Wabash
Wabash is a mapped river in the YearMaps hydrographic index. River courses organise settlement, agriculture and frontier-making more durably than any political boundary, and this reach is indexed against the dams, lakes and cities within its catchment.
- Feature Class
- River
- Coordinates
- 39.62°, -87.39°
About Wabash
The Wabash River WAW-bash (French: Ouabache [wabaʃ]) is a 503-mile-long (810 km) river that drains most of the state of Indiana, and a significant part of Illinois, in the United States. It flows from the headwaters in Ohio, near the Indiana border, then southwest across northern Indiana turning south near the Illinois border, where the southern portion forms the Indiana-Illinois border before flowing into the Ohio River.
It is the largest northern tributary of the Ohio River and third largest overall, behind the Cumberland and Tennessee rivers. From the dam near Huntington, Indiana, to its terminus at the Ohio River, the Wabash flows freely for 411 miles (661 km) The Tippecanoe River, White River, Embarras River and Little Wabash River are major tributaries. The river's name comes from a Miami word meaning "water over white stones", as its bottom is white limestone, obscured by sediment.
The Wabash is the state river of Indiana, and subject of the state song "On the Banks of the Wabash, Far Away" by Paul Dresser.
Encyclopedic summary adapted from Wikipedia: Wabash River (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Wabash in Depth
Course
The Wabash River rises four miles (6.4 km) south of Fort Recovery, Ohio, very near the Darke-Mercer County line about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) east of the Indiana-Ohio border. The water source is farmland drainage. A half-mile (0.8 km) downstream (i.e. east), at a roadside park on Ohio 49 at the Mercer County line, is a historical marker that announces the river's start. This land is also the portage for headwaters of the Mississinewa River, Stillwater River and West Fork of the White River, which lie just a few miles away.
Between the start of the river and Fort Recovery, the current is swift and the water remains very shallow and follows a poorly defined channel. The shallow depth and low bridge clearances make the section nearly impassable by boat except in the most ideal conditions.
History
The Wabash was first mapped by French explorers to the Mississippi in the latter half of the 17th century, including the sections now known as the Ohio River. The Wabash is considered a tributary of the Ohio River. Until the mid-18th century, however, the Ohio was considered a tributary of the Wabash. French traders had traveled north and south from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico via the Wabash; it served as a vital trade route for North American-French trade and was the river they knew best.
In the 18th century, the profitable 8-mile portage between the Maumee River and the Wabash was controlled by the Miami people at Kekionga.
Geology
As the Laurentide Ice Sheet began to retreat from present-day Northern Indiana and Northwest Ohio between 14,000 and 15,000 years ago, it receded into three distinct lobes. The eastern or Erie Lobe sat atop and behind the Fort Wayne Moraine. Meltwater from the glacier fed into two ice-marginal streams, which became the St. Joseph and St. Marys rivers. Their combined discharge was probably the primary source of water for the proglacial Wabash River system.
As the Erie Lobe of the glacier continued to retreat, its meltwater was temporarily trapped between the ice front to the east and the Fort Wayne Moraine to the west, and formed proglacial Lake Maumee, the ancestor of modern Lake Erie.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Wabash River (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Wabash: Key Facts
| Length | 960 km |
|---|---|
| Average discharge | 1,001 m³/s |
| Drainage basin | 83,600 km² |
| Mouth | Ohio River |
| Drainage system | Wabash River drainage basin |
| Tributaries | Embarras River, Tippecanoe River, Simison Creek, White River, Big Pine Creek, Eel River, Little River, Little Vermilion River |
Facts from Wikidata Q196183 (CC0).
Major River Dossiers
Hand-written studies of the great river systems of history.
Connected Reaches
Nearby watercourses in the same drainage network.
Water Bodies in the Catchment
Settlements Along the Reach
Hydraulic Infrastructure Nearby
Surrounding Terrain
Wabash: Quick Answers
- Where is Wabash?
- Wabash is located in United States, at 39.6182° N, 87.3931° W.
- Are there dams on the Wabash?
- No dam on the Wabash is recorded in the YearMaps dam index, which covers major structures only.