Lake of the Woods (; ) is a lake occupying parts of the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Manitoba and the U.S. state of Minnesota. Lake of the Woods is over long and wide, containing more than 14,552 islands and of shoreline. It is fed by t ...

approximately northwest of the towns of Baudette and Rainy River. A dam at International Falls generates

hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is Electricity generation, electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies 15% of the world's electricity, almost 4,210 TWh in 2023, which is more than all other Renewable energ ...

from the river. The drainage basin of the river stretches east to the height of land about west of

Lake Superior Lake Superior is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface areaThe Caspian Sea is the largest lake, but is saline, not freshwater. Lake Michigan–Huron has a larger combined surface area than Superior, but is normally considered tw ...

. It was the southeast corner of the huge tract of land granted in 1670 by the English Crown to the

Hudson's Bay Company The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC), originally the Governor and Company of Adventurers of England Trading Into Hudson’s Bay, is a Canadian holding company of department stores, and the oldest corporation in North America. It was the owner of the ...

. The river ultimately drains through the

Winnipeg River Winnipeg River is a Canadian river that flows roughly northwest from Lake of the Woods in the province of Ontario to Lake Winnipeg in Manitoba. This river is long from the Norman Dam in Kenora to its mouth at Lake Winnipeg. Its drainage basin, w ...

Lake Winnipeg Lake Winnipeg () is a very large, relatively shallow lake in North America, in the Canadian province of Manitoba. Its southern end is about north of the city of Winnipeg. Lake Winnipeg is Canada's sixth-largest freshwater lake and the third- ...

, and the

Nelson River The Nelson River is a river of north-central North America, in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. The river drains Lake Winnipeg and runs before it ends in Hudson Bay near Port Nelson, Manitoba, Port Nels ...

into

Hudson Bay Hudson Bay, sometimes called Hudson's Bay (usually historically), is a large body of Saline water, saltwater in northeastern Canada with a surface area of . It is located north of Ontario, west of Quebec, northeast of Manitoba, and southeast o ...

. The Baudette-Rainy River International Bridge and the Fort Frances-International Falls International Bridge both cross the Rainy River. The Ontario and Rainy River Railway, opened in 1901 and now part of Canadian National, follows the river on the Canadian side. Nelson_river_basin_map

Notoriety

white sucker The white sucker (''Catostomus commersonii'') is a species of freshwater cypriniform fish inhabiting the upper Midwest and Northeast in North America, but it is also found as far south as Georgia and as far west as New Mexico. The fish is common ...

weighing 6lb 8oz caught on the Rainy River near Loman, Minnesota stands as the

IGFA The International Game Fish Association (''IGFA'') is the leading authority on angling pursuits and the keeper of the most current world record fishing catches by fish categories. Fishermen who are sport fishers and anglers are careful to follow ...

all tackle world record. American author Tim O'Brien's novel ''

The Things They Carried ''The Things They Carried'' (1990) is a collection of linked short stories by American novelist Tim O'Brien, about a platoon of American soldiers fighting on the ground in the Vietnam War. His third book about the war, it is based upon his ex ...

'' (1990), set during the Vietnam War, includes a chapter, "On the Rainy River," referring to this territory.

References

External links

State of Minnesota: Rainy River Basin
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rainy River (Minnesota-Ontario) Rivers of Minnesota Rivers of Rainy River District Canada–United States border International rivers of North America Rivers of Koochiching County, Minnesota Rivers of Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota Border rivers Tributaries of Hudson Bay

History

Notoriety

See also

References

External links