Misplaced Pages

#17982

111-399: The state designated M-140 in the early 1930s over a previous alignment of US 31 when that highway rerouted through the area. M-140 was extended from Watervliet to Niles a few years later. Changes were made to the routing of the trunkline in the 1950s and 1960s. The last change was made in 1972, resulting in the modern course for the highway. M-140 starts at an intersection with M-139 near

222-582: A lake , an ocean , or another river. A stream refers to water that flows in a natural channel , a geographic feature that can contain flowing water. A stream may also be referred to as a watercourse. The study of the movement of water as it occurs on Earth is called hydrology , and their effect on the landscape is covered by geomorphology . Rivers are part of the water cycle , the continuous processes by which water moves about Earth. This means that all water that flows in rivers must ultimately come from precipitation . The sides of rivers have land that

333-547: A trip hammer , and grind grains with a millstone . In the Middle Ages , water mills began to automate many aspects of manual labor , and spread rapidly. By 1300, there were at least 10,000 mills in England alone. A medieval watermill could do the work of 30–60 human workers. Water mills were often used in conjunction with dams to focus and increase the speed of the water. Water wheels continued to be used up to and through

444-740: A boat along certain stretches. In these religions, such as that of the Altai in Russia , the river is considered a living being that must be afforded respect. Rivers are some of the most sacred places in Hinduism. There is archeological evidence that mass ritual bathing in rivers at least 5,000 years ago in the Indus river valley . While most rivers in India are revered, the Ganges is most sacred. The river has

555-515: A central role in various Hindu myths, and its water is said to have properties of healing as well as absolution from sins. Hindus believe that when the cremated remains of a person is released into the Ganges, their soul is released from the mortal world. Freshwater fish make up 40% of the world's fish species, but 20% of these species are known to have gone extinct in recent years. Human uses of rivers make these species especially vulnerable. Dams and other engineered changes to rivers can block

666-408: A continuous flow of water throughout the year. This may be because an arid climate is too dry depending on the season to support a stream, or because a river is seasonally frozen in the winter (such as in an area with substantial permafrost ), or in the headwaters of rivers in mountains, where snowmelt is required to fuel the river. These rivers can appear in a variety of climates, and still provide

777-564: A habitat for aquatic life and perform other ecological functions. Subterranean rivers may flow underground through flooded caves. This can happen in karst systems, where rock dissolves to form caves. These rivers provide a habitat for diverse microorganisms and have become an important target of study by microbiologists . Other rivers and streams have been covered over or converted to run in tunnels due to human development. These rivers do not typically host any life, and are often used only for stormwater or flood control. One such example

888-495: A large scale. This has been attributed to unusually large floods destroying infrastructure; however, there is evidence that permanent changes to climate causing higher aridity and lower river flow may have been the determining factor in what river civilizations succeeded or dissolved. Water wheels began to be used at least 2,000 years ago to harness the energy of rivers. Water wheels turn an axle that can supply rotational energy to move water into aqueducts , work metal using

999-518: A lower elevation , such as an ocean , lake , or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of its course if it runs out of water, or only flow during certain seasons. Rivers are regulated by the water cycle , the processes by which water moves around the Earth. Water first enters rivers through precipitation , whether from rainfall, the runoff of water down a slope, the melting of glaciers or snow , or seepage from aquifers beneath

1110-556: A peak in the 1970s, when between two or three dams were completed every day, and has since begun to decline. New dam projects are primarily focused in China , India , and other areas in Asia . The first civilizations of Earth were born on floodplains between 5,500 and 3,500 years ago. The freshwater, fertile soil, and transportation provided by rivers helped create the conditions for complex societies to emerge. Three such civilizations were

1221-891: A ritualistic sense has been compared to the Christian ritual of baptism , famously the Baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River . Floods also appear in Norse mythology , where the world is said to emerge from a void that eleven rivers flowed into. Aboriginal Australian religion and Mesoamerican mythology also have stories of floods, some of which contain no survivors, unlike the Abrahamic flood. Along with mythological rivers, religions have also cared for specific rivers as sacred rivers. The Ancient Celtic religion saw rivers as goddesses. The Nile had many gods attached to it. The tears of

SECTION 10

#1732780982018

1332-425: A river can take several forms. Tidal rivers (often part of an estuary ) have their levels rise and fall with the tide . Since the levels of these rivers are often already at or near sea level, the flow of alluvium and the brackish water that flows in these rivers may be either upriver or downriver depending on the time of day. Rivers that are not tidal may form deltas that continuously deposit alluvium into

1443-756: A river such as fish , aquatic plants , and insects have different roles, including processing organic matter and predation . Rivers have produced abundant resources for humans, including food , transportation , drinking water , and recreation. Humans have engineered rivers to prevent flooding, irrigate crops, perform work with water wheels , and produce hydroelectricity from dams. People associate rivers with life and fertility and have strong religious, political, social, and mythological attachments to them. Rivers and river ecosystems are threatened by water pollution , climate change , and human activity. The construction of dams, canals , levees , and other engineered structures has eliminated habitats, has caused

1554-460: A section of the river behind them into a lake or reservoir. This can provide nearby cities with a predictable supply of drinking water. Hydroelectricity is desirable as a form of renewable energy that does not require any inputs beyond the river itself. Dams are very common worldwide, with at least 75,000 higher than 6 feet (1.8 m) in the U.S. Globally, reservoirs created by dams cover 193,500 square miles (501,000 km ). Dam-building reached

1665-418: A vital habitat for resident species as well, such as wild turkey ( Meleagris gallopavo ), coyote ( Canis latrans ), fox, beaver ( Castor canadensis ), mink ( Neogale vison ), Indiana bat ( Myotis sodalis ), eastern box turtle ( Terrapene carolina carolina ), and the rare spotted turtle ( Clemmys guttata ) and northern redbelly snake ( Storeria occipitomaculata occipitomaculata ), both protected by

1776-558: A wall of water, 3 to 5 feet (0.91 to 1.52 m) high, up the river at St. Joseph and Benton Harbor. This raised the level of the river by 4 to 5 feet (1.2 to 1.5 m). The cause of the seiche was unknown, but has been attributed to a sudden squall or change in atmospheric pressure. Factories located in South Bend because of access to the river and hydro-power created in the East and West Races. The water rights to what would become

1887-438: A water body is that body's riparian zone . Plants in the riparian zone of a river help stabilize its banks to prevent erosion and filter alluvium deposited by the river on the shore, including processing the nitrogen and other nutrients it contains. Forests in a riparian zone also provide important animal habitats . River ecosystems have also been categorized based on the variety of aquatic life they can sustain, also known as

1998-651: A wide meandering route generally northwest through Niles and past Berrien Springs . Just North of Niles it receives the Dowagiac River . It divides St. Joseph and Benton Harbor , receiving the Paw Paw River from the north approximately 1 mile (1.6 km) from its mouth in St. Joseph on Lake Michigan. There are 190 dams in the St. Joseph River watershed, and 17 on the river mainstem. Most of these dams block fish passage, although fish ladders constructed on

2109-445: Is a tributary , and the place they meet is a confluence . Rivers must flow to lower altitudes due to gravity . The bed of a river is typically within a river valley between hills or mountains . Rivers flowing through an impermeable section of land such as rocks will erode the slopes on the sides of the river. When a river carves a plateau or a similar high-elevation area, a canyon can form, with cliffs on either side of

2220-504: Is also important for the lumber industry , as logs can be shipped via river. Countries with dense forests and networks of rivers like Sweden have historically benefited the most from this method of trade. The rise of highways and the automobile has made this practice less common. One of the first large canals was the Canal du Midi , connecting rivers within France to create a path from

2331-564: Is an ancient dam built on the Nile 4,500 years ago. The Ancient Roman civilization used aqueducts to transport water to urban areas . Spanish Muslims used mills and water wheels beginning in the seventh century. Between 130 and 1492, larger dams were built in Japan, Afghanistan, and India, including 20 dams higher than 15 metres (49 ft). Canals began to be cut in Egypt as early as 3000 BC, and

SECTION 20

#1732780982018

2442-448: Is at a higher elevation than the river itself, and in these areas, water flows downhill into the river. The headwaters of a river are the smaller streams that feed a river, and make up the river's source. These streams may be small and flow rapidly down the sides of mountains . All of the land uphill of a river that feeds it with water in this way is in that river's drainage basin or watershed. A ridge of higher elevation land

2553-405: Is because any natural impediment to the flow of the river may cause the current to deflect in a different direction. When this happens, the alluvium carried by the river can build up against this impediment, redirecting the course of the river. The flow is then directed against the opposite bank of the river, which will erode into a more concave shape to accommodate the flow. The bank will still block

2664-876: Is building a hydroelectric dam on the waterway. The project was funded by the University of Notre Dame . Two sites in the river basin, Moccasin Bluff and Fort St. Joseph , are listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places . Carey Mission , Fort Miami , and Burnett Trading Post are listed as State Registered Historic Sites . Before European settlement, the watershed was dominated by deciduous forests consisting of maple, ash, oak, elm, walnut, and beech species, along with pockets of white, red and jack pine species. There were also prairies up to several miles across, which were grazed by elk ( Cervus canadensis ), white-tailed deer ( Odocoileus virginianus ), moose ( Alces alces ), and bison ( Bison bison ). By 1900

2775-453: Is correlated with and thus can be used to predict certain data points related to rivers, such as the size of the drainage basin (drainage area), and the length of the channel. The ecosystem of a river includes the life that lives in its water, on its banks, and in the surrounding land. The width of the channel of a river, its velocity, and how shaded it is by nearby trees. Creatures in a river ecosystem may be divided into many roles based on

2886-497: Is in part because of a projected loss of snowpack in mountains, meaning that melting snow can't replenish rivers during warm summer months, leading to lower water levels. Lower-level rivers also have warmer temperatures, threatening species like salmon that prefer colder upstream temperatures. Attempts have been made to regulate the exploitation of rivers to preserve their ecological functions. Many wetland areas have become protected from development. Water restrictions can prevent

2997-402: Is part of permafrost ice caps, or trace amounts of water vapor in the atmosphere. However, there is evidence that rivers flowed on Mars for at least 100,000 years. The Hellas Planitia is a crater left behind by an impact from an asteroid. It has sedimentary rock that was formed 3.7 billion years ago, and lava fields that are 3.3 billion years old. High resolution images of the surface of

3108-633: Is rarely static, the exact location of a river border may be called into question by countries. The Rio Grande between the United States and Mexico is regulated by the International Boundary and Water Commission to manage the right to fresh water from the river, as well as mark the exact location of the border. Up to 60% of fresh water used by countries comes from rivers that cross international borders. This can cause disputes between countries that live upstream and downstream of

3219-701: Is that of the Mississippi River , whose drainage basin covers 40% of the contiguous United States . The river was then used for shipping crops from the American Midwest and cotton from the American South to other states as well as the Atlantic Ocean. The role of urban rivers has evolved from when they were a center of trade, food, and transportation to modern times when these uses are less necessary. Rivers remain central to

3330-553: Is the Sunswick Creek in New York City, which was covered in the 1800s and now exists only as a sewer-like pipe. While rivers may flow into lakes or man-made features such as reservoirs , the water they contain will always tend to flow down toward the ocean . However, if human activity siphons too much water away from a river for other uses, the riverbed may run dry before reaching the sea. The outlets mouth of

3441-855: Is the third largest watershed draining to Lake Michigan. The land within its bounds is primarily used for agriculture . The river and its tributaries provide a variety of paddling and fishing environments. Historically, the river served as an important canoe transportation route for various Native American tribes, and for French Canadian Voyageurs . The St. Joseph River watershed drains 4,685 square miles (12,130 km ) from 15 counties: Berrien , Branch , Calhoun , Cass , Hillsdale , Kalamazoo , St. Joseph and Van Buren in Michigan and DeKalb , Elkhart , Kosciusko , LaGrange , Noble , St. Joseph and Steuben in Indiana. The watershed includes 3,742 river miles (6,022 km) and flows through and near

M-140 (Michigan highway) - Misplaced Pages Continue

3552-842: Is what typically separates drainage basins; water on one side of a ridge will flow into one set of rivers, and water on the other side will flow into another. One example of this is the Continental Divide of the Americas in the Rocky Mountains . Water on the western side of the divide flows into the Pacific Ocean , whereas water on the other side flows into the Atlantic Ocean . Not all precipitation flows directly into rivers; some water seeps into underground aquifers . These, in turn, can still feed rivers via

3663-599: The 2024 Summer Olympics . Another example is the restoration of the Isar in Munich from being a fully canalized channel with hard embankments to being wider with naturally sloped banks and vegetation. This has improved wildlife habitat in the Isar, and provided more opportunities for recreation in the river. As a natural barrier , rivers are often used as a border between countries , cities, and other territories . For example,

3774-487: The Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea . The nineteenth century saw canal-building become more common, with the U.S. building 4,400 miles (7,100 km) of canals by 1830. Rivers began to be used by cargo ships at a larger scale, and these canals were used in conjunction with river engineering projects like dredging and straightening to ensure the efficient flow of goods. One of the largest such projects

3885-529: The Illinois Country . European American settlement of the St. Joseph river basin area began to increase in earnest after southwestern Michigan was surveyed in 1829. From the early 1830s until 1846, the river bore various commodities from upstream to a busy port at St. Joseph, where they were loaded onto lake boats for shipment to Chicago and elsewhere. On April 11, 1893, a Lake Michigan seiche (a phenomenon similar to an ocean tsunami ) pushed

3996-501: The Industrial Revolution as a source of power for textile mills and other factories, but were eventually supplanted by steam power . Rivers became more industrialized with the growth of technology and the human population . As fish and water could be brought from elsewhere, and goods and people could be transported via railways , pre-industrial river uses diminished in favor of more complex uses. This meant that

4107-791: The Lamari River in New Guinea separates the Angu and the Fore people in New Guinea. The two cultures speak different languages and rarely mix. 23% of international borders are large rivers (defined as those over 30 meters wide). The traditional northern border of the Roman Empire was the Danube , a river that today forms the border of Hungary and Slovakia . Since the flow of a river

4218-525: The Nile and the Ganges . The Quran describes these four rivers as flowing with water, milk, wine, and honey, respectively. The book of Genesis also contains a story of a great flood . Similar myths are present in the Epic of Gilgamesh , Sumerian mythology, and in other cultures. In Genesis, the flood's role was to cleanse Earth of the wrongdoing of humanity. The act of water working to cleanse humans in

4329-737: The Old Sauk Trail , a major east-west Indian trail, crossed the river. The indigenous trade and navigation networks in the area allowed for extensive trade and movement of people, which allowed early Europeans access to the area in 1675 when Père Jacques Marquette was guided up the Mississippi River via the Illinois River , then to the Kankakee River and portaged to Sakiwasipi and then down to Lake Michigan. On November 1, 1679 René Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle sailed southeast across Lake Michigan and built Fort Miami at

4440-564: The Potawatomi Chief Baw Beese . The river follows a zigzag route generally westward across southern Michigan, dipping into northern Indiana. From its headwaters, it flows initially northwest past Hillsdale into southeastern Calhoun County , then turns abruptly southwest to flow past Tekonsha , Union City , Sherwood , and Mendon . At Three Rivers it is joined from the north by the Rocky and Portage rivers, and by

4551-517: The Potawatomi and early settlers used spears, seines and dip nets to catch their annual supply of fish. The abundance of lake sturgeon made the area around Niles famous in the mid-to late-1800s. Fish up to 12 feet (3.7 m) long and 300 pounds (140 kg) were taken by anglers, and their roe was exported to Russia as caviar. Sturgeon used to migrate as far as Hillsdale County, Michigan , and Sturgeon Lake near Colon, Michigan , still bears

M-140 (Michigan highway) - Misplaced Pages Continue

4662-741: The Prairie River from the east, after making an abrupt turn south. At Constantine it receives the Fawn River from the east. Next, after returning to a southwest course, it receives the Pigeon River from the east, near the Michigan– Indiana state line. In northern Indiana, the river flows west-southwest through Elkhart , Mishawaka , and South Bend , where it turns abruptly to north to re-enter southwestern Michigan in southeastern Berrien County . In southwestern Michigan, it follows

4773-568: The River Continuum Concept . "Shredders" are organisms that consume this organic material. The role of a "grazer" or "scraper" organism is to feed on the algae that collects on rocks and plants. "Collectors" consume the detritus of dead organisms. Lastly, predators feed on living things to survive. The river can then be modeled by the availability of resources for each creature's role. A shady area with deciduous trees might experience frequent deposits of organic matter in

4884-627: The River Lethe to forget their previous life. Rivers also appear in descriptions of paradise in Abrahamic religions , beginning with the story of Genesis . A river beginning in the Garden of Eden waters the garden and then splits into four rivers that flow to provide water to the world. These rivers include the Tigris and Euphrates , and two rivers that are possibly apocryphal but may refer to

4995-520: The St. Joseph River north of Niles and runs due north through farm fields. The trunkline jogs to the west near Steinbauer Lake before returning to the northerly course. There is another westerly jog along Pokagon Road around Riggins Lake. M-140 turns back northward and runs through the community of Berrien Center . Near Eau Claire , the highway turns bends along Maple Grove Road for about 1,000 feet (300 m) before going north on Watervliet Road. East of town,

5106-787: The Sumerians in the Tigris–Euphrates river system , the Ancient Egyptian civilization in the Nile, and the Indus Valley Civilization on the Indus River . The desert climates of the surrounding areas made these societies especially reliant on rivers for survival, leading to people clustering in these areas to form the first cities . It is also thought that these civilizations were the first to organize

5217-485: The climate . The alluvium carried by rivers, laden with minerals, is deposited into the floodplain when the banks spill over, providing new nutrients to the soil, allowing them to support human activity like farming as well as a host of plant and animal life. Deposited sediment from rivers can form temporary or long-lasting fluvial islands . These islands exist in almost every river. About half of all waterways on Earth are intermittent rivers , which do not always have

5328-685: The cultural identity of cities and nations. Famous examples include the River Thames 's relationship to London , the Seine to Paris , and the Hudson River to New York City . The restoration of water quality and recreation to urban rivers has been a goal of modern administrations. For example, swimming was banned in the Seine for over 100 years due to concerns about pollution and the spread of E. coli , until cleanup efforts to allow its use in

5439-484: The discharge of a river, the amount of water passing through it at a particular time. The flow of a river can act as a means of transportation for plant and animal species, as well as a barrier. For example, the Amazon River is so wide in parts that the variety of species on either side of its basin are distinct. Some fish may swim upstream to spawn as part of a seasonal migration . Species that travel from

5550-465: The extinction of some species, and lowered the amount of alluvium flowing through rivers. Decreased snowfall from climate change has resulted in less water available for rivers during the summer. Regulation of pollution, dam removal , and sewage treatment have helped to improve water quality and restore river habitats. A river is a natural flow of freshwater that flows on or through land towards another body of water downhill. This flow can be into

5661-608: The salmonid runs were extended to the Twin Branch Dam in Indiana, a distance of 63 miles (101 km) from Lake Michigan. This enabled the trout and salmon to spawn in coldwater tributaries such as McCoy Creek . Although completion of fish ladders on the lowest five mainstem dams in 1992 allowed salmonine passage as far as Twin Branch Dam in Mishawaka, Indiana , 94% of the fish that pass are salmon and trout, as

SECTION 50

#1732780982018

5772-602: The salmonids to run an additional 10 miles (16 km) upstream to the Buchanan Dam. In 1980 the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, Indiana Department of Natural Resources and United States Fish and Wildlife Service signed the "St. Joseph River Interstate Cooperative Salmonid Management Plan", which led to construction of fish ladders at the Buchanan, Niles, South Bend and Mishawaka dams. By 1992

5883-436: The sea . The sediment yield of a river is the quantity of sand per unit area within a watershed that is removed over a period of time. The monitoring of the sediment yield of a river is important for ecologists to understand the health of its ecosystems, the rate of erosion of the river's environment, and the effects of human activity. Rivers rarely run in a straight direction, instead preferring to bend or meander . This

5994-521: The water table , the groundwater beneath the surface of the land stored in the soil . Water flows into rivers in places where the river's elevation is lower than that of the water table. This phenomenon is why rivers can still flow even during times of drought . Rivers are also fed by the melting of snow glaciers present in higher elevation regions. In summer months, higher temperatures melt snow and ice, causing additional water to flow into rivers. Glacier melt can supplement snow melt in times like

6105-604: The East and West Races were claimed by Alexis Coquillard and Lathrop Taylor in 1831, when the city of South Bend was founded. Although the idea of digging a mill race (man-made canal) was put forth in 1835, a dam and the East and West Races were not constructed until 1843. The construction was done by the South Bend Manufacturing Company, incorporated in December 1842 for this very purpose. The South Bend Manufacturing Company thus became owner of

6216-556: The Kalamazoo-Portage, Elkhart-Goshen, Mishawaka-South Bend, and St. Joseph/Benton Harbor metropolitan areas. The St. Joseph River main stem is 206 miles (332 km) long, rising in southern Michigan in Hillsdale County flowing from Baw Beese Lake , within 5 miles (8 km) of the headwaters of the other St. Joseph River of the eastward-flowing Maumee River watershed. Baw Beese Lake was historically named for

6327-624: The Oliver Chilled Plow Works constructed a hydro-electric power plant on the waterway to supply electricity for light, heat, and power to the Oliver Opera House, Oliver Hotel, South Bend factories, and other Oliver buildings. Other sources of energy and changes in technology resulted in the canals no longer being used for industrial purposes. In the late 1940s the Indiana and Michigan Electric Company purchased

6438-695: The bodies of humans and animals worldwide, as well as in the soil, with potentially negative health effects. Research into how to remove it from the environment, and how harmful exposure is, is ongoing. Fertilizer from farms can lead to a proliferation of algae on the surface of rivers and oceans, which prevents oxygen and light from dissolving into water, making it impossible for underwater life to survive in these so-called dead zones . Urban rivers are typically surrounded by impermeable surfaces like stone, asphalt , and concrete. Cities often have storm drains that direct this water to rivers. This can cause flooding risk as large amounts of water are directed into

6549-405: The complete draining of rivers. Limits on the construction of dams, as well as dam removal , can restore the natural habitats of river species. Regulators can also ensure regular releases of water from dams to keep animal habitats supplied with water. Limits on pollutants like pesticides can help improve water quality. Today, the surface of Mars does not have liquid water. All water on Mars

6660-712: The early 1980s, the East Race canal was re-excavated. It was converted to a man-made whitewater kayaking course, now known as the East Race Waterway. 41°40′34″N 86°14′42″W  /  41.676°N 86.245°W  / 41.676; -86.245 In 1984, the abandoned East Race canal in South Bend, whose outlets were both at the river, was converted into the East Race Waterway , North America's first artificial whitewater waterway and

6771-436: The effect of normalizing the effects of rivers; the greatest floods are smaller and more predictable, and larger sections are open for navigation by boats and other watercraft. A major effect of river engineering has been a reduced sediment output of large rivers. For example, the Mississippi River produced 400 million tons of sediment per year. Due to the construction of reservoirs , sediment buildup in man-made levees , and

SECTION 60

#1732780982018

6882-504: The entire length of the main stem, if they are prepared to portage. Many of the larger tributaries offer opportunities for paddling, hiking, hunting, and fishing. A list of dams on the St. Joseph River. AKA Niles Dam Jack Mosley AKA Fairbanks Morse Dam St. Joseph River crossings are located in towns or cities within seven counties of two states . River A river is a natural freshwater stream that flows on land or inside caves towards another body of water at

6993-462: The first of four in the United States. Locals first proposed in 1973 that the 19th-century waterway be reopened; construction began in August 1982 and the East Race reopened on June 29, 1984. Through the use of movable barriers and obstacles, the East Race can be configured to provide a whitewater course for recreational and competitive canoeing, kayaking and rafting. In 2021, the East Race was temporarily closed for construction. The City of South Bend

7104-451: The fish zonation concept. Smaller rivers can only sustain smaller fish that can comfortably fit in its waters, whereas larger rivers can contain both small fish and large fish. This means that larger rivers can host a larger variety of species. This is analogous to the species-area relationship , the concept of larger habitats being host to more species. In this case, it is known as the species-discharge relationship, referring specifically to

7215-606: The floating of wood on rivers to transport it, was especially important. Rivers also were an important source of drinking water . For civilizations built around rivers, fish were an important part of the diet of humans. Some rivers supported fishing activities, but were ill-suited to farming, such as those in the Pacific Northwest . Other animals that live in or near rivers like frogs , mussels , and beavers could provide food and valuable goods such as fur . Humans have been building infrastructure to use rivers for thousands of years. The Sadd el-Kafara dam near Cairo , Egypt,

7326-412: The flow of the river beneath its surface. These help rivers flow straighter by increasing the speed of the water at the middle of the channel, helping to control floods. Levees are also used for this purpose. They can be thought of as dams constructed on the sides of rivers, meant to hold back water from flooding the surrounding area during periods of high rainfall. They are often constructed by building up

7437-399: The flow, causing it to reflect in the other direction. Thus, a bend in the river is created. Rivers may run through low, flat regions on their way to the sea. These places may have floodplains that are periodically flooded when there is a high level of water running through the river. These events may be referred to as "wet seasons' and "dry seasons" when the flooding is predictable due to

7548-650: The form of leaves. In this type of ecosystem, collectors and shredders will be most active. As the river becomes deeper and wider, it may move slower and receive more sunlight . This supports invertebrates and a variety of fish , as well as scrapers feeding on algae. Further downstream, the river may get most of its energy from organic matter that was already processed upstream by collectors and shredders. Predators may be more active here, including fish that feed on plants, plankton , and other fish. The flood pulse concept focuses on habitats that flood seasonally, including lakes and marshes . The land that interfaces with

7659-426: The freeway interchange south of town. St. Joseph River (Lake Michigan) The St. Joseph River (known locally as the St. Joe ) is a 210-mile-long (340 km) river that flows in a generally westerly direction through southern Michigan and northern Indiana , United States , before emptying into Lake Michigan . The St. Joseph River drainage basin covers 4,685 square miles (12,130 km ), and

7770-450: The goddess Isis were said to be the cause of the river's yearly flooding, itself personified by the goddess Hapi . Many African religions regard certain rivers as the originator of life. In Yoruba religion , Yemọja rules over the Ogun River in modern-day Nigeria and is responsible for creating all children and fish. Some sacred rivers have religious prohibitions attached to them, such as not being allowed to drink from them or ride in

7881-424: The headwaters in southwestern Michigan, where travelers could make a portage to the St. Joseph River of the Maumee River watershed, which drained into Lake Erie . The second major transfer point was at South Bend, Indiana, where a short portage to the nearby Kankakee River allowed access to the Illinois River and subsequently to the Mississippi. Another major access point along river was at Niles, Michigan, where

7992-514: The highway between Watervliet and South Haven . In 1919, the Michigan State Highway Department (MSHD) signposted the highway system for the first time, and the future M-140 corridor was assigned to part of the original M-11 . On November 11, 1926, M-11 was redesignated as part of US 31 in the state. In 1931, the state transferred US 31 to a new routing between the St. Joseph and South Haven areas; in

8103-642: The highway continues as Business Loop I-196 . M-140 is maintained by the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) like other state highways in Michigan. MDOT's surveys in 2010 showed that the highest traffic levels along M-140 were the 10,176 vehicles daily near in Watervliet; the lowest count was 1,536 vehicles per day along Pokagon Road, on average . All of M-140 is a two-lane, un divided highway , except sections in cities like Watervliet which may have up to four lanes. No section of

8214-428: The irrigation of desert environments for growing food. Growing food at scale allowed people to specialize in other roles, form hierarchies, and organize themselves in new ways, leading to the birth of civilization. In pre-industrial society , rivers were a source of transportation and abundant resources. Many civilizations depended on what resources were local to them to survive. Shipping of commodities, especially

8325-496: The ladders were not designed to permit passage of migrating native fish. Historically, the migrating native species included lake sturgeon ( Acipenser fulvescens ), bass (smallmouth and largemouth), redhorse (silver, golden, shorthead, river, and greater) ( Moxostoma ssp. ), walleye ( Sander vitreus ), lake trout ( Salvelinus namaycush ), lake whitefish ( Coregonus clupeaformis ), northern pike ( Esox lucius ) and American pickerel ( E. americanus vermiculatus ). Every spring

8436-440: The landscape around it, forming deltas and islands where the flow slows down. Rivers rarely run in a straight line, instead, they bend or meander ; the locations of a river's banks can change frequently. Rivers get their alluvium from erosion , which carves rock into canyons and valleys . Rivers have sustained human and animal life for millennia, including the first human civilizations . The organisms that live around or in

8547-434: The late summer, when there may be less snow left to melt, helping to ensure that the rivers downstream of the glaciers have a continuous supply of water. Rivers flow downhill, with their direction determined by gravity . A common misconception holds that all or most rivers flow from North to South, but this is not true. As rivers flow downstream, they eventually merge to form larger rivers. A river that feeds into another

8658-474: The level of river branching in a drainage basin. Several systems of stream order exist, one of which is the Strahler number . In this system, the first tributaries of a river are 1st order rivers. When two 1st order rivers merge, the resulting river is 2nd order. If a river of a higher order and a lower order merge, the order is incremented from whichever of the previous rivers had the higher order. Stream order

8769-561: The local ecosystems of rivers needed less protection as humans became less reliant on them for their continued flourishing. River engineering began to develop projects that enabled industrial hydropower , canals for the more efficient movement of goods, as well as projects for flood prevention . River transportation has historically been significantly cheaper and faster than transportation by land. Rivers helped fuel urbanization as goods such as grain and fuel could be floated downriver to supply cities with resources. River transportation

8880-401: The lower dams allow salmonine passage as far as the Twin Branch Dam in Mishawaka, Indiana . But, the fish ladders are not adequate for many native species, such as sturgeon , and the dams tend to be built on the higher gradient portions of the river, which are the most critical river habitats for fish spawning. saakiiweesiipiiwi (Outlet River, also historically spelt Sakiwasipi ), as it

8991-407: The mechanical shadoof began to be used to raise the elevation of water. Drought years harmed crop yields, and leaders of society were incentivized to ensure regular water and food availability to remain in power. Engineering projects like the shadoof and canals could help prevent these crises. Despite this, there is evidence that floodplain-based civilizations may have been abandoned occasionally at

9102-400: The migration routes of fish and destroy habitats. Rivers that flow freely from headwaters to the sea have better water quality, and also retain their ability to transport nutrient-rich alluvium and other organic material downstream, keeping the ecosystem healthy. The creation of a lake changes the habitat of that portion of water, and blocks the transportation of sediment, as well as preventing

9213-594: The mouth of the river. La Salle named the river La Rivière des Miamis (River of the Miamis). At the end of 1679, La Salle followed indigenous trade routes in the opposite direction of that taken by Marquette; heading up the St. Joseph River and portaging to the Kankakee River, getting as far west on the Illinois River as modern-day Peoria, Illinois , before returning to Fort Miami. After giving up on

9324-532: The name of this mighty fish. Now the spawning sturgeon rarely reach Niles, as they are impeded by the dam at Berrien Springs , reducing the length of the river used by them for spawning by 155 miles (249 km). Historically, ninety-seven species of fish were native to the St. Joseph River Basin. In 1994, the Friends of the St. Joe River (FotSJR), a non-profit conservation organization, was founded by Athens, Michigan , residents Al and Margaret Smith, to organize

9435-399: The natural meandering of the river. Dams block the migration of fish such as salmon for which fish ladder and other bypass systems have been attempted, but these are not always effective. Pollution from factories and urban areas can also damage water quality. " Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) is a widely used chemical that breaks down at a slow rate. It has been found in

9546-429: The natural terrain with soil or clay. Some levees are supplemented with floodways, channels used to redirect floodwater away from farms and populated areas. Dams restrict the flow of water through a river. They can be built for navigational purposes, providing a higher level of water upstream for boats to travel in. They may also be used for hydroelectricity , or power generation from rivers. Dams typically transform

9657-425: The plain show evidence of a river network, and even river deltas. These images reveal channels formed in the rock, recognized by geologists who study rivers on Earth as being formed by rivers, as well as "bench and slope" landforms, outcroppings of rock that show evidence of river erosion. Not only do these formations suggest that rivers once existed, but that they flowed for extensive time periods, and were part of

9768-517: The plan was developed, the river carried the greatest portion of atrazine into Lake Michigan. It is an agricultural herbicide associated with cancer even at low levels and is a very common contaminant of drinking water. The St. Joseph River is a trout and salmon sport fishery, encompassing 47 miles (76 km) of river in Michigan and 16 miles (26 km) in Indiana. The economic benefits to local Michigan and Indiana communities are estimated at several million dollars annually. Canoeists can travel

9879-471: The process, the former route of US 31 between Watervliet and South Haven was redesignated as M-140. The highway was extended southward from Watervliet to the Niles area in late 1934 due to heavy traffic on that section. The concurrency between M-62 and M-140 was eliminated around the end of 1957 when the former highway was truncated to terminate east of Eau Claire instead of continuing west into town. In 1958,

9990-448: The removal of natural banks replaced with revetments , this sediment output has been reduced by 60%. The most basic river projects involve the clearing of obstructions like fallen trees. This can scale up to dredging , the excavation of sediment buildup in a channel, to provide a deeper area for navigation. These activities require regular maintenance as the location of the river banks changes over time, floods bring foreign objects into

10101-607: The return of his ship, Le Griffon , in April 1680, he became the first European to walk the well traveled indigenous routes east across the Lower Peninsula of Michigan back to the Detroit River and Canada. The French established Fort St. Joseph at the crossroads of Old Sauk Trail and this well-established east–west trail in 1691. The watershed was later used as canoe route by early French fur trappers in

10212-536: The reverse, death and destruction, especially through floods . This power has caused rivers to have a central role in religion , ritual , and mythology . In Greek mythology , the underworld is bordered by several rivers. Ancient Greeks believed that the souls of those who perished had to be borne across the River Styx on a boat by Charon in exchange for money. Souls that were judged to be good were admitted to Elysium and permitted to drink water from

10323-496: The rights along the East Race canal. They began filling it in around 1954 for re-use for other purposes. In 1973 the Oliver Chilled Plow Works hydro-electric plant was demolished to make room for construction of the Century Center , which was completed in 1977. The West Race still exists as a canal North of Jefferson Boulevard and South of Colfax Avenue on the banks of Century Center, between Pier Park and Island Park. In

10434-409: The river communities to clean and restore the river. In 2002 FotSJR developed the St. Joseph River Watershed Management Plan, with grant support from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality . The river delivers significant pollutants to Lake Michigan - including sewage overflows from riverside communities, sediments and toxic substances such as mercury and polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB). When

10545-468: The river, and natural sediment buildup continues. Artificial channels are often constructed to "cut off" winding sections of a river with a shorter path, or to direct the flow of a river in a straighter direction. This effect, known as channelization, has made the distance required to traverse the Missouri River in 116 kilometres (72 mi) shorter. Dikes are channels built perpendicular to

10656-552: The river. Areas of a river with softer rock weather faster than areas with harder rock, causing a difference in elevation between two points of a river. This can cause the formation of a waterfall as the river's flow falls down a vertical drop. A river in a permeable area does not exhibit this behavior and may even have raised banks due to sediment. Rivers also change their landscape through their transportation of sediment , often known as alluvium when applied specifically to rivers. This debris comes from erosion performed by

10767-625: The river. A country that is downstream of another may object to the upstream country diverting too much water for agricultural uses, pollution, as well as the creation of dams that change the river's flow characteristics. For example, Egypt has an agreement with Sudan requiring a specific minimum volume of water to pass into the Nile yearly over the Aswan Dam , to maintain both countries access to water. The importance of rivers throughout human history has given them an association with life and fertility . They have also become associated with

10878-457: The rivers themselves, debris swept into rivers by rainfall, as well as erosion caused by the slow movement of glaciers. The sand in deserts and the sediment that forms bar islands is from rivers. The particle size of the debris is gradually sorted by the river, with heavier particles like rocks sinking to the bottom, and finer particles like sand or silt carried further downriver . This sediment may be deposited in river valleys or carried to

10989-412: The rivers. Due to these impermeable surfaces, these rivers often have very little alluvium carried in them, causing more erosion once the river exits the impermeable area. It has historically been common for sewage to be directed directly to rivers via sewer systems without being treated, along with pollution from industry. This has resulted in a loss of animal and plant life in urban rivers, as well as

11100-544: The route north of Watervliet to the county line was realigned, smoothing several sharp curves. The construction of the I-196/US ;31 freeway around the South Haven area impacted the northern terminus of M-140 in the 1960s. When it opened in 1963, BL I-196 was shown on maps as continuing north along M-140 into town to a junction with M-43. In 1972, the business loop was rerouted, and M-140 was truncated to end at

11211-409: The sea from their mouths. Depending on the activity of waves, the strength of the river, and the strength of the tidal current, the sediment can accumulate to form new land. When viewed from above, a delta can appear to take the form of several triangular shapes as the river mouth appears to fan out from the original coastline . In hydrology , a stream order is a positive integer used to describe

11322-414: The sea to breed in freshwater rivers are anadromous. Salmon are an anadromous fish that may die in the river after spawning, contributing nutrients back to the river ecosystem. Modern river engineering involves a large-scale collection of independent river engineering structures that have the goal of flood control , improved navigation, recreation, and ecosystem management. Many of these projects have

11433-519: The spread of waterborne diseases such as cholera . In modern times, sewage treatment and controls on pollution from factories have improved the water quality of urban rivers. Climate change can change the flooding cycles and water supply available to rivers. Floods can be larger and more destructive than expected, causing damage to the surrounding areas. Floods can also wash unhealthy chemicals and sediment into rivers. Droughts can be deeper and longer, causing rivers to run dangerously low. This

11544-502: The state of Michigan. The lower Pigeon River is home to the federally endangered Indiana Bat. In 1969, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources began stocking the lower 23 miles (37 km) of the river for steelhead trout ( Oncorhynchus mykiss ), Chinook salmon ( Oncorhynchus tshawytscha ) and coho salmon ( Oncorhynchus kisutch ). In 1975, Michigan constructed a fish ladder at the Berrien Springs Dam to enable

11655-410: The surface of the Earth. Rivers flow in channeled watercourses and merge in confluences to form drainage basins , areas where surface water eventually flows to a common outlet. Rivers have a great effect on the landscape around them. They may regularly overflow their banks and flood the surrounding area, spreading nutrients to the surrounding area. Sediment or alluvium carried by rivers shapes

11766-626: The trunkline curves through residential neighborhoods to the northeast around the east end of Paw Paw Lake . M-140 crosses into western Van Buren County about five miles (8.0 km) north of Watervliet. The highway crosses, and parallels, the Van Buren Trail in Covert . In South Haven Township , M-140 connects the South Haven Area Regional Airport with the I-196/US 31 freeway; north of this interchange,

11877-548: The trunkline follows Main Street eastward toward the Berrien– Cass county line. M-140 intersects the northern terminus of M-62 and curves north. In northern Berrien County, M-140 follows Watervliet Road to an interchange with Interstate 94 (I-94). The highway continues northward along Main Street into Watervliet, running through the middle of town and intersecting Red Arrow Highway , the former US 12 . North of downtown,

11988-582: The trunkline has not been listed on the National Highway System , a network of roads important to the country's economy, defense, and mobility. The State Trunkline Highway System was created on May 13, 1913, by an act of the Michigan Legislature ; at the time, one of the system's divisions corresponded to the initial segment of M-140. Division 5 followed a course from Niles northward to Mackinaw City that encompassed

12099-545: The virgin forests were mostly logged, and the prairies largely converted to agricultural use, as were many drained wetlands. Among the unique natural features that remain in the watershed are prairie fens , coastal plain marshes, bogs , floodplain forests, hardwood swamps, and moist hardwood forests. Rare plants include prairie dropseed ( Sporobolus heterolepis ), rosinweed, tall beak rush, and umbrella grass. The wetlands and floodplain forests provide habitat to nearly half of all migratory birds in Indiana and Michigan and are

12210-633: The water power rights on the West Race canal, while Samuel L. Cottrell purchased the water rights along the East Race canal. In 1867 the South Bend Hydraulic Company purchased the rights to the East Race canal for $ 100. In 1903 the ownership of stock, property rights, and property of the South Bend Manufacturing Company on the West Race canal passed to the Oliver Chilled Plow Works . Over the next two years

12321-568: Was called by the Miami people, was inhabited for thousands of years by various indigenous tribes as it served an essential trade avenue in the Great Lakes region. The most recent indigenous inhabitants of the area were the Miami and Potawatomi peoples. Two different portages allowed nearly continuous travel by canoe among different watersheds of the region. The first major transfer point was at

#17982