Menomonee River

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View of Menomonee River looking east from the James E. Groppi Unity Bridge (a.k.a. 16th Street Viaduct).
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View of Menomonee River looking east from the James E. Groppi Unity Bridge (a.k.a. 16th Street Viaduct).

The Menomonee River is one of three primary rivers found in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

[edit] Description

Named after the Menomonee (also spelled Menominee) Indians, the word literally means "good seed," referring to the abundant wild rice that once grew along its shores in the Menomonee Valley. A tributary of the Milwaukee River, it is the most industrialized within the Milwaukee River Basin.

[edit] Watershed

The Menomonee River watershed covers approximately 140 square miles of urban landscape which is home to a population of more than 336,670 people. This includes portions of Washington, Ozaukee, Waukesha, and Milwaukee Counties. A large swath of it has been heavily channeled and industrialized as it runs through the Menomonee Valley. This has become a primary source of pollution for the river.

Its estuary empties in to Lake Michigan from the Milwaukee River near the Milwaukee harbor, along with the Kinnickinnic River to the south.

[edit] External links