St. Francis River (Minnesota)

St. Francis River
The St. Francis River in the Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge in 2007
St. Francis River (Minnesota) is located in Minnesota
St. Francis River (Minnesota)
Location of mouth
Location
CountryUnited States
StateMinnesota
Physical characteristics
Source 
 • locationAlberta Township, Benton County
 • coordinates45°48′29″N 93°53′31″W / 45.80806°N 93.89194°W / 45.80806; -93.89194[1]
 • elevation1,247 ft (380 m)[2]
MouthElk River
 • location
Big Lake Township, Sherburne County
 • coordinates
45°21′33″N 93°44′14″W / 45.35917°N 93.73722°W / 45.35917; -93.73722[1]
 • elevation
912 ft (278 m)[2]
Length79 mi (127 km)[3]
Discharge 
 • locationBig Lake, MN
 • average108 cu/ft. per sec.[4]

The Saint Francis River is a 79.0-mile-long (127.1 km) tributary of the Elk River in east-central Minnesota in the United States.[3] Via the Elk River, it is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River, draining an area historically characterized by mixed hardwood and coniferous forests on flat to rolling till plains.[5]

The St. Francis River rises in Alberta Township in northeastern Benton County, and flows generally southwardly through eastern Benton County, passing to the east of Foley and collecting a minor tributary known as the West Branch St. Francis River.[6] The river turns eastward in northern Sherburne County, and flows south- and southwestwardly through the Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge and Sand Dunes State Forest. It joins the Elk River in Big Lake Township in southern Sherburne County, approximately one mile (2 km) north of the city of Big Lake.[7] Canoeing is possible on some stretches of the river during periods of high water.[8]

  1. ^ a b "Geographic Names Information System entry for Saint Francis River (Feature ID #650587)". Geographic Names Information System. Retrieved 2007-06-08.
  2. ^ a b Google Earth elevation for GNIS coordinates. Retrieved on 2007-06-08.
  3. ^ a b U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. The National Map, accessed November 29, 2012
  4. ^ "USGS Surface Water data for Minnesota: USGS Surface-Water Annual Statistics".
  5. ^ "Upper Mississippi River Basin". Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. January 2004. pp. Upper Mississippi River Basin Water Quality Plan Summary, Headwaters to the Rum River at Anoka. Archived from the original on 2007-06-18. Retrieved 2007-06-08.
  6. ^ "Geographic Names Information System entry for West Branch Saint Francis River (Feature ID #653938)". Geographic Names Information System. Retrieved 2007-06-08.
  7. ^ Minnesota Atlas & Gazetteer. Yarmouth, Me.: DeLorme. 1994. pp. 28–29. ISBN 0-89933-222-6.
  8. ^ Waters, Thomas F. (2006). "The Mississippi: I. The North Woods". The Streams and Rivers of Minnesota. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. pp. 195–215. ISBN 0-8166-0960-8.