Skokie River
| Skokie River | |
|---|---|
Skokie River in the spring, taken from the bridge on Old Elm road in Lake Forest | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | |
| • location | North Chicago, Illinois |
| • coordinates | 42°18′42″N 87°52′22″W / 42.3116667°N 87.8727778°W |
| • elevation | 686 ft (209 m) |
| Mouth | |
• location | Confluence with the North Branch Chicago River, Northfield, Illinois |
• coordinates | 42°05′15″N 87°46′20″W / 42.0875°N 87.7722222°W |
• elevation | 614 ft (187 m) |
| Basin features | |
| Progression | Skokie River → North Branch Chicago River → Chicago River → Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal → Des Plaines River → Illinois River → Mississippi → Gulf of Mexico |
| GNIS ID | 418584 |
The Skokie River (or East Fork of the North Branch of the Chicago River) is a 20-mile-long (32 km) river that flows through the northern suburbs of Chicago, Illinois, United States. It flows almost parallel to the shore of Lake Michigan, and historically discharged its outflow into that lake via the Chicago River. However, the construction of the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal in 1900 caused the drainage of the Chicago River, including its Skokie River tributary, to flow southwestward towards the Mississippi River.
The Skokie River rises from a flat area, historically a wetland, on the west side of the city of Waukegan. Flowing southward through the North Shore suburbs of Lake County, the river enters Cook County and discharges its flow into the North Branch of the Chicago River at Wilmette Golf Club between Morton Grove and Wilmette. More than 1,100 houses occupy parcels of property located in New Trier Township within the Skokie River floodplain.