The Missouri River

The Gavins Point Dam, pictured here, was one of many to flood the Missouri River.

U.S. Department of Energy

Quick Facts

Location:

Toe Rd, Crofton, NE 68730

Significance:

Members of the Lewis and Clark expedition traveled up and down the Missouri River in 1804–1805 and 1806. Indigenous people living in villages along the river traded, offered hospitality, and provided guidance to them along the way.

Designation:

Dams built by the U.S. government in the twentieth century have radically changed the Missouri River.

MANAGED BY:

US Army Corps of Engineers

Amenities

18 listed

Beach/Water Access, Boat Ramp, Dock/Pier, Electrical Hookup - Boat/RV, Fire Pit, Grill, Pets Allowed, Picnic Shelter/Pavilion, Picnic Table, Playground, Sewer Hookups - Boat/RV, Showers, Tent Campsites, Toilet - Flush, Toilet - Vault/Composting, Trash/Litter Receptacles, Water - Drinking/Potable, Water - Hookup - Boat/RV

Time and human intervention have changed the Niobrara and Missouri Rivers. In 1804, Sergeant John Ordway described a landscape teeming with deer and large flocks of geese. He noted rich river bottoms “covered with different kinds of Timber.” For Ponca people who called the area home, the land and rivers provided physical and spiritual nourishment.  

In the 200 years since Ordway wrote those words, the construction of settlements, farms, dams, and other infrastructure have altered the rivers and surrounding landscape. 

Today, farms and ranches cover the prairies above the river. Pollution from nearby towns and cities leaches into the river, affecting fish and other wildlife. Most significantly, the closest upstream dam, the Gavins Point Dam, slows the current of the Missouri and catches the mud it would naturally wash downstream.  

Built in 1952, Gavins Point was one of many dams that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers constructed on the Missouri River as part of the Missouri Basin Program (also commonly called the Pick-Sloan Plan). Congress voted to build these dams, claiming that they were needed for flood control, irrigation, and hydroelectricity generation.

Before the dams, spring and summer rains frequently caused flooding along the Missouri. For Ponca people, the floods provided fertile soil and needed moisture for their gardens in the bottomlands.  

The dams mitigate floods, help to irrigate farms, and generate electricity. But what is lost when the river cannot flow freely? 

About this article: This article is part of series called “Pivotal Places: Stories from the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail.”

Lewis and Clark NHT Visitor Centers and Museums

Visitor Centers (shown in orange), High Potential Historic Sites (shown in black), and Pivotal Places (shown in green) along the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail