Wood River (Illinois)

Wood River is a 2.4-mile-long (3.9 km)[1] tributary of the Mississippi River, which it joins near East Alton, Illinois, to the northeast of St. Louis, Missouri.

Wood River
Physical characteristics
Source 
 • locationConfluence of the West and East Forks 2.4 mi (3.9 km) above the mouth
 • coordinates38°53′26″N 90°06′54″W
Mouth 
 • location
Confluence with the Mississippi River near East Alton
 • coordinates
38°51′38″N 90°07′44″W
 • elevation
404 ft (123 m)
Length2.4 mi (3.9 km)
Basin features
GNIS ID421411
East Fork Wood River
Physical characteristics
Source 
 • locationMacoupin County north of Bunker Hill
 • coordinates39°04′48″N 89°57′04″W
Mouth 
 • location
Confluence with the West Fork, forming Wood River
 • coordinates
38°53′26″N 90°06′54″W
 • elevation
420 ft (130 m)
Basin features
GNIS ID407649
West Fork Wood River
Physical characteristics
Source 
 • locationMacoupin County east of Brighton
 • coordinates39°02′54″N 90°06′58″W
Mouth 
 • location
Confluence with the East Fork forming the Wood River
 • coordinates
38°53′26″N 90°06′54″W
 • elevation
420 ft (130 m)
Length16.4 mi (26.4 km)
Basin features
GNIS ID420841

The Wood River is formed by the confluence of its West and East forks. These come together near where they drop down from the Mississippi bluffs. The natural channel of the Wood River used to follow the Mississippi through the bottoms before joining it. This has been cut off by an artificial channel that runs through flood control structures directly to the Mississippi. In 1803, the Wood River (then known in French as Rivière du Bois), gave its name to Camp Wood, where the Lewis and Clark expedition assembled.

The West Fork of the Wood River is 16.4 miles (26.4 km) long, and the East Fork is 21.9 miles (35.2 km) long.[1] Honeycut Branch is a major tributary of the West Fork, and Girder Branch is a major tributary of the East Fork.

The mouth of the Wood River was a highly industrialized area during much of the 20th century. The Olin Chemical plant produced explosives and munitions for the wars of the last century. This remains as the Winchester ammunition plant. The Wood River petroleum refinery continues to operate on a reduced scale.

Cities, towns and counties

The following cities, towns and villages are in the Wood River watershed:

The following Illinois counties are drained in part by the Wood River:

See also
  • List of Illinois rivers

References
  1. U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. The National Map, accessed May 13, 2011


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