Kankakee River

The Kankakee River is a tributary of the Illinois River, approximately long, in the Central Corn Belt Plains of northwestern Indiana and northeastern Illinois in the United States. At one time, the river drained one of the largest wetlands in North America and furnished a significant portage between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River. Significantly altered from its original channel, it flows through a primarily rural farming region of reclaimed cropland, south of Lake Michigan.

Description

The Kankakee rises in northwestern Indiana, approximately southwest of South Bend, Indiana. It flows in a straight channelized course, generally southwestward through rural northwestern Indiana, collecting the Yellow River from the south in Starke County, and passing the communities of South Center and English Lake. It forms the border between LaPorte, Porter, and Lake counties on the north and Starke, Jasper, and Newton counties on the south. The river curves westward and ceases to be channelized as it enters Kankakee County in northeastern Illinois. Approximately southeast of the city of Kankakee, it receives the Iroquois River from the south and turns sharply to the northwest for its lower . It joins the Des Plaines River from the south to form the Illinois River, approximately southwest of Chicago.

The Kankakee River Basin drains in northwest Indiana, in northeast Illinois, and about in southwest Lower Michigan. The Kankakee River heads near South Bend, then flows westward into Illinois, where it joins with the Des Plaines River to form the Illinois. The area of Lake County (Indiana) which originally drained to Lake Michigan but now drains by means of artificial diversion to the Illinois River is not considered to be part of the Kankakee River Basin study region. Although the Kankakee River basin includes portions of Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan, the discussion below will focus on the Indiana portion of the basin.

Kankakee Outwash and Lacustrine Plain

thumb|Michigan ice lobe at the Valparaiso Moraine location during the Pleistocene Ice Age

The Kankakee Outwash and Lacustrine Plain, a large and poorly drained plain, comprises approximately the southern quarter of both Lake and Porter counties. It is the most recent of the three landscape regions to face the pressures of impending urbanization. Large portions of the area were once marshland associated with the meandering Kankakee River, which, for eight or nine months of the year, was flanked on both sides by wetlands. The marsh area was wide and contained water deep. The low marshland was broken by infrequent islands of sand blown into dunes. The sand islands were the sites of Indian encampments and later of pioneer homes. The Kankakee marsh was an effective barrier to early southerly exploration of both counties, but the area has been progressively drained by ditches constructed during the past 60 years.

Landscape

thumb|Sandy shore along Kankakee River, west of Illinois–Indiana state line

The Kankakee River Basin is a product of the Wisconsin Glacial Episode. It is a remnant of the glacial lakes that comprised the Lake Michigan lobe of the ice sheet. Landscape elements include 1) the nearly level plains of a ground moraine, 2) eolian (wind driven deposits) plains, 3) outwash deposits, 4) the central river basin and 5) end moraines forming the north, middle and southern borders. Local relief varies from along the Iroquois Moraine, up to on the Valparaiso Moraine. Deposits range from in the lower basin (western). The deepest deposits of are in the upper basin (eastern). Along the Valparaiso Moraine, deposits can reach thick.

Outwash deposits occur primarily along the northern border of the basin. The southern half of the Kankakee Basin, south of the main river channel, is characterized by the fine-grained sediments that are wind driven, forming a series of broad eolian sand dunes and ridges. These are of moderate height. lacustrine silts and clays are mixed with the various waterborne and wind driven deposits throughout the basin. A major subterranean feature is the Kankakee Arch; it is an extension of the Cincinnati Arch. North of the arch, the strata dip towards Lake Michigan and the Michigan Basin. To the south, the strata dips southwest toward the Illinois Basin. Within the Kankakee Basin (Lake, Jasper, and Pulaski counties), the rock strata are nearly flat, being at the top of the arch.

Current conditions

The Advanced Hydrological Prediction Service contains current data for river depths.

Contrary to what may be shown in online mapping sites or GPS software, the bridge over the Kankakee River on State Line Road near the public ramp at the Indiana–Illinois state line is closed and partially dismantled. Some fishing maps and websites about the river may include road directions to the public ramp at the state line, with outdated information. The public ramp is located on the north side of the river, and with the bridge out, it is not accessible from the south side, from Illinois Route 114/Indiana State Road 10. As of September 7, 2008, the old iron bridge at the Indiana–Illinois state line often clears the water by only approximately , making it possible to pass beneath only in small boats, canoes, etc.

History

Kankakee Torrent

The Kankakee River was originally formed around 16,000 years ago by an event known as the Kankakee Torrent. A glacial lake resulting from meltwater from the Wisconsin glaciation breached the moraines (located in what is today northern Indiana) holding it in. The resultant flood created the bed of the Kankakee River and had even greater impact in what is today the state of Illinois.

Grand Kankakee Marsh

Up through the early 19th century, the river furnished an important water transportation route through the Illinois Country for both Native Americans and early European settlers, notably the French fur trappers. The headwaters of the river near present-day South Bend allowed a portage to the St. Joseph River, which drains into Lake Michigan, as well as furnishing a subsequent portage to the Lake Erie watershed. The Kankakee, thus, was part of an inland canoe route connecting the Great Lakes to the Illinois River and subsequently to the Mississippi River.

thumb|right|Fisherman beside dam on the Kankakee River at Momence, Illinois, on the north bank, looking southwest

Until the end of the 19th century, the river was nearly long, flowing in a highly meandering course through a vast complex of wetlands surrounding the river, that was known as the Grand Kankakee Marsh. Encompassing , it was one of the largest marsh wetlands in the United States.

LaPorte and Starke county line

Today, the Kankakee essentially forms the county line between LaPorte and Starke counties. However, when the two counties were originally proposed, Starke County's borders were such that the river divided the county and effectively isolated the north-west portion. In order to reach the rest of the county, it was necessary for residents in this area to travel some distance east to Lemon's bridge, before making the journey south. These residents petitioned the state to be annexed by LaPorte County, and this was done on January 28, 1842. The area of land relinquished by Starke County became the townships of Cass, Dewey, Hanna, and Prairie in LaPorte County.

The upper river was also highly channelized with levees to allow easier transport of cut timber from the wetlands to saw mills downstream in Illinois. The channelization aided in the desiccation of the surrounding wetlands and reduced the river to less than half of its original length. Of the original marsh, only remain, comprising approximately one percent of the original area. The channelization of the river has rendered it especially prone to flooding. Starting in the 1980s, federal and state efforts have attempted to restore part of the original floodplain of the river through strategic widening of the levees.

Today

The river remains a popular destination for recreational canoeing and fishing for warm-water species. Kankakee River State Park is located along the river, northwest of Kankakee, Illinois. The Kankakee Fish and Wildlife Area is located in Indiana.

Route

St. Joseph County (South Bend)

The headwaters of the Kankakee River is southwest of downtown South Bend, Indiana, within the city limits. An area of wetlands and springs to the northwest of the South Bend Ethanol Plant is the start of the Kankakee River. An old Indian portage, about long, stretched from this area towards the northeast to what are today Highland and Riverview cemeteries, along what were once the banks of the St. Joseph River, but now forms a bank of Pinhook Park Lagoon. The St. Joseph River drains into Lake Michigan. The famous Council Oak Tree stood along this portage about from the St. Joseph River. Farms fields cover what was once a marshland.

The river has been "ditched" and is called Dixon West Place Ditch. Below Crumstown, Geyer Ditch joins it from the north, flowing out of Berrien County in southern Michigan.

thumb|Turkey Foot Wetland Conservation Area (East Yellowstone Park Road, off US 30)

LaPorte and Starke counties

The Kankakee River passes through the southeast corner of Starke County. Here it takes on a more natural appearance with wetlands spreading out along both sides of the river. The river channels form the northern border between Starke County and LaPorte County to its north. These are some of the more extensive wetlands along the upper river. The Kankakee Fish and Wildlife Area is a state managed wildlife area, heavily managed to control water levels throughout the year. Here, the Yellow River, which is the second largest branch of the Kankakee, joins the main river.

Willow Slough Fish and Wildlife Area, Morocco, Newton County

Yellow River Branch

Menominees Wildlife Conservation Area, Plymouth, Marshall County
Aroma Land and Water Preserve, St. Anne
Gar Creek Trail and Prairie Restoration, Kankakee
Limestone Reforestation Site, Kankakee
Shannon Bayou Environmental Education Center, Aroma Park
Strasma Grove, Kankakee
Waldron Arboretum, Aroma Park
Zeedyk Meadows, St. Anne
Island Park, Momence
Kankakee River State Park

Named for the Kankakee

USS Kankakee (AO-39), a Kennebec-class fleet oiler of the United States Navy built in 1942.
U.S. Kankakee, a Coast Guard cutter built in 1919 used on the Mississippi River.
Kankakee, Illinois
Kankakee River State Park

References

External links

Annual Kankakee & Iroquois River Clean Up
Grand Kankakee Marsh
Des Plaines Fish & Wildlife Area
Kankakee Valley Historical Society
The Kankakee River Yesterday and Today