The Floyd River is a

tributary A tributary, or an ''affluent'', is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream (''main stem'' or ''"parent"''), river, or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries, and the main stem river into which they ...

of the

Missouri River The Missouri River is a river in the Central United States, Central and Mountain states, Mountain West regions of the United States. The nation's longest, it rises in the eastern Centennial Mountains of the Bitterroot Range of the Rocky Moun ...

, long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data
The National Map
, accessed March 30, 2011 in northwestern

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. It enters the Missouri at Sioux City, and is named for Charles Floyd, a member of the

Lewis and Clark Expedition The Lewis and Clark Expedition, also known as the Corps of Discovery Expedition, was the United States expedition to cross the newly acquired western portion of the country after the Louisiana Purchase. The Corps of Discovery was a select gro ...

Course

The Floyd River rises in northwestern O'Brien County near the town of Sanborn and flows generally southwestwardly through

Sioux The Sioux or Oceti Sakowin ( ; Dakota/ Lakota: ) are groups of Native American tribes and First Nations people from the Great Plains of North America. The Sioux have two major linguistic divisions: the Dakota and Lakota peoples (translati ...

Plymouth Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tamar, Tamar, about southwest of Exeter and ...

and Woodbury counties, past the towns of Sheldon, Hospers, Alton, Le Mars, Merill, and Hinton. At Merrill the Floyd collects its largest tributary, the West Branch Floyd River, which is about 40 mi (65 km) long. The West Branch rises near Boyden in northeastern Sioux County and flows generally southward into Plymouth County, past Maurice and Struble. The Floyd enters Woodbury County near the

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

neighborhood of Sioux City. The Floyd River has come out of its banks on several occasions, causing disastrous flooding in Sioux City in 1892 and 1953. The river has since been the focus of an intensive

flood control Flood management or flood control are methods used to reduce or prevent the detrimental effects of flood waters. Flooding can be caused by a mix of both natural processes, such as extreme weather upstream, and human changes to waterbodies and ru ...

project. The Floyd's lower channel through Sioux City has been straightened, channelized, lined with riprap and banked by a high earthen

levee A levee ( or ), dike (American English), dyke (British English; see American and British English spelling differences#Miscellaneous spelling differences, spelling differences), embankment, floodbank, or stop bank is an elevated ridge, natural ...

. The Floyd River is the site of frequent

fish kill The term fish kill, known also as fish die-off, refers to a localized mass mortality event, mass die-off of fish populations which may also be associated with more generalized mortality of aquatic life.University of Florida. Gainesville, FL (200 ...

s caused by runoff of massive amounts of animal waste from farm

feedlot A feedlot or feed yard is a type of animal feeding operation (AFO) which is used in intensive animal farming, notably beef cattle, but also swine, horses, sheep, turkeys, chickens or ducks, prior to slaughter. Large beef feedlots are called conc ...

s into the river.

Charles Floyd

Lewis clark Boyer soldier littlesioux floyd

Charles Floyd, for whom the river is named, was a U.S. Army

sergeant Sergeant (Sgt) is a Military rank, rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and in other units that draw their heritage f ...

who was born in

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

and was one of the first to enlist in the

. On August 19, 1804, just three months into the two-year journey, Floyd became violently ill and died the next day of what is believed to have been a ruptured appendix. He was buried on a hill overlooking an unnamed river on the Iowa side of the

. In his honor, the expedition's leaders,

Meriwether Lewis Meriwether Lewis (August 18, 1774 – October 11, 1809) was an American explorer, soldier, politician, and public administrator, best known for his role as the leader of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, also known as the Corps of Discovery, with ...

and William Clark, named the river Floyd River and the hill Floyd's Bluff. Floyd was the expedition's only casualty, despite the many dangers encountered in the 8,000 miles traveled in reaching the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

and returning to St. Louis.

Gallery

File:Floyd River Le Mars.jpg, The Floyd River near Le Mars, Iowa File:Floyd River2.jpg, A channelized section of the Floyd River in Sioux City, just above its mouth at the

File:Missouri-Floyd Rivers Sioux City Iowa.jpg, Confluence of the Missouri and Floyd Rivers in Sioux City

Notes

References

Columbia Gazetteer of North America entry
*

DeLorme DeLorme Publishing Company is a producer of personal satellite tracking, messaging, and navigation technology. The company's main product, ''inReach'', integrates GPS and satellite technologies. ''inReach'' provides the ability to send and rec ...

(1998). ''Iowa Atlas & Gazetteer''. Yarmouth, Maine: DeLorme. . * {{authority control Rivers of Iowa Tributaries of the Missouri River Rivers of O'Brien County, Iowa Rivers of Plymouth County, Iowa Sioux City, Iowa Rivers of Sioux County, Iowa Rivers of Woodbury County, Iowa

Course

Charles Floyd

Gallery

See also

Notes

References