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14-653: In 1946, the US Government excavated 24 million cubic yards of soil from the Neches River , southeast of Beaumont, to create the McFadden Bend Cutoff. This is the location of the fleet. The Neches River connects to Sabine Lake and then the Gulf of Mexico . The Beaumont Reserve Fleet is one of only three remaining National Defense Reserve Fleets, of the original eight NDRFs, and the only anchorage on

28-664: Is off U.S. Highway 69 several miles north of Kountze , Texas. Beginning in 2006, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service purchased land along the Neches River for the creation of the Neches River National Wildlife Refuge . The refuge includes land on which the city of Dallas had proposed to build a reservoir to meet the water needs of the city and its surrounding suburbs . Tentatively named Lake Fastrill, this reservoir

42-589: Is part of the Sabine-Neches Waterway. Upland Island Wilderness Upland Island Wilderness is one of five designated wilderness areas managed by the U.S. Forest Service in East Texas . The 13,331-acre (53.95 km ) wilderness is located in Angelina and Jasper Counties and is part of Angelina National Forest . The area was named by conservationist Edward C. Fritz , who led

56-536: The Big Thicket region, both joining the Neches a few miles north of Beaumont . Towns and cities located along the river including Tyler , Lufkin , and Silsbee , although significant portions of the Neches River are undeveloped and flow through protected natural lands. In contrast, the lower 40 miles of the river are a major shipping channel, highly industrialized, with a number of cities and towns concentrated in

70-1263: The Gulf Coast . The fleet is maintained by the Maritime Administration (MARAD), an agency of the Department of Transportation (DOT). The other Reserve Fleets are the Suisun Bay Reserve Fleet inland from San Francisco Bay and the James River Reserve Fleet in Virginia . As of 30 April 2024: [1] "National Defense Reserve Fleet Archive (month-to-month NDRF vessel list)" . U.S. Department of Transportation Maritime Administration . June 3, 2024 . Retrieved June 22, 2024 . 30°1′30″N 94°0′39″W  /  30.02500°N 94.01083°W  / 30.02500; -94.01083 Neches River The Neches River ( / ˈ n eɪ tʃ ɪ z / ) begins in Van Zandt County west of Rhine Lake and flows for 416 miles (669 km) through

84-543: The Neches River National Wildlife Refuge , established to protect the biologically diverse bottomland hardwood forest and habitat for migratory birds , and opened to the public as recently as 2019. Downstream, the river delineates the eastern border of Davy Crockett National Forest including more than nine miles of the Big Slough Wilderness Area of the National Forest. Further downstream

98-533: The Port of Beaumont to Sabine Lake . Currently 40 feet deep and 400 ft wide, the river is being deepened to 48 feet. The total estimated cost of the Sabine-Neches Waterway project is $ 1.1 billion. Several petro-chemical plants are located in the river's southern section. The Sabine-Neches Navigation District , formed in 1909, has management responsibilities of the portion of the river which

112-533: The piney woods of east Texas , defining the boundaries of 14 counties on its way to its mouth on Sabine Lake near the Rainbow Bridge . Two major reservoirs, Lake Palestine and B. A. Steinhagen Reservoir are located on the Neches. The Angelina River (containing Sam Rayburn Reservoir ) is a major tributary with its confluence at the north of Lake B. A. Steinhagen. Tributaries to the south include Village Creek and Pine Island Bayou , draining much of

126-563: The Neches defines much of the southern border of Angelina National Forest including roughly four miles of the Upland Island and Longleaf Pine Wilderness Area of Angelina National Forest. The Angelina Neches/Dam B Wildlife Management Area is situated at the confluence of the Neches and Angelina Rivers protecting 12,636 acres of the river's floodplain and bottomland, administered by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department along with

140-528: The acquisition of lands for the wildlife refuge. The Lower Neches Valley Authority is the river authority which oversees the Neches River in Tyler , Hardin , Liberty , Chambers , and Jefferson counties of Texas. The lower forty miles of the river is industrialized, from the Beaumont Interstate 10 bridge to Sabine Lake. The river is maintained as a deep water ship channel running between

154-808: The adjacent Martin Dies Jr. State Park on the eastern side of Lake B. A. Steinhagen. South of the Lake, beginning at Town Bluff Dam and running 56 miles south to Beaumont, is the Neches River Corridor Unit of the Big Thicket National Preserve , administered by the National Park Service . The Big Thicket National Preserve is recognized as a biosphere reserve by UNESCO , preserving an area where several ecosystems converge. The Big Thicket Visitor Center

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168-457: The area including Beaumont , Vidor , Port Neches , Nederland , Groves , and Port Arthur . It is believed that the name of the river was derived from the Caddo word "Nachawi", meaning "wood of the bow", after Spanish settlers called it Río Neches . With the exception of dams and manmade lakes, much of the river is in a natural state. Approximately 11 miles of the upper Neches flows through

182-524: The effort to designate wilderness areas in East Texas in 1984. The wilderness contains a diverse range of ecosystems, from park-like upland forests of longleaf pine and pitcher plant bogs with wild azaleas and orchids to bottomland hardwood forests and palmetto flats along the Neches River . The primitive landscape has been relatively untouched, and the Forest Service has managed to keep

196-625: Was not scheduled to be built until 2050. The city of Dallas and the Texas Water Development Board filed a lawsuit in 2007 against the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, claiming the wildlife refuge was established without considering the economic and environmental impacts. However, in February 2010 the United States Supreme Court ruled in favor of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, paving the way for

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