Where The Rivers Merge - Columbia Bottoms C.A. - St. Louis County, MO
Posted by: 
YoSam.
N 38° 48.826 W 090° 07.585
15S E 749501 N 4300034
Riverboats, flood waters, and growing crops, what the river brings.
Waymark Code: WM3G5M
Location: Missouri, United States
Date Posted: 04/01/2008
Views: 27
Marker Erected by: Missouri Department of Conservation.
County of Marker: Saint Louis County.
Location of Marker: Columbia Bottoms Conservation Area, confluence parking, Spanish Lake.
Marker Text:
Early explorers marveled at the vast resources along the Missouri and Mississippi rivers. Boatmen reported fish large enough to upset canoes and described fertile wetlands arranged along the river edges as pearls on a necklace. Just as you are here, people have always been drawn to this powerful place.
River use changed over the centuries and the Missouri River and Mississippi River were altered to meet demands. Riverboats loaded with people no longer travel the streams. Instead, roadways line the banks to bring explorers back to the beauty of the river. Many needs have shaped the rivers that now flow past dams and levees for controlling floods. Waters float barges loaded with grain and coal, meet the needs of agriculture and generate electricity. The rivers are priceless resources.
The flood of 1993 reconnected the rivers with much of their historic floodplains, giving all within reach a new respect for the power of all rivers. Several government agencies, including the Missouri Department of Conservation, have come together with a new vision for the rivers. Their goal is to reconnect the life-giving waters with areas of floodplain. The nation is awakening to the role that people play as stewards of the great rivers.
Explorer's Note:
How deep was the floodwater of 1993 at this spot?
The tip of the 15-foot pole above you marks the water level.