Big Muddy River Big Muddy River The Big Muddy River is a river in southern Illinois. It joins the Mississippi River just south of Grand Tower. The Big Muddy has been dammed near Benton, forming Rend Lake. The Big Muddy has a mud bottom for most of its length. The Big Muddy drains a watershed. In 1995, water quality was assessed as "fair" to "good". Pollution sources include agricultural practices, mining and municipalities. The watershed of the Big Muddy was covered by the Illinoian Glacier about 300,000 to 132,000 years before present. The Big Muddy basin formed after the retreat of that glacier.
Indian Creek (Fox River tributary) County. A lake and State Recreation Area named for Chief Shabbona, is located in the community of Shabbona, which was also named for the Indian chief. Paw Paw Creek is a short tributary of Indian Creek that runs in a southeasterly direction near Paw Paw, Illinois. Indian Creek (Fox River tributary) Indian Creek, also known as Big Indian Creek, is a tributary of the Fox River in Lee, LaSalle, and DeKalb counties in Illinois. Indian Creek rises north of Paw Paw, Illinois, near Shabbona Grove and joins the Fox River near Wedron. The stream meanders across parts of Lee, LaSalle