Levee Levee A levee (), dike, dyke, embankment, floodbank or stopbank is an elongated naturally occurring ridge or artificially constructed fill or wall, which regulates water levels. It is usually earthen and often parallel to the course of a river in its floodplain or along low-lying coastlines. Speakers of American English (notably in the Midwest and Deep South), use the word "levee", from the French word "levée" (from the feminine past participle of the French verb "lever", "to raise"). It originated in New Orleans a few years after the city's founding in 1718 and was later adopted by English speakers. The
Portage River (Kalamazoo/St. Joseph Counties) Portage River (Kalamazoo/St. Joseph Counties) Portage River is a river that flows southward through Kalamazoo County and St. Joseph County, Michigan. Its headwaters are east of the city of Kalamazoo at Portage Lake, and the river flows southwest to its mouth within the city limits of Three Rivers, where it drains into the St. Joseph River. "Portage", the French word for "carry", refers to transporting a canoe overland, either between waterways or around an obstacle. The French word is used, although the river was used by the Potawattomi and other Native Americans for trade and transportation before the French arrived.