Editing Colorado River (Texas)

{{short description|River in Texas, United States}}
{{about|the river in Texas |other uses|Colorado River|and|Colorado River (disambiguation)}}
{{Use American English|date=February 2025}}
{{Infobox river
| name               = Colorado River
| name_etymology     = 
<!---------------------- IMAGE & MAP -->
| image              = Mount Bonnell 2008.jpg
| image_caption      = Colorado River in Austin as seen from [[Mount Bonnell]]
| image_size         = 300
| map                = ColoradoTexas Watershed.png
| map_size           = 300
| map_caption        = Map of the Colorado River and associated watershed
| pushpin_map        = 
| pushpin_map_size   = 300
| pushpin_map_caption = 
| mapframe           = yes
| mapframe-zoom      = 5
| mapframe-stroke-width = 2
<!---------------------- LOCATION -->
| subdivision_type1  = Country
| subdivision_name1  = [[United States]]
| subdivision_type2  = State
| subdivision_name2  = [[Texas]]
| subdivision_type3  = 
| subdivision_name3  = 
| subdivision_type4  = 
| subdivision_name4  = 
| subdivision_type5  = 
| subdivision_name5  = 
<!---------------------- PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS -->
| length             = {{convert|862|mi|km|abbr=on}} 
| width_min          = 
| width_avg          = 
| width_max          = 
| depth_min          = 
| depth_avg          = 
| depth_max          = 
| discharge1_location= [[Bay City, Texas|Bay City]]
| discharge1_min     = {{convert|0|cuft/s|m3/s|abbr=on}}
| discharge1_avg     = {{convert|2609|cuft/s|m3/s|abbr=on}}
| discharge1_max     = {{convert|84100|cuft/s|m3/s|abbr=on}}
<!---------------------- BASIN FEATURES -->
| source1            = 
| source1_location   = [[Dawson County, Texas|Dawson County]]
| source1_coordinates= {{coord|32|40|47|N|101|43|51|W|display=inline}}<ref name="GNIS">{{Cite GNIS|1384149|Colorado River}}</ref>
| source1_elevation  = {{convert|2860|ft|abbr=on}}<ref>''Sand Creek, TX,'' 7.5 Minute Topographic Quadrangle, USGS, 1970 (1974 rev.)</ref>
| mouth              = [[Matagorda Bay]]
| mouth_location     = [[Gulf of Mexico]], at [[Matagorda County, Texas]]
| mouth_coordinates  = {{coord|28|35|41|N|95|58|59|W|display=inline,title}}<ref name=GNIS/>
| mouth_elevation    = {{convert|0|ft|abbr=on}}<ref name="GE">[[Google Earth]] elevation for [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] coordinates.</ref>
| progression        = 
| river_system       = 
| basin_size         = {{convert|39900|sqmi|abbr=on}}<ref name="colorado_river_tx_handbook">{{cite web|last=Clay|first=Comer|author2=Kleiner, Diana J.|title=Colorado River|work=The [[Handbook of Texas]] Online|publisher=The General Libraries at the [[University of Texas at Austin]] and the [[Texas State Historical Association]]|date=1999-02-15|url=https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/rnc10|access-date=2006-07-22}}</ref>
| tributaries_left   = 
| tributaries_right  = 
| custom_label       = 
| custom_data        = 
| extra              = 
}}
The '''Colorado River''' is an approximately {{convert|862|mi|km|sp=us|adj=mid|-long}} river<ref name="usgs"/> in the [[United States|U.S.]] state of [[Texas]]. It is the 11th longest river in the United States<ref name="usgs">{{cite report|last=Kammerer|first=J. C.|title=Largest Rivers in the United States|publisher=[[United States Geological Survey]]|year=1987|url=https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/1987/ofr87-242/|access-date=2006-07-15}}</ref> and the longest river with both its [[source (river or stream)|source]] and its [[river delta|mouth]] within Texas.<ref name=TXhandbook/>

Its [[drainage basin]] and some of its usually dry [[tributaries]] extend into [[New Mexico]]. It flows generally southeast from [[Dawson County, Texas|Dawson County]] through [[Ballinger, Texas|Ballinger]], [[Marble Falls, Texas|Marble Falls]], [[Lago Vista, Texas|Lago Vista]], [[Austin, Texas|Austin]], [[Bastrop, Texas|Bastrop]], [[Smithville, Texas|Smithville]], [[La Grange, Texas|La Grange]], [[Columbus, Texas|Columbus]], [[Wharton, Texas|Wharton]], and [[Bay City, Texas|Bay City]], before emptying into the [[Gulf of Mexico]] at [[Matagorda Bay]].<ref name=TXhandbook>{{cite web|first1=Clay|last1=Comer|last2=Kleiner|first2=Diana J.|title=Colorado River|work=The [[Handbook of Texas]] Online|publisher=The General Libraries at the [[University of Texas at Austin]] and the [[Texas State Historical Association]]|date=1999-02-15|url=https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/rnc10|access-date=2006-07-22}}</ref>

== Course ==
[[File:Colorado River Texas Nada.jpg|thumb|left|Oblique air photo of the Colorado River where it crosses from [[Colorado County, Texas|Colorado County]] into [[Wharton County, Texas|Wharton County]] near [[Nada, Texas|Nada]].]]
The Colorado River originates south of [[Lubbock, Texas|Lubbock]], on the [[Llano Estacado]] near [[Lamesa, Texas|Lamesa]]. It flows generally southeast out of the Llano Estacado and through the [[Texas Hill Country]], then through several reservoirs including [[Lake J.B. Thomas]], [[E.V. Spence Reservoir]], and [[O.H. Ivie Lake]]. The river flows through several more reservoirs before reaching Austin, including [[Lake Buchanan (Texas)|Lake Buchanan]], [[Inks Lake]], [[Lake Lyndon B. Johnson]] (commonly referred to as Lake LBJ), and [[Lake Travis]]. The [[Llano River]] joins the Colorado at Lake LBJ near [[Kingsland, Texas|Kingsland]], and the [[Pedernales River]] joins at Lake Travis near [[Briarcliff, Texas|Briarcliff]]. After passing through Austin, the Colorado River continues flowing southeast until emptying into Matagorda Bay on the Gulf of Mexico, near [[Matagorda, Texas|Matagorda]].

== History ==
The Colorado River, which means 'red'<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.wordreference.com/es/en/translation.asp?spen=Colorado|title=Colorado - Diccionario Inglés-Español|publisher=WordReference.com}}</ref> or 'reddish' river in Spanish,<ref name=ac>{{Cite AmCyc|wstitle=Colorado (river of Texas)|display=Colorado, a river of Texas}}</ref> was frequently confused by Spanish explorers with the [[Brazos River]] to the north.<ref name=TXhandbook/> The European discoverer of these two neighboring rivers called the present Colorado River the {{lang|es|Brazos de Dios}}, and called the present Brazos the Colorado River. The two names would later be reversed.<ref name=ac/>

The upper Colorado River was controlled by [[Comanche]]s from the early 18th century to the late 19th century. In 1757, [[Spanish Texas]] attempted to establish an outlying [[Catholic mission]] ([[Mission Santa Cruz de San Sabá]]) on the [[San Saba River]], near its confluence with the Colorado River. Nearly defenseless and viewed by the Comanche tribe as a territorial invasion, the mission was sacked in 1758 by about 2,000 Comanches and their allies. The Comanche were not effectively challenged on the upper Colorado River for nearly a century.<ref>{{cite book|last=Hämäläinen|first=Pekka|title=The Comanche Empire|year=2008|publisher=[[Yale University Press]]|isbn=978-0-300-12654-9|pages=58–60|url=https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300151176/comanche-empire}}</ref>

== River modifications ==
The river is an important source of water for farming, cities, and electrical power production. Major man-made [[reservoir (water)|reservoirs]] on the river include Lake Buchanan, Inks Lake, Lake LBJ, [[Lake Marble Falls]], Lake Travis, [[Lake Austin]], Town Lake now called [[Lady Bird Lake]] in Austin. Collectively, these lakes are known as the [[Texas Highland Lakes|Highland Lakes]]. In addition to power plants operating on each of the major lakes, waters of the Colorado are used for cooling the [[South Texas Nuclear Project]] near Bay City. The [[Colorado River Municipal Water District]] owns and operates three reservoirs upstream of the Highland Lakes: [[Lake J. B. Thomas]] near [[Snyder, Texas|Snyder]], [[E.V. Spence Reservoir]] near [[Robert Lee, Texas|Robert Lee]], and [[O.H. Ivie Lake]] near Ballinger.

Flood control and use of the Colorado River is managed by two agencies established by the [[Texas Legislature]]: the [[Upper Colorado River Authority]] and the [[Lower Colorado River Authority]]. There are 11 major reservoirs along the Colorado River.<ref name="river_basin">{{cite web|title=River Basin Map of Texas|publisher=Bureau of Economic Geology, [[University of Texas at Austin]]|year=1996|url=http://www.lib.utexas.edu/geo/pics/rivers.jpg|format=JPEG|access-date=2006-07-15|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170627154224/http://www.lib.utexas.edu/geo/pics/rivers.jpg|archive-date=2017-06-27|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://tpwd.texas.gov/publications/pwdpubs/pwd_pl_w7000_1187a/media/28.pdf|title=Texas Rivers and Reservoirs|date=2005-08-22|work=[[Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection]]|publisher=[[Texas Parks and Wildlife]]|via=[[University of Texas at Austin]]|format=PDF}}</ref>

==Major tributaries==
{{main|List of tributaries of the Colorado River (Texas)}}
The Colorado River is joined by five significant [[tributaries]]: the [[Concho River]], [[Pecan Bayou (Colorado River)|Pecan Bayou]], the Llano River, the [[San Saba River]] and the [[Pedernales River]]. [[Beals Creek]] is also a tributary fed by [[Arroyo (watercourse)|arroyos]] such as the [[Sulphur Springs Draw]], the [[Johnson Draw]], and the McKenzie, Seminole, Monument, Mustang, and Midland draws.<ref>{{cite map|author=Rand McNally|title=The Road Atlas: United States Large-Scale|publisher=[[Rand McNally and Company]]|edition=2007|page=199–200|isbn=9780528958342}}</ref>

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:PennybackerBridge.jpg|[[Pennybacker Bridge]] crossing the [[Lake Austin]] portion of the Colorado River
File:Colorado River Borden County Texas 2011.jpg|The Colorado River {{convert|5|mi|0|abbr=on}} from its source along the [[Caprock Escarpment]], the border of [[Dawson County, Texas|Dawson]] and [[Borden County, Texas|Borden County]].
File:Colorado River of Texas IMG 0784.JPG|Colorado River under the [[Regency Bridge|Regency Suspension Bridge]] on the border of [[Mills County, Texas|Mills]] and [[San Saba County, Texas|San Saba County]]
File:Colorado River under bridge in Wharton, TX IMG 1056.JPG|Scenic view of Colorado River meandering under a bridge overpass under [[Texas State Highway 60|State Highway 60]] in [[Wharton, Texas|Wharton]]
File:Scene on the Colorado River, Austin, Texas.jpg|Scene on the Colorado River, Austin, Texas (postcard, {{circa|1907}})
File:Eagle Lake TX Colorado River Marker.JPG|A historical marker on [[U.S. Route 90 Alternate (Texas)|US 90A]] between [[Eagle Lake, Texas|Eagle Lake]] and [[Altair, Texas|Altair]] explains the difficulty of navigating the lower Colorado River in the 1800s.
File:BullCreek.jpg|Old postcard of [[Bull Creek (Texas)|Bull Creek]] in Austin
File:Colorado River at Columbus, TX IMG 8244.JPG|Colorado River east of [[Columbus, Texas|Columbus]], Texas
File:Dazzling water textures and colors - near sculpture falls Austin green belt (TX, USA).jpg|Water reflections on sculpture falls
</gallery>

== See also ==
* [[Colorado City, Texas]]
* [[List of crossings of the Colorado River (Texas)]]
* [[List of rivers of Texas]]
* [[List of tributaries of the Colorado River (Texas)]]
* [[Matagorda Bay]]—the river's mouth
* [[Texas Hill Country]]

== References ==
{{Reflist|2}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category|Colorado River (Texas)}}
{{Wikisource|Colorado River}}
*{{Handbook of Texas|id=rnc10|name=Colorado River}}
*[https://www.ucratx.org/ Upper Colorado River Authority]
*[https://www.lcra.org/ Lower Colorado River Authority]

{{Waters of Texas}}
{{Austin|state=collapsed}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:Colorado River (Texas)| ]]
[[Category:Rivers of Texas]]
[[Category:Drainage basins of the Gulf of Mexico]]
[[Category:Llano Estacado]]
[[Category:Texas Hill Country]]
[[Category:Rivers of Dawson County, Texas]]
[[Category:Rivers of Matagorda County, Texas]]
[[Category:Rivers of Borden County, Texas]]
[[Category:Rivers of Scurry County, Texas]]
[[Category:Rivers of Mitchell County, Texas]]
[[Category:Rivers of Coke County, Texas]]
[[Category:Rivers of Runnels County, Texas]]
[[Category:Rivers of Coleman County, Texas]]
[[Category:Rivers of Concho County, Texas]]
[[Category:Rivers of McCulloch County, Texas]]
[[Category:Rivers of Brown County, Texas]]
[[Category:Rivers of San Saba County, Texas]]
[[Category:Rivers of Mills County, Texas]]
[[Category:Rivers of Lampasas County, Texas]]
[[Category:Rivers of Burnet County, Texas]]
[[Category:Rivers of Travis County, Texas]]
[[Category:Rivers of Bastrop County, Texas]]
[[Category:Rivers of Fayette County, Texas]]
[[Category:Rivers of Colorado County, Texas]]
[[Category:Rivers of Wharton County, Texas]]