Alabama
Alabama is a mapped river in the YearMaps hydrographic index. River courses organise settlement, agriculture and frontier-making more durably than any political boundary, and this reach is indexed against the dams, lakes and cities within its catchment.
- Feature Class
- River
- Coordinates
- 32.41°, -86.63°
About Alabama
The Alabama River, in the U.S. state of Alabama, is formed by the Tallapoosa and Coosa rivers, which unite about 6 miles (10 km) north of Montgomery, near the town of Wetumpka.
Over a course of approximately 319 miles (513 km), the river meanders west towards Selma, then southwest until, about 45 miles (72 km) from Mobile, it unites with the Tombigbee, forming the Mobile and Tensaw rivers, which discharge via the Mobile–Tensaw Delta into Mobile Bay.
Encyclopedic summary adapted from Wikipedia: Alabama River (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Alabama in Depth
Description
The run of the Alabama is highly meandering. Its width varies from 50 to 200 yards (46 to 183 m), and its depth from 3 to 40 feet (1 to 12 m). Its length as measured by the United States Geological Survey is 318.5 miles (512.6 km), and by steamboat measurement, 420 miles (680 km).
The river crosses the richest agricultural and timber districts of the state. Railways connect it with the mineral regions of north-central Alabama.
After the Coosa and Tallapoosa rivers, the principal tributary of the Alabama is the Cahaba River, which is about 194 miles (312 km) long and joins the Alabama River about 10 miles (16 km) below Selma.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Alabama River (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Alabama: Key Facts
| Length | 640 km |
|---|---|
| Average discharge | 950 m³/s |
| Drainage basin | 106,000 km² |
| Source | Coosa River |
| Mouth | Mobile River |
| Drainage system | Alabama River drainage basin |
| Tributaries | Tallapoosa River, Coosa River, Cahaba River, Mulberry Creek, Catoma Creek |
Facts from Wikidata Q558643 (CC0).
Major River Dossiers
Hand-written studies of the great river systems of history.
Connected Reaches
Nearby watercourses in the same drainage network.
Water Bodies in the Catchment
Settlements Along the Reach
Hydraulic Infrastructure Nearby
Surrounding Terrain
Alabama: Quick Answers
- Where is Alabama?
- Alabama is located in United States, at 32.4063° N, 86.6270° W.
- Are there dams on the Alabama?
- No dam on the Alabama is recorded in the YearMaps dam index, which covers major structures only.