Geological Survey Water-Supply Paper Volume 265-269 (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1911 Excerpt: ...13,540 square miles in extent, lying in the heart of Nebraska. The Loup proper is formed by the junction of North and Middle Loup rivers, which unite near the city of St. Paul, the middle Loup in turn receiving the south Loup in the southwestern part of Howard County. The principal tributaries are Beaver, Cedar, Calamus, and Dismal creeks. A comparatively small amount of water is diverted for irrigation, the ditches generally being small and covering limited areas. A number of power plants are in operation and others of considerable extent have been proposed, particularly one near Columbus, by which it is believed that about 20,000 continuous horsepower may be developed. On Loup River the flow was probably lowest in 1895. LOUP RIVER AT COLUMBUS, NEBR. This station, which was established October 13, 1894, is located at the highway bridge in the outskirts of Columbus and about 3 miles above the mouth of the river, in sec. 25, T. 17 N., R. 1 W. The records show the total discharge of the river at its mouth, and are valuable in connection with power development. They show also the remarkably uniform flow of the stream. A comparatively small amount of water is diverted for irrigation. Records have usually been suspended during the winter months on account of the severe ice conditions. Measurements at this station are rough at best, owing to the soft and constantly shifting bed and the high and uneven velocity. Gage heights are only an approximate index of discharge, as the swift current changes the channel very rapidly, and at least one measurement a week would be required to give even fairly good results. No daily discharges have been computed for 1909, as any computation based on the data at hand would be misleading, and a fair idea of the discharge can be obt...