Churchill River (Hudson Bay)
The Churchill River (French: Rivière Churchill) is a major river in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, Canada. From the head of the Churchill Lake it is 1,609 kilometres (1,000 mi) long. It was named after John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough and governor of the Hudson's Bay Company from 1685 to 1691. The Cree name for the river is Missinipi, meaning "big waters". The Denesuline name for the river is des nëdhë́, meaning "Great River".
| Churchill River | |
|---|---|
Otter Rapids (Churchill River) | |
Churchill River Basin in Canada | |
Location of the mouth Churchill River (Hudson Bay) (Canada) | |
| Etymology | Named after John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough |
| Native name | |
| Location | |
| Country | Canada |
| Provinces |
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| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | Churchill Lake |
| • location | Saskatchewan |
| • coordinates | 56°6′22″N 108°14′46″W |
| • elevation | 412 m (1,352 ft) |
| Mouth | Hudson Bay |
• location | Manitoba |
• coordinates | 58°47′45″N 94°12′15″W |
• elevation | 0 m (0 ft) |
| Length | 1,609 km (1,000 mi) |
| Basin size | 281,300 km2 (108,600 sq mi) |
| Discharge | |
| • average | 1,200 m3/s (42,000 cu ft/s) |
| Basin features | |
| Tributaries | |
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| • right |
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The river is located entirely within the Canadian Shield. The drainage basin includes a number of lakes in Central-East Alberta which flow into a series of lakes in Saskatchewan and Manitoba. The main tributary, Beaver River, joins at Lac Île-à-la-Crosse.
Nistowiak Falls — the tallest falls in Saskatchewan — are on the Rapid River, which flows north, out of Lac la Ronge into Nistowiak Lake on the Churchill just north of La Ronge.
A large amount of flow of the Churchill River after Manitoba — Saskatchewan border comes from the Reindeer River, which flows from Wollaston and Reindeer Lakes. Flow from Reindeer Lake is regulated by the Whitesand Dam. From there, the Churchill River flows east through a series of lakes (Highrock, Granville, Southern Indian and Gauer), then flows via a diversion for hydro-electric generation into the Nelson River (60% of flow), and the rest flows as the Churchill River into Hudson Bay at Churchill, Manitoba (see also Nelson River Hydroelectric Project).