The Mazon River or Mazon Creek (), 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
Illinois River
The Illinois River () is a principal tributary of the Mississippi River at approximately in length. Located in the U.S. state of Illinois, the river has a drainage basin of . The Illinois River begins with the confluence of the Des Plaines ...
in the United States. The
confluence
In geography, a confluence (also ''conflux'') occurs where two or more watercourses join to form a single channel (geography), channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river (main ...
is near
Morris, Illinois
Morris is a city in and the county seat of Grundy County, Illinois, Grundy County, Illinois, United States and part of the southwest Chicago metropolitan area. The population was 14,163 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census.
A team of ...
.
The Mazon River is associated with the
Mazon Creek fossils of the Francis Creek Shale, which are also exposed in strip mines and quarries near the River. This fossil bed includes well-preserved fossils from the
Pennsylvanian period of the
Paleozoic
The Paleozoic ( , , ; or Palaeozoic) Era is the first of three Era (geology), geological eras of the Phanerozoic Eon. Beginning 538.8 million years ago (Ma), it succeeds the Neoproterozoic (the last era of the Proterozoic Eon) and ends 251.9 Ma a ...
era and is a world-famous
Lagerstätten site.
The Mazon River is approximately in length,
[U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data]
The National Map
, accessed May 13, 2011 with the West Fork considered the main branch.
The river was named in honor of William Mason, a pioneer settler.
Cities and counties
The following cities, towns and villages are within the Mazon watershed:
*
Braidwood
*
Coal City
*
Dwight
*
Gardner
*
Mazon Mazon may refer to:
Places in the United States
* Mazon, Illinois, a village
* Mazon Creek fossils
* Mazon River
* Mazon station, Mazon, Illinois
* Mazon Township, Grundy County, Illinois
Organizations
*MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger, a nonpro ...
*
Morris
The following counties are at least partly drained by the Mazon River:
*
Grundy County
*
Kankakee County
*
Livingston County
*
Will County
See also
*
List of Illinois rivers
This is a list of rivers in the U.S. state of Illinois:
By drainage basin
Gulf of Mexico
* Mississippi River
**Ohio River
*** Lusk Creek
*** Saline River
*** Wabash River
**** Little Wabash River
***** Skillet Fork
***** Elm River
***** Fox Rive ...
References
External links
American WhitewaterPrairie State CanoeistsPrairie Rivers NetworkUSGS Real-time Stream Gage Mazon RiverUpper Illinois/Mazon River watershed map (PDF)
Tributaries of the Illinois River
Rivers of Illinois
Rivers of Grundy County, Illinois
Rivers of Kankakee County, Illinois
Rivers of Livingston County, Illinois
Rivers of Will County, Illinois
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