Blue Earth River

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The Blue Earth River is a tributary of the Minnesota River in an agricultural region of south-central Minnesota in the United States; it also drains a small portion of northern Iowa. Via the Minnesota, it is part of the Mississippi River watershed. It drains an area of 3,556 mi² (9210 km²) -- 3,106 mi² (8044 km²) of it in Minnesota and 450 mi² (1165 km²) in Iowa.

Contents 1 Course 2 Tributaries 3 See also 4 References

[edit] Course

The Blue Earth rises as three streams:

• The West Branch Blue Earth River rises in Kossuth County, Iowa near the town of Swea City and flows northeastwardly into Faribault County, Minnesota.

• The Middle Branch Blue Earth River rises in Winnebago County, Iowa near the town of Buffalo Center and flows westwardly into Kossuth County, then northwardly into Faribault County, where it meets the West Branch north of Elmore. It sometimes is considered the main stem of the river, but is not the largest of the three streams.

• The East Branch Blue Earth River rises in Freeborn County, Minnesota and flows westwardly into Faribault County. It is the largest of the headwaters streams.

The East and West Branches converge at the town of Blue Earth and the main stream then flows generally northwardly in a highly meandering course for about 100 mi (161 km) through Blue Earth County, past the town of Vernon Center. It joins the Minnesota River in Mankato.

[edit] Tributaries

The Blue Earth River's chief tributaries are the Watonwan River and the Le Sueur River, both of which join it in Blue Earth County.

[edit] See also

• List of Minnesota rivers
• List of Iowa rivers

[edit] References

• Waters, Thomas F. (1977). The Streams and Rivers of Minnesota. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. ISBN 0-8166-0960-8.