Big Muddy National Fish and Wildlife Refuge Clark was considerably different from today's river. The historic Missouri was a broad, slow-moving, shallow river with braided channels. These past river conditions created a haven for wildlife, which included vast floodplain forests of giant trees, marshes, and even wet prairies. Today's river is channelized. It is deeper and faster, and controlled by levees, dikes, and other containment structures. These controls make the river more navigable and the surrounding floodplain ideal for agriculture. The Big Muddy Refuge is allowing the Missouri River to be a river again, to enter its floodplain. This occurs during minor flood events. Management has created
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