List of rivers of Nebraska facts for kids
Nebraska is a state in the central United States, and it's home to many important rivers. These rivers are like the veins of the land, bringing water across the state. They are super important for many things, like farming, providing homes for animals, and offering fun places for people to visit.
This article will tell you about some of the main rivers in Nebraska. Many of these rivers eventually flow into the mighty Missouri River, which is one of the longest rivers in North America!
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Rivers by How They Connect
Rivers often have smaller rivers or streams that flow into them. These smaller rivers are called tributaries. Think of a tree: the main trunk is the big river, and the branches are its tributaries. Here's how some of Nebraska's rivers connect, starting with the biggest one they flow into: the Missouri River.
Missouri River
The Missouri River forms a big part of Nebraska's eastern border. It's a huge river that collects water from many other rivers across the state.
- Niobrara River: This river is known for its beautiful scenery and is a popular spot for canoeing and kayaking. It has many smaller streams that flow into it, like:
- Snake River
- Long Pine Creek
- Keya Paha River
- Verdigre Creek
- Eagle Creek
- Papillion Creek: This creek flows through eastern Nebraska, near the city of Omaha.
- Platte River: The Platte River is one of the most important rivers in Nebraska. It's quite wide and shallow in many places. It's formed by two main rivers joining together:
- North Platte River: This river starts in Colorado and Wyoming before flowing into Nebraska. It's important for irrigation, which means providing water for farms.
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- South Platte River: This river also starts in Colorado and joins the North Platte River to form the main Platte River.
- Other important rivers that join the Platte River include:
- Wood River
- Loup River: This river system has three main branches:
- North Loup River
- Middle Loup River
- Dismal River
- South Loup River
- Cedar River
- Elkhorn River: This river flows through northeastern Nebraska.
- South Fork Elkhorn River
- North Fork Elkhorn River
- Salt Creek: This creek flows near Lincoln, Nebraska's capital city. It gets its name because the water has a natural salty taste from underground salt deposits.
- Nishnabotna River: This river flows through parts of Iowa and Missouri, but its headwaters (where it starts) are in Nebraska.
- Little Nemaha River and Big Nemaha River: These two rivers flow through southeastern Nebraska before joining the Missouri River.
Kansas River System
Some rivers in southern Nebraska flow south into the Kansas River system, which then eventually joins the Missouri River further downstream.
- Republican River: This river flows through southwestern Nebraska. It's very important for farming in the area.
- Big Blue River: This river flows from Nebraska into Kansas.
- West Fork Big Blue River
- Little Blue River
Rivers in Alphabetical Order
Here is a shorter list of some of the main rivers and creeks in Nebraska, listed in alphabetical order:
- Arikaree River
- Big Blue River
- Big Nemaha River
- Calamus River
- Cedar River
- Dismal River
- Elkhorn River
- Frenchman Creek
- Keya Paha River
- Little Blue River
- Little Nemaha River
- Lodgepole Creek
- Long Pine Creek
- Loup River
- Middle Loup River
- Missouri River
- Niobrara River
- Nishnabotna River
- North Loup River
- North Platte River
- Papillion Creek
- Platte River
- Ponca Creek
- Republican River
- Red Willow Creek
- Rock Creek
- Salt Creek
- Sappa Creek
- Snake River
- South Loup River
- South Platte River
- White River
- Wood River
See also
