The Neosho 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

Arkansas River The Arkansas River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River. It generally flows to the east and southeast as it traverses the U.S. states of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The river's source basin lies in Colorado, specifically ...

in eastern

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

and northeastern

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

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 ...

. Its tributaries also drain portions of

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

and

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

. The

river A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...

is about long.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data
The National Map
accessed May 31, 2011 Via the Arkansas, it is part of the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

watershed. Its name is an Osage word meaning "clear water." The lower section is also known as the Grand River.

Course

The Neosho's headwaters are in Morris County, Kansas, and it flows southeast through Kansas. In Ottawa County, Oklahoma, the river turns south-southwest for the remainder of its course through Oklahoma. It meets the Arkansas River near the city of Muskogee, about a mile downstream of the confluence of the Arkansas River and the Verdigris River. The area of convergence of the three rivers Arkansas, Verdigris and Neosho is called "Three Forks." In Oklahoma the Neosho ends at its confluence with Spring River at the Twin Bridges Area at Grand Lake State Park. From that point on it is called the Grand River. The Grand River flows south to the Grand Lake.

Dams

The Neosho has been

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, aqua ...

med at several points along its course, in most cases by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. In Kansas, a dam upstream of Council Grove forms Council Grove Lake, and a dam near New Strawn forms John Redmond Reservoir. There are also 12 dams in between John Redmond and the Kansas border, including lowhead dams at Burlington, Neosho Falls, Ottawa, Iola, Humboldt, two near Chanute and Erie. It was also dammed to provide water for the city of Parsons, and is also dammed at the former Kansas Gas & Electric Power Plant at Strauss, as well as at Oswego and Chetopa. In Oklahoma, Pensacola Dam at Langley forms the Neosho's largest reservoir, the Grand Lake o' the Cherokees. Robert S. Kerr Dam near Locust Grove forms Lake Hudson, (also known as Markham Ferry Reservoir), and a dam upstream of Fort Gibson forms Fort Gibson Lake.

Tributaries

In Kansas, the Neosho is joined by the Cottonwood River in Lyon County. In Oklahoma, it is joined by the Spring River in Ottawa County and the Elk River in Delaware County.

Cities and towns along the river

* Americus, Kansas * Burlington, Kansas * Chetopa, Kansas *

Chanute, Kansas Chanute () is a city in Neosho County, Kansas, Neosho County, Kansas, United States. Founded on January 1, 1873, it was named after railroad engineer and aviation pioneer Octave Chanute. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the po ...

* Chouteau, Oklahoma *

Council Grove, Kansas Council Grove is a city in and the county seat of Morris County, Kansas, Morris County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 2,140. It was named after an agreement between Ame ...

* Disney, Oklahoma *

Emporia, Kansas Emporia is a city in and the county seat of Lyon County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 24,139. Emporia lies between Topeka, Kansas, Topeka and Wichita, Kansas, Wichita ...

* Erie, Kansas * Fort Gibson, Oklahoma * Grand Lake Towne, Oklahoma * Hartford, Kansas * Humboldt, Kansas *

Iola, Kansas Iola () is the county seat of Allen County, Kansas, United States. The city is situated along the Neosho River in southeast Kansas. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 5,396. It is named in honor o ...

* Langley, Oklahoma *

Le Roy, Kansas LeRoy is a city in Coffey County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 451. History LeRoy was founded in 1855. It was named after the city of Le Roy, Illinois. The first post office in LeRoy (a name ...

* Miami, Oklahoma * Neosho Falls, Kansas * Neosho Rapids, Kansas * Oswego, Kansas * Parkerville, Kansas * Pensacola, Oklahoma * Pin Oak Acres, Oklahoma * Salina, Oklahoma * Strang, Oklahoma * St. Paul, Kansas * Shaw, Kansas * Rollin, Kansas * Petrolia, Kansas * Bassett, Kansas * Strauss, Kansas * Laneville, Kansas * Montana, Kansas * Hoag, Kansas * Saulkner, Kansas * Harmon, Kansas

Variant names

According to the

Geographic Names Information System The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is a database of name and location information about more than two million physical and cultural features, encompassing the United States and its territories; the Compact of Free Association, asso ...

, the Neosho River has also been known as: * Grand River, particularly past the confluence of the Neosho and Spring rivers in Oklahoma—see Grand River (Oklahoma) * Le Grande Riviere * Nee Ozho River * Neozhoo River * Ni-u-sho River * Niocho River * Nion-chou River * Noshow River * Osage River * Rio Blanco * Six Bulls River

References

External links

{{authority control Rivers of Kansas Rivers of Oklahoma Tributaries of the Arkansas River Rivers of Allen County, Kansas Rivers of Morris County, Kansas Rivers of Lyon County, Kansas Rivers of Ottawa County, Oklahoma Rivers of Labette County, Kansas Rivers of Mayes County, Oklahoma Rivers of Neosho County, Kansas Rivers of Woodson County, Kansas Rivers of Lincoln County, Kansas Rivers of Coffey County, Kansas Kansas placenames of Native American origin Oklahoma placenames of Native American origin