The Osage River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data
The National Map
, accessed May 31, 2011 tributary of the Missouri River in central

Missouri Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. The eighth-largest river in the state, it drains a mostly rural area of . The watershed includes an area of east-central

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to th ...

and a large portion of west-central and central Missouri, where it drains northwest areas of the Ozark Plateau. The river flows generally easterly, then northeasterly for the final where it joins the Missouri River. It is impounded in two major locations. Most of the river has been converted into a chain of two reservoirs, the Harry S. Truman Reservoir and the

Lake of the Ozarks Lake of the Ozarks is a reservoir created by impounding the Osage River in the northern part of the Ozarks in central Missouri. Parts of three smaller tributaries to the Osage are included in the impoundment: the Niangua River, Grandglaize Cr ...

Description

The Osage is formed in southwestern Missouri, approximately northeast of

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...

on the Bates- Vernon County line, by the confluence of the Marais des Cygnes and Little Osage Rivers; the Marais des Cygnes is sometimes counted as part of the river, placing its headwaters in eastern

and bringing its total length to over . The combined stream flows east past the Schell-Osage Wildlife Area into St. Clair County, widening into a long

meander A meander is one of a series of regular sinuous curves in the channel of a river or other watercourse. It is produced as a watercourse erodes the sediments of an outer, concave bank ( cut bank) and deposits sediments on an inner, convex ba ...

ing arm of the Harry S. Truman Reservoir, approximately long. The lake receives the

South Grand River The South Grand River is a stream in Bates, Cass, Henry and Benton counties of west central Missouri. It is a tributary of the Osage River. The stream headwaters are in Cass County at the confluence of Massey Creek and East Creek at three mile ...

as a second arm of the reservoir from the northwest, as well as the Pomme de Terre River from the south. The two arms of the reservoir join near the Harry S. Truman Dam in central Benton County. Downstream from the Truman Dam, the river becomes the serpentine

, stretching eastward for nearly to

Bagnell Dam Bagnell Dam (informally, the Osage Dam) impounds the Osage River in the U.S. state of Missouri, creating the Lake of the Ozarks. The dam is located in the city of Lakeside in Miller County, near the Camden-Miller County line. The tall concrete ...

in Camden County and southwestern Miller County. Constructed in 1931, the dam collects the

Niangua River The Niangua River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed May 31, 2011 tributary of the Osage River in the Ozarks region of southern and central Missouri in the United Stat ...

. Downstream from the dam, the Osage flows freely to the northeast in broad

oxbow __NOTOC__ An oxbow is a U-shaped metal pole (or larger wooden frame) that fits the underside and the sides of the neck of an ox or bullock. A bow pin holds it in place. The term " oxbow" is widely used to refer to a U-shaped meander in a rive ...

meanders through forested bluffs, joining the Missouri approximately east and downstream of

Jefferson City Jefferson City, informally Jeff City, is the capital of Missouri, United States. It had a population of 43,228 at the 2020 census, ranking as the 15th most populous city in the state. It is also the county seat of Cole County and the principa ...

History

The river is named for the Osage Nation, the historic indigenous people who dominated this region at the time when the first

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

an settlers arrived. The river presented significant navigation difficulties for early settlers because of its fluctuating water levels, as well as the presence of shallow pools and sand bars caused by its tight meandering course through the hills. The

Missouri Legislature The Missouri General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Missouri. The bicameral General Assembly is composed of a 34-member Senate and a 163-member House of Representatives. Members of both houses of the General Assembly are ...

attempted as early as 1839 to deepen the channel of the river. Early attempts failed because of lack of funding for the immense task. Commercial navigation on the river in the 19th century was confined mostly to smaller craft that could navigate the tight bends and shoals of the river. Improvements in the channel by the last two decades of the century led to greater commercial traffic. These changes made the lower reaches of the river navigable for steamboat commerce for a period of six to nine months out of the year. In the 20th century, federal construction of the

, primarily to generate

hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined an ...

, began in 1922 and was completed after nine years. It effectively ended commercial navigation on the river. The Truman Dam was authorized by the federal

Flood Control Act In the United States, there are multiple laws known as the Flood Control Act (FCA). Typically, they are enacted to control irrigation because of floods or other natural disasters and are administered by the United States Army Corps of Engineers. Th ...

of 1954 and was completed in 1979. The two dams on the river generate power for the

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

metropolitan area. The large reservoirs have become popular tourist destinations and recreation areas in the region.

References

External links

Description

History

See also

References

External links