The Siuslaw River ( ) is a

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 ...

, about long, that flows to 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 ...

coast of

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

in the United States. It drains an area of about in the Central Oregon Coast Range southwest of the

Willamette Valley The Willamette Valley ( ) is a valley in Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. The Willamette River flows the entire length of the valley and is surrounded by mountains on three sides: the Cascade Range to the east, the ...

and north of the watershed of the

Umpqua River The Umpqua River ( ) on the Pacific coast of Oregon in the United States is approximately long. One of the principal rivers of the Oregon Coast and known for bass and shad, the river drains an expansive network of valleys in the mountains west ...

. It rises in the mountains of southwestern Lane County, about west of Cottage Grove. It flows generally west-northwest through the mountains, past Swisshome, entering the Pacific at

Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

. The head of tide is upstream. It is part of the homeland of the

Siuslaw people The Siuslaw are an Indigenous people of the Pacific Northwest. Their autonym is sha’yuushtl’a. Today Siuslaw people are enrolled with the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians and the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indi ...

, after whom it is named. Citizens of the Siuslaw nation lived in villages along the river until 1860 when they were forcibly removed to an

Indian reservation An American Indian reservation is an area of land land tenure, held and governed by a List of federally recognized tribes in the contiguous United States#Description, U.S. federal government-recognized Native American tribal nation, whose gov ...

in Yachats whereupon their homes, farms, gardens and villages were destroyed and occupied by U.S. settler-colonists. The valley of the river has been one of the productive timber regions in Oregon. The lower course of the river passes through Siuslaw National Forest. The

Coos Bay Coos Bay (Hanis language, Coos language: Atsixiis or Hanisich) is an estuary where the Coos River enters the Pacific Ocean, the estuary is approximately 12 miles long and up to two miles wide. It is the largest estuary completely within Oregon sta ...

branch of the Coos Bay Rail Link crosses many bridges as it follows the narrow, winding valley of the Siuslaw River to the swing bridge at Cushman. The river has historically been a spawning ground for Chinook and

coho COHO, short for Coherent Oscillator, is a technique used with radar systems based on the cavity magnetron to allow them to implement a moving target indicator display. Because the signals are only coherent when received, not transmitted, the concept ...

salmon. Although the Chinook population is substantial, coho numbers have declined from an annual average of 209,000 fish between 1889 and 1896 to just over 3,000 fish between 1990 and 1995. The

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime enviro ...

of the river is surrounded by extensive

wetlands A wetland is a distinct semi-aquatic ecosystem whose groundcovers are flooded or saturated in water, either permanently, for years or decades, or only seasonally. Flooding results in oxygen-poor ( anoxic) processes taking place, especially ...

that are a significant habitat for migratory birds along the coast. It is one of the very few Western Oregon rivers where all major forks are undammed.

References

External links

*
Oregon Coastal Atlas: Siuslaw River estuary
{{Authority control Rivers of Oregon Rivers of Lane County, Oregon Oregon placenames of Native American origin

See also

References

External links