The Raccoon River is a 30.8-mile-long (49.6 km) tributary of the Des Moines River in central Iowa in the United States. As measured using the longest of its three forks, its length increases to 226 miles (364 km). Via the Des Moines River, it is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River. The river runs through an intensely cultivated area of croplands and livestock farming, receiving Tile drainage from slow-draining rich natural bottomland.
The Raccoon River at Van Meter
Raccoon River viewed upstream from its mouth in Des Moines. Principal Park is at right.
The Des Moines River is a tributary of the Mississippi River in the upper Midwestern United States that is approximately 525 miles (845 km) long from its farther headwaters. The largest river flowing across the state of Iowa, it rises in southern Minnesota and flows across Iowa from northwest to southeast, passing from the glaciated plains into the unglaciated hills near the capital city of Des Moines, named after the river, in the center of the state. The river continues to flow in a southeastern direction away from Des Moines, later flowing directly into the Mississippi River.
The Des Moines River upstream of Ottumwa, Iowa
The Des Moines as it was depicted in 1718 by Guillaume Delisle; modern Iowa highlighted.
The Des Moines River, as it flows through downtown Des Moines, west bank, during spring high water; note the old watermarks on the flood wall.
Flood of Des Moines, 1851