| Maquoketa River | |
|---|---|
 The North Fork of the Maquoketa River at Dyersville, Iowa in 1996 | |
 Maquoketa River highlighted | |
| Etymology | Maquaw-Autaw, "Bear River" in Meskwaki |
| Location | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Iowa |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | |
| • coordinates | 42°43′08″N 91°42′39″W / 42.7189°N 91.7107°W |
| Mouth | Mississippi River |
• elevation | 591 ft (180 m) |
| Length | 150 mi (240 km) |
| Discharge | |
| • location | Maquoketa, IA |
| • average | 1,141 cu/ft. per sec.[1] |
| U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Maquoketa River | |
The Maquoketa River is a tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately 150 miles (240 km) long,[2] in northeastern Iowa in the United States. Its watershed covers 1,694 square miles (4,387 km2)[3] within a rural region of rolling hills and farmland southwest of Dubuque. It is not to be confused with the Little Maquoketa River, another distinct direct tributary of the Upper Mississippi River meeting the Big River north of Dubuque. The river and its tributaries mark the border of the Driftless Area of Iowa, with the areas east of it not having been covered by ice during the last ice age. Its name derives from Maquaw-Autaw, which means "Bear River" in Meskwaki.[4]
- ^ "USGS Current Conditions for USGS 05418500 Maquoketa River near Maquoketa, IA".
- ^ U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. The National Map Archived 2012-03-29 at the Wayback Machine, accessed May 13, 2011
- ^ "Evaluating Agricultural Nonpoint Loadings on Pool 13 from Maquoketa River Watershed, Iowa", USGS, Retrieved July 18, 2007
- ^ "Maquoketa as the Centre of Trade". Maquoketa Jackson Sentinel. May 12, 1870.