Big Muddy River the sides of hills, exposing coal deposits. The first coal mine in Illinois is believed to have been opened in 1810 on the banks of the Big Muddy in Jackson County. The Big Muddy cuts through the Shawnee Hills south of Murphysboro near the confluence with its smaller tributary, Kinkaid Creek. From there, it runs southward roughly twenty miles and meets the Mississippi directly south of Grand Tower. Near its mouth, a small portion of the Big Muddy acts as the dividing line between Jackson and Union counties. Major tributaries of the Big Muddy include Beaucoup Creek, the Little Muddy
Little Wabash River counties, about southeast of New Haven. In its upper course in Shelby County, the river is dammed to form Lake Mattoon and collects the short West Branch Little Wabash River, which flows for its entire length in Shelby County. Other tributaries include the Fox River, which joins it in Edwards County; the Elm River, which joins it in Wayne County; and the Skillet Fork, which joins it in White County. Little Wabash River The Little Wabash River is a tributary of the Wabash River in east-central and southeastern Illinois in the United States. Via the Wabash and Ohio rivers, it