Shell River (Minnesota)

The Shell River is a 47.8-mile-long (76.9 km)[3] tributary of the Crow Wing River in north-central Minnesota in the United States. Via the Crow Wing River, it is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River, draining a rural region.

Shell River
The Shell River in Straight River Township in 2007
Location of the mouth of the Shell River in Crow Wing Lake Township
Location
Country	United States
State	Minnesota
Physical characteristics
Source	Shell Lake
• location	Carsonville Township, Becker County
• coordinates	46°56′50″N 95°24′39″W[1]
• elevation	1,519 ft (463 m)[2]
Mouth	Crow Wing River
• location	Crow Wing Lake Township, Hubbard County
• coordinates	46°48′26″N 94°53′16″W[1]
• elevation	1,362 ft (415 m)[2]
Length	47.8 mi (76.9 km)[3]
Discharge
• location	at mouth[4]
• average	250 cu ft/s (7.1 m^3/s)[4]
Basin features
Tributaries
• left	Fish Hook River
• right	Blueberry River

The river was named for mussel and clam shells found along the river and along Shell Lake, its origin.[5]

Geography

The Shell River issues from Shell Lake approximately 3 miles (5 km) southwest of Pine Point in Carsonville Township in eastern Becker County, and initially flows southeastwardly through the Smoky Hills State Forest into southwestern Hubbard County and northwestern Wadena County, to Blueberry Lake, which collects the Blueberry River. From Blueberry Lake, the Shell River flows eastwardly in a winding course through northern Wadena and southern Hubbard counties, passing through Huntersville State Forest and collecting the Fish Hook River from the north. It flows into the Crow Wing River in Crow Wing Lake Township in Hubbard County.[6] The Shell River is the Crow Wing River's first significant tributary, and is substantially the larger of the two at their confluence; the Shell's average discharge of 250 cubic feet per second (7 m³/s) is approximately three times the Crow Wing's discharge above the confluence.[4]

The Shell River flows in the Northern Lakes and Forests ecoregion, which is characterized by conifer and hardwood forests on flat and rolling till plains and outwash plains.[7] The lower course of the river below Blueberry Lake can be canoed, and supports a sport fishing population of northern pike. Clams are present in great quantities on the river bottom, and the former community of Shell City in Shell River Township was once the site of a button factory which made use of their shells.[4]

See also

• List of rivers of Minnesota

References

1. "Geographic Names Information System entry for Shell River (Feature ID #651945)". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. Retrieved 2007-06-24.
2. Google Earth elevation for GNIS coordinates. Retrieved on 2007-06-24.
3. U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. The National Map, accessed December 26, 2012
4. Waters, Thomas F. (2006). "The Crow Wing: Oxcart to Canoe". The Streams and Rivers of Minnesota. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. pp. 184–194. ISBN 0-8166-0960-8.
5. Upham, Warren. "Minnesota Place Names: A Geographical Encyclopedia". Minnesota Historical Society. pp. Wadena County: Shell River Township. Archived from the original on 2007-06-20. Retrieved 2007-06-24.
6. Minnesota Atlas & Gazetteer. Yarmouth, Me.: DeLorme. 1994. pp. 60–61. ISBN 0-89933-222-6.
7. "Upper Mississippi River Basin". Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. 2000. pp. Upper Mississippi River Basin Water Quality Plan, Headwaters to the Rum River - Anoka, Section III: Upper Mississippi River Basin. Archived from the original on 2007-06-18. Retrieved 2007-06-17.