Misplaced Pages

#144855

57-759: The Ouachita River begins in the Ouachita Mountains near Mena, Arkansas . It flows east into Lake Ouachita , a reservoir created by Blakely Mountain Dam. The North Fork and South Fork of the Ouachita flow into Lake Ouachita to join the main stream. Portions of the river in this region flow through the Ouachita National Forest . From the lake, the Ouachita flows south into Lake Hamilton , a reservoir created by Carpenter Dam, named after Flavius Josephus Carpenter . The city of Hot Springs lies on

114-637: A few broad valleys. Logging is not nearly as intensive as in the commercial pine plantations of the less rugged Athens Plateau. Nutrient, mineral, and biochemical water quality parameter concentrations are low in the surface waters of the Fourche range, but turbidity can be higher than in other mountainous parts of the Ouachitas. Although most streams stop flowing during the driest part of the summer, enduring deep pools, high quality habitat, and good water quality allow sensitive aquatic species to survive through

171-593: A flood on May 4, 1927 the high water mark on river gage reading was 48.6 feet. Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 flooded the areas along the Ouachita Rivers along with many other rivers. In February 1932, the Ouachita River rose 1.5 feet higher than the May 4, 1927 flood. The annual high water mark on river gage readings were 48.6 in 1927 and 49.7 in 1932. The Ouachita River reached flood stage crest with

228-735: A general sense, the Ouachitas are considered an anticlinorium because the oldest known rocks are located towards the center of the outcrop area. The Ouachitas continue in the subsurface to the Black Warrior Basin of Alabama and Mississippi where they plunge towards the Appalachian Mountains . To the southwest, the Ouachitas join with the Marathon area of west Texas where rocks of the Ouachita Fold and Thrust Belt are briefly exposed. Unlike many ranges in

285-511: A lot of heavy dew". In 1881 a snagboat was employed on the river and a boat for dredging in the shoals to the amount of $ 141,879.24. Earlier plans had called for the construction of locks and dams. A 337-mile-long "Ouachita–Black Rivers Navigation Project" began in 1902, to create a navigable waterway from Camden, Arkansas to Jonesville, Louisiana , and when completed in 1924 included six locks and dams that were 84 feet wide and 600 feet in length, having from 3 to 5 tainter gates . Including

342-509: A river gauge reading at Camden, Arkansas of 43.08 feet on May 17, 1968. The Ouachita River reached flood stage crest at 85.43 feet above sea level, about 20 feet above the normal water level of 65 feet at the Felsenthal lock and dam on March 11, 2018. The highest water level ever recorded at Felsenthal was 88.3 feet in 1945. The river continues to be utilized for commercial navigation on a smaller scale than during its " steamboat " days. It

399-681: A series of low relief ridges, none exceeding 1,000 feet (300 m). It is located south of the Ouachitas and extends to the Arkansas-Oklahoma border. The Athens Piedmont runs from Arkadelphia, Arkansas into Oklahoma through Clark , Howard , Pike , and Sevier counties in Arkansas and McCurtain County in Oklahoma. The ecoregion's low ridges and hills are widely underlain by Mississippian Stanley Shale in contrast to other parts of

456-403: Is Rich Mountain at 2,681 feet (817 m), which intersects the Arkansas-Oklahoma border near Mena, Arkansas . The Fourche Mountains are the archetypal Ouachita Mountains. Forested ridges are heavily forested with oak–hickory–pine forest; intervening valleys are cut into shale. Ridges are longer, habitat continuity is greater, the lithologic mosaic is different, and the topographic orientation

513-633: Is Raspberry Mountain at 2,358 feet (719 m). The headwaters of multiple rivers are found in this area, including the Caddo , Cossatot , and Little Missouri rivers. The Cross Mountains are located in Polk and Sevier counties, Arkansas and McCurtain County, Oklahoma . The highest natural point is Whiskey Peak at 1,670 feet (510 m). The Crystal Mountains are located primarily in Montgomery County, Arkansas . They are so named because of

570-593: Is also the highest natural point of the Ouachitas and U.S. Interior Highlands . The Frontal Ouachita Mountains are structurally quite different from the rest of the Ouachitas and are sometimes considered a separate range. The Trap Mountains are located primarily in Garland and Hot Spring counties, Arkansas . The highest natural point is Trap Mountain at 1,310 feet (400 m). The Zig Zag Mountains are located in Garland County, Arkansas , and are home to

627-543: Is commercially navigable from Camden, Arkansas , to its terminal point in Jonesville in Catahoula Parish in eastern Louisiana. Upstream of Camden, the river receives substantial recreational use. The Ouachita is lined for most of its length with deep woods, including substantial wetlands . It has a scenic quality representative of the southwestern Arkansas and northern Louisiana region. Major towns along

SECTION 10

#1732765434145

684-594: Is composed of the Choctaw words owa for "hunt" and chito for "big", together meaning "big hunt far from home". According to the article Ouachita in the Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture , "Ouachita" comes from the French spelling of the Caddo word washita , meaning "good hunting grounds". The Ouachitas are a major physiographic province of Arkansas and Oklahoma and are generally grouped with

741-452: Is fed by numerous small creeks containing endemic native fish such as killifish . Fishing remains popular in the river for black bass , white bass , bream , freshwater drum , and gar . Concerns about airborne mercury contamination in some areas discourage consumption of the fish for food. Fishing for rainbow trout is popular in the tailwaters of Lakes Ouachita, Hamilton and Catherine in and around Hot Springs, Arkansas . The river

798-553: Is found at only four sites worldwide, all of which are in the Ouachitas. Some native tree species, such as the eastern red-cedar ( Juniperus virginiana ), are colonizers of human-disturbed sites. The Ouachita National Forest covers approximately 1.8 million acres of the Ouachitas. It is one of the largest and oldest national forests in the Southern U.S. , created through an executive order by President Theodore Roosevelt on December 18, 1907. There are six wilderness areas within

855-498: Is more consistent than in other parts of the Ouachitas. Differences in moisture and temperature between north- and south-facing slopes significantly influence native plant communities; they are products of the prevailing topographic trend. Forests on steep, north-facing slopes are more mesic than on southern aspects; the steepest, south-facing slopes contain shallow, moisture deficient soils supporting shrubs and rocky glades or grassy woodlands. Pastureland and hayland are restricted to

912-490: Is named for the Native American Ouachita tribe , one of several historic tribes who lived along it. Others included the Caddo , Osage Nation , Tensa , Chickasaw , and Choctaw . The historian Muriel Hazel Wright suggested that word Ouachita owa chito is a Choctaw phrase meaning "hunt big" or "good hunting grounds". Before the rise of the historic tribes, their indigenous ancestors had lived along

969-670: Is now Clark County, Arkansas , when he died of malaria in 1837. He had been appointed Secretary of the Arkansas Territory by President Andrew Jackson in 1835, and had relinquished his commission when Arkansas became a state in 1836. Steamboats operated on the Red River to Shreveport , Louisiana. In April 1815, Captain Henry Miller Shreve was the first person to bring a steamboat, the Enterprise, up

1026-609: Is the type site for the Troyville culture of the lower Ouachita and Tensas River valleys. Jonesville's northern border is formed by the Little River, while its eastern border is formed by the Black River. The confluence of the Ouachita and Tensas rivers to form the Black River is 0.4 miles (0.64 km) north of the town limits. Concordia Parish is to the east across the Black River. U.S. Route 84 passes through

1083-627: The Arkansas River Valley . Together with the Ozark Plateaus , the Ouachitas form the U.S. Interior Highlands , one of few mountainous regions between the Appalachians and Rockies . The Ouachitas are dominated by pine, oak, and hickory. The shortleaf pine ( Pinus echinata ) and post oak ( Quercus stellata ) thrive in dry, nutrient-poor soil and are common in upland areas. The maple-leaf oak ( Quercus acerifolia )

1140-487: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The region has been subdivided into six Level IV ecoregions . Louis R. Harlan claimed that "Ouachita" is composed of the Choctaw words ouac for "bison" and chito for "large", together meaning "country of large bison". At one time, herds of bison inhabited the lowland areas of the Ouachitas. Historian Muriel H. Wright wrote that "Ouachita"

1197-712: The Ouachita National Forest , which are protected areas designed to minimize the impacts of human activities. Several plants are endemic to the Ouachitas, including: Agalinis nuttallii , Cardamine angustata var. ouachitana , Carex latebracteata , Galium arkansanum var. pubifolium , Houstonia ouachitana , Hydrophyllum brownei , Liatris compacta , Quercus acerifolia , Polymnia cossatotensis , Solidago ouachitensis , Spiranthes niklasii (near endemic, also found on Crowley's Ridge ), Streptanthus maculatus subsp. obtusifolius , Streptanthus squamiformis , Valerianella palmerii , and Vernonia lettermanii . Bison and elk once found habitat in

SECTION 20

#1732765434145

1254-759: The Ouachita National Recreation Trail , a 223-mile-long (359 km) hiking trail through the heart of the mountains. The trail runs from Talimena State Park in Oklahoma to Pinnacle Mountain State Park near Little Rock . It is a well maintained, premier trail for hikers, backpackers, and mountain bikers (for only selected parts of the trail). The Talimena Scenic Drive begins at Mena , and traverses 54 miles (87 km) of Winding Stair and Rich Mountains, long narrow east-west ridges which extend into Oklahoma. Rich Mountain reaches an elevation of 2,681 feet (817 m) in Arkansas near

1311-491: The United States , the Ouachitas are mostly east-west trending. They are unique because metamorphism and volcanism , features that are common in orogenic belts, are notably absent (with the exception of some low-grade metamorphism ). Due to the high degree of folding and faulting, the Ouachitas are clustered into distinct subranges, with ridges separated by relatively broad valleys. The Ouachitas are known for some of

1368-493: The Black River the total navigable length is 351 miles. The Ouachita-Black Rivers Navigation Project has less than a million tons of shipping annually which has the likely prospect of the future withdrawal of federal support. The project's system of dams and locks enhances the river's recreational use and regional water supply. The Ouachita River reached a historic flood stage crest with a river gauge reading at Camden, Arkansas of 46 feet on May 12, 1882. In Monroe, Louisiana during

1425-611: The Oklahoma border. The two lane winding road is similar in routing, construction, and scenery to the Blue Ridge Parkway of the Appalachian Mountains . Jonesville, Louisiana Jonesville is the largest town in Catahoula Parish , Louisiana , United States, at the confluence of the Ouachita , Tensas , and Little rivers. The three rivers become the Black River at Jonesville. The Jonesville population

1482-508: The Ouachita Mountains, but have since been extirpated. Today, there are large populations of white-tailed deer , coyote , and other common temperate forest animals. Though elusive, hundreds of black bear roam the Ouachitas. Several cryptic species of salamander are endemic to the Ouachitas and have traits that vary from one locale to another. The Athens Plateau or Athens Piedmont (EPA Level IV ecoregion 36a) consists of

1539-469: The Ouachita River became an important part of the local economy and supported many of the communities along the river. In the late 1830s, the steamboats in rivers on the west side of the Mississippi River were a long, wide, shallow draft vessel, lightly built with an engine on the deck. These newer steamboats could sail in just 20 inches of water. Contemporaries claimed that they could "run with

1596-587: The Ouachita continues south into Louisiana. The river flows generally south through the state, collecting the tributary waters of Bayou Bartholomew , Bayou de Loutre, Bayou d'Arbonne, the Boeuf River , and the Tensas River . The Ouachita has five locks and dams along its length, located at Camden , Calion , and Felsenthal, Arkansas , and in Columbia and Jonesville, Louisiana . The river below

1653-473: The Ouachita. During the 1830s, the Ouachita River Valley attracted land speculators from New York and southeastern cities. Its rich soil and accessibility due to the country's elaborate river steamboat network made it desirable. One of the investors from the east was Meriwether Lewis Randolph, the youngest grandson of Thomas Jefferson . He was building a home on the Ouachita River in what

1710-505: The Ouachitas are as follows (in order of ascending age). The mountains were home to the Ouachita tribe , for which they were named. Later French explorers translated the name to its present spelling. The first recorded exploration was in 1541 by Hernando de Soto . Later, in 1804, President Jefferson sent William Dunbar and Dr. George Hunter to the area after the Louisiana Purchase . Hot Springs National Park became one of

1767-704: The Ouachitas were deposited in a narrow, two-sided basin called the Ouachita Trough, which formed as part of a Cambrian failed rift system. Succeeding Pennsylvanian strata of the Ouachitas were deposited in a foreland basin during the early stages of the Ouachita Orogeny . Subduction of the South American Plate beneath the North American Plate resulted in this mountain-building event. Compressional forces caused

Ouachita River - Misplaced Pages Continue

1824-609: The Ouachitas. Today, pine plantations are widespread; they are far more extensive than in the more rugged parts of the Arkansas Ouachitas. Pastureland and hayland also occur. Cattle and broiler chickens are important farm products. The Caddo , Cossatot , and Missouri mountains are a high, compact group of mountains composed of the weather-resistant Arkansas Novaculite. They are located primarily in Montgomery and Polk counties, Arkansas. The highest natural point

1881-494: The Red River. During the 1830s, farmers cultivated land for large cotton plantations; dependent on slave labor, cotton production supported new planter wealth in the ante-bellum years. Steamboats ran scheduled trips between Camden, Arkansas and New Orleans . A person could travel from any eastern city to the Ouachita River without touching land, except to transfer from one steamboat to another. Trade using steamboats on

1938-421: The age of 18 living with them, 34.7% were married couples living together, 28.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.3% were non-families. 28.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.57 and the average family size was 3.15. In the town, the population was spread out, with 29.5% under

1995-460: The age of 18, 9.3% from 18 to 24, 26.2% from 25 to 44, 18.7% from 45 to 64, and 16.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 84.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 74.5 males. The median income for a household in the town was $ 18,622, and the median income for a family was $ 23,462. Males had a median income of $ 21,139 versus $ 18,482 for females. The per capita income for

2052-527: The area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild-to-cool winters. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Jonesville has a humid subtropical climate , abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps. As of the 2020 United States census , there were 1,728 people, 703 households, and 386 families residing in the town. As of the census of 2000, there were 2,469 people, 916 households, and 620 families residing in

2109-508: The crust to buckle, producing complex folds at all scale levels and several overturned sequences. The area of greatest deformation occurred in the Benton-Broken Bow Uplift, which extends from Benton, Arkansas to Broken Bow, Oklahoma . The total height of the Ouachitas is not known, though they may have exceeded 10,000 feet (3,000 m) (based loosely on geologic cross-sections). The terrain has been deeply eroded since

2166-663: The junction with the Tensas at 31°16′22″N 91°50′01″W  /  31.27278°N 91.83361°W  / 31.27278; -91.83361 is called the Black River and flows for 41.6 miles (66.9 km) in Catahoula and Concordia parishes until it joins the Red River , which flows into both the Atchafalaya River and the Mississippi River, via the Old River Control Structure . The river

2223-596: The late Paleozoic . The Ouachitas are composed of Cambrian through Pennsylvanian sedimentary rocks . The Collier Shale, located at the core of the Benton-Broken Bow Uplift, is the oldest exposed formation of the Ouachitas. The Atoka Formation , which was deposited much later during the Pennsylvanian , has the largest areal extent of any of the Paleozoic formations in Arkansas . The geologic formations of

2280-559: The late 1700s, when the area was controlled by the Spanish and French, the river served as a route for early colonists, and for land speculators such as the self-styled Baron de Bastrop . The "Bastrop lands" later passed into the hands of another speculator, former Vice President Aaron Burr . He saw potential for big profits in the event of a war with Spain following the Louisiana Purchase . Burr and many of his associates were arrested for treason, before their band of armed settlers reached

2337-602: The nation's first parks in 1832. The Battle of Devil's Backbone was fought here at the ridge of the same name in 1863. In August 1990, the U.S. Forest Service discontinued clearcutting as the primary tool for harvesting and regenerating short leaf, pine and hardwood forests in the Ouachita National Forest. The Ouachita Mountains contain the Ouachita National Forest , Hot Springs National Park and Lake Ouachita , as well as numerous state parks and scenic byways mostly throughout Arkansas. They also contain

Ouachita River - Misplaced Pages Continue

2394-616: The north side of Lake Hamilton. Another reservoir, Lake Catherine , impounds the Ouachita just below Lake Hamilton. Below Lake Catherine, the river flows free through most of the rest of Arkansas. Just below Lake Catherine, the river bends south near Malvern , and collects the Caddo River near Arkadelphia . Downstream, the Little Missouri River joins the Ouachita. After passing the city of Camden , shortly downstream from where dredging for navigational purposes begins,

2451-566: The occurrence of some of the world's finest quartz . The Crystal Mountains are generally taller than the nearby Zig Zag Mountains, achieving elevations over 1,800 feet (550 m). The Fourche Mountains (EPA Level IV ecoregion 36d) are a long, continuous chain of east-west mountains composed of the weather-resistant Jackfork Sandstone . They extend from Pulaski County, Arkansas to Atoka County, Oklahoma and are home to several popular sites of interest, including Pinnacle Mountain State Park near Little Rock, Arkansas . The highest natural point

2508-485: The river are: Ouachita Mountains The Ouachita Mountains ( / ˈ w ɒ ʃ ɪ t ɔː / ), simply referred to as the Ouachitas , are a mountain range in western Arkansas and southeastern Oklahoma . They are formed by a thick succession of highly deformed Paleozoic strata constituting the Ouachita Fold and Thrust Belt, one of the important orogenic belts of North America . The Ouachitas continue in

2565-639: The river collects the waters of Smackover Creek and later the Ouachita's main tributary, the Saline River . South of the Saline, the Ouachita flows into Lake Jack Lee, a reservoir created by the Ouachita and Black River Project, just north of the Louisiana state line. The Felsenthal National Wildlife Refuge encompasses the Ouachita from the Saline River to Lake Jack Lee's mouth. Below Lake Jack Lee,

2622-782: The river for thousands of years. In the Lower Mississippi Valley, they began building monumental earthwork mounds in the Middle Archaic period (6000–2000 BC in Louisiana). The earliest construction was Watson Brake , an 11-mound complex built about 3500 BC by hunter gatherers in present-day Louisiana. The discovery and dating of several such early sites in northern Louisiana has changed the traditional model, which associated mound building with sedentary, agricultural societies, but these cultures did not develop for thousands of years. The largest such prehistoric mound

2679-583: The site from 100 BCE to 700 CE. Once home to between 9-11 mounds, most have been leveled to make way for the construction of the modern town, including the Great Mound which was once 82 feet (25 m) in height. It was the tallest mound in Louisiana and the second tallest in the United States, after Monks Mound at Cahokia in Illinois . It was destroyed for bridge approach fill in 1931. The site

2736-475: The subsurface to the northeast, where they make a poorly understood connection with the Appalachians and to the southwest, where they join with the Marathon uplift area of West Texas . Together with the Ozark Plateaus , the Ouachitas form the U.S. Interior Highlands . The highest natural point is Mount Magazine at 2,753 feet (839 m). The Ouachita Mountains is a Level III ecoregion designated by

2793-629: The summer. They are the only home and namesake of the Fourche Mountain salamander . The Fourche Mountains form a major watershed divide between the Arkansas River Basin to the north and the Red River Basin to the south. The Frontal Ouachita Mountains are located in the Arkansas River Valley and feature a number of isolated landforms. The highest natural point is Mount Magazine at 2,753 feet (839 m), which

2850-456: The temple on the mound that year, which was seen as a bad omen by the tribe. They never rebuilt the temple, and were recorded as abandoning the site in 1736. After the Louisiana purchase, Arkansas became a part of the U.S. and the Dunbar and Hunter Expedition was commissioned to explore Arkansas which included the length of the Ouachita River from the mouth to Hot Springs . The Ouachita River

2907-533: The thermal springs of Hot Springs National Park . They are so named because of their unique chevron shape when viewed from above, the result of plunging anticlines and synclines . The Zig Zag Mountains are not exceptionally tall, but do reach heights over 1,400 feet (430 m). The Ouachitas are formed by a thick succession of highly deformed Paleozoic strata constituting the Ouachita Fold and Thrust Belt, which crops out for approximately 220 miles (350 km) in western Arkansas and southeastern Oklahoma . In

SECTION 50

#1732765434145

2964-618: The town as 4th Street and leads east 16 miles (26 km) to Ferriday and west 23 miles (37 km) to Jena . Louisiana State Highway 124 leads north 10 miles (16 km) to Harrisonburg , the Catahoula Parish seat, and south 24 miles (39 km) to its end in Argo . According to the United States Census Bureau , Jonesville has a total area of 1.9 square miles (5.0 km ), all land. The climate in

3021-459: The town. The population density was 1,291.4 inhabitants per square mile (498.6/km ). There were 1,032 housing units at an average density of 539.8 per square mile (208.4/km ). The racial makeup of the town was 39.77% White , 59.17% African American , 0.28% Native American , 0.12% Asian , and 0.65% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.97% of the population. There were 916 households, out of which 36.0% had children under

3078-528: The world's finest quartz , especially around Mount Ida, Arkansas , the quartz capital of the world. The quartz formed after the Ouachita Orogeny when fractures in rocks filled with silica-saturated fluids and, over millions of years, precipitated crystals up to several feet in length. The Ouachitas are also known for novaculite , a variety of chert that has undergone low-grade metamorphism ; particular grades found only in Arkansas are used for making whetstones . Cambrian through Mississippian strata of

3135-522: Was 2,265 at the 2010 census . The four rivers which intersect near Jonesville are all subject to flooding. There are surrounding soybean and cotton fields. A few plantation houses still stand, built during the former slavery-based, planter -dominated economy. The population fell significantly when a textile mill shut down in the late 1980s. Jonesville was once the site of the Troyville Earthworks , built by Native Americans who occupied

3192-493: Was a route used in the Trail of Tears . Native Americans were transported along the river to Camden, Arkansas and from there they walked the rest of the way to Oklahoma . The river was an important factor in settling the region because it provided access to larger markets for cotton and other goods. Nowadays the river still transports goods however to a lesser extent than before and many of its natural areas are preserved. During

3249-531: Was destroyed in the 20th century during construction of a bridge at Jonesville, Louisiana . Likely built by the Mississippian culture , which rose about 1000 AD on the Mississippi and its tributaries, this mound was reported in use as late as 1540 by the Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto . On his expedition through this area, he encountered Indians occupying the site. A lightning strike destroyed

#144855