Text for written translation. The Mississippi River is the longest river in the United States, and with its far-reaching tributaries one of the major systems of the world

The Mississippi River is the longest river in the United States, and with its far-reaching tributaries one of the major systems of the world. Long ago Ojibway Indians, roaming the forests of Wisconsin, called it Missisipi, or “Great River“. Other tribes termed it the “Father of the Waters”. Both names were appropriate, for the scope and volume of this vast stream have made it almost a synonym for great rivers everywhere: even the Volga has been termed the Russian Mississippi. The length of the Mississippi has been variously interpreted. The Mississippi River Commission calculates the length at 6,415 km from the headwaters of the Missouri to the delta outlet on the Gulf of Mexico. The Mississippi system cuts a wedge of 3,220,000 sq. km out of the heart of the continent. Geographically, the true source of the Mississippi lies in western Montana. There, three streams unite to form the Mississippi. Fed by the melting snows and gushing springs of the Rockies, it sweeps on through the Northwest. Some 320 km to the south the rivers of the north unite with their eastern branch, the Ohio. The Ohio and its many tributaries drain the ridges and valleys of the Appalachian Mountain. Father south the Mississippi attracts other tributaries, chief among these are the Arkansas and the Red River. The Mississippi is quite deep, its channel ranging usually from 15 to 30 m or more. It would be difficult to exaggerate the influence of the Mississippi on the development of America.