Purgatoire River

Purgatoire River[1]

The Purgatoire River has cut a canyon through the Great Plains.
Basin
Main source Confluence of North Fork and Middle Fork
37°09′26″N 104°56′27″W / 37.15722°N 104.94083°W / 37.15722; -104.94083 (Primary source of Purgatoire River[1])
River mouth Confluence with Arkansas
3,862 ft (1,177 m)
38°03′54″N 103°10′37″W / 38.06500°N 103.17694°W / 38.06500; -103.17694 (Mouth of Purgatoire River)Coordinates: 38°03′54″N 103°10′37″W / 38.06500°N 103.17694°W / 38.06500; -103.17694 (Mouth of Purgatoire River)
Progression Arkansas—Mississippi
Basin size 3,447 sq mi (8,930 km2)

The Purgatoire River is a river in southeastern Colorado, United States. The river is also known locally as the Purgatory River or the Picketwire River.[1] Purgatoire means Purgatory in French. French trappers named the river to commemorate Spanish explorers killed in a Native American attack.[2][3]

The Purgatoire River originates at the confluence of the North Fork Purgatoire and Middle Fork Purgatoire rivers near Weston in Las Animas County, Colorado, and flows generally east-northeastward approximately 196 miles (315 km)[4] to a confluence with the Arkansas River in John Martin Reservoir State Park near Las Animas in Bent County, Colorado. The Purgatoire River drains an area of 3,447 square miles (8,930 km2). 96.4% of this area is in Colorado, the remaining 3.6% is in New Mexico.[5]

The Piñon Canyon Maneuver Site is a large military base located along the western bank of the Purgatoire River. Plans by the U.S. Army to expand the base have been controversial. Citizens' groups have succeeded in stopping the planned expansion as of 2011.[6]

The river is frequently referred to as the Picketwire in the film The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. This is a folk-etymologizing anglophone phonological approximation of the French pronunciation /pyʁ.ɡa.ˡtwaʁ/, developed by English-speaking settlers who later came to the area.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Purgatoire River". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. Retrieved 2011-01-30.
  2. ↑ , Sangrews
  3. ↑ Hook, J. N. (10 June 2014). All Those Wonderful Names. Open Road Media. p. 292. ISBN 978-1-4976-1186-3.
  4. ↑ U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. The National Map, accessed March 31, 2011
  5. ↑ Gustafson, Daniel L. (2003-01-24). "Hydrologic Unit Project". Montana State University, Environmental Statistics Group. Retrieved 2008-02-08.
  6. ↑ Prendergat, Alan. "The War Next Door," Denver Westward News, 22 Feb 2011, accessed 15 Nov 2011


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