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The St. Louis River was named by Pierre Gaultier de Varennes, an explorer to the region who in 1749 was awarded the Order of St. Louis by the king of France.
The river watershed drains 3,634 square miles in the United States and 263 square miles in Wisconsin.
The St. Louis is the largest U.S. tributary into Lake Superior. Nipigon River is the largest Canadian tributary.
From an elevation of 1,179 feet above sea level in Cloquet, the St. Louis River drops 577 down to Lake Superior’s 602 feet above sea level.
The St. Louis River ends in a 12,000-acre estuary with numerous backwater areas, bays and islands including the St. Louis, Superior and Allouez bays.