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STATION NUMBER: 05558300 QUADRANGLE: Lacon, 15' series LOCATION: Lat 41 06'36", long. 89 21'00", in SW1/4 of sec. 15, T.13 N., R.10 E., Marshall County, Hydrologic Unit 07130001, on right bank in the Henry Harbor Marina, 600 ft upstream from bridge on State Highway 18, 4.4 mi upstream from Crow Creek, 38.2 mi upstream from Peoria Lock and Dam, and at mile 196.0. ESTABLISHMENT AND HISTORY: Digital water-stage recorder and an outside staff gage was installed and a recording station established on November 10, 1981, by G. Fisk, T. Wicker, and J.K. LaTour. A Marsh-McBirney point velocity meter with an interface and a Stevens input-output recorder was installed April 21, 1982, by G. Fisk and W. Borchardt. On June 10, 1992 the digital water-stage recorder and the input-output recorder were replaced by an electronic data logger (CR10) with a stage encoder by D. Morgan. An Affra acoustical velocity meter (AVM) was installed August 12, 1994, by D. Morgan and S. Chamberlain. On October 04, 1994, the Marsh-McBirney point-velocity meter was removed. Discharge at this site is determined by a stage-area relation times the mean-channel velocity times a velocity factor. The mean-channel velocity is obtained from the AVM velocity meter. The velocity factor applied to AVM record is developed from mean-channel velocity measured by discharge measurements. A D-74 sediment sampler and sampling platform were installed on the upstream side of the Highway 18 bridge on June 22, 1983, by G. Fisk, J. LaTour and W. Borchardt. A wire-weight gage was installed near the sediment sampler box on June 22, 1983. The wire-weight gage and D-74 were removed in January 1988 during bridge refurbishing. Sediment sampling out of a boat began again on May 1, 1993. Sediment cross-sections are taken downstream at Chillicothe since May, 1993. 
DRAINAGE AREA: 13,543 sq. mi.--Area does not include diversion from Lake Michigan through the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, which has occurred since Jan. 17, 1900. GAGE: Electronic data logger (CR10) with phone modem, a Handar shaft encoder, an Affra acoustical velocity meter (AVM) in a 5-ft diameter corrugated metal well shelter. Gage heights and velocities are stored in the CR10 as hourly averages of one-minute data. Base gage readings are obtained by taping down from RP-1 located on the headwall of the old lock. Two velocity transducers for the AVM are installed at two locations along the old lock walls with the upstream transducer approximately 78 ft across from the gage and the downstream transducer approximately 81 ft downstream from the gage (see attached map). The velocity transducers are attached directly to 4-inch PVC pipes, which are held vertically to the old lock walls by riser clamps. Access or adjustment to the transducer assemblies are currently limited to lower stages. A self-weighted steel-encased "electromechanical" cable is laid across the bed of the lock channel to the upstream transducer. An oil tube is used to protect the float from freezing, while a heat-taped cover is used to assure proper operation of the AVM during cold periods A data collection platform, property of the Army Corps of Engineers, Rock Island District, is housed at a gage shelter located about 1600 ft. downstream. GAGE DATUM: Datum of gage is 425.879 ft, NGVD of 1929, determined by levels on 9-08-82 from USC & GS BM "Z 232 1960" (Elev. = 495.324 ft, NGVD). 
CHANNEL AND CONTROL: The streambed is composed of sand and silt. The low-flow channel (navigation channel) is about 800 ft wide and averages about 20 ft deep. Many barges pass the gage daily keeping the river free of debris, etc. At low stages, most of the flow is between the two main piers of the State Highway 18 bridge. The channel is the control for all stages with backwater effects from Peoria Lock and Dam, and storage effects from Peoria Lake and other backwater lakes downstream. The Peoria Lock and Dam, 30 miles downstream, most likely controls flow at low stages. DISCHARGE MEASUREMENTS: Currently, Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler measurements are being made by boat downstream of the bridge for all stages. At stages above 29.5 ft, some flow by passes the main bridge and flows through a small tributary bridge about one mile southeast of the main bridge. The flow through the tributary bridge must be measured to obtain total flow by the gage. For stages above 31.0 ft, there is flow over the road east of the gage that must be measured. The road section is 1/2 mi. wide and can be waded using the guardrail posts along the downstream side of the road for stationing. The guardrail posts are 16 ft apart. Measurements may otherwise be made from the upstream side of the State Highway 18 bridge. The bridge is stationed in 20 feet increments. Note: Traffic must be controlled on this bridge and requires two flagpersons as well as two persons for the measurement. Measurements may also be made by tagline and boat at the public ramp by the park 1/2 mi downstream. During the winter, ice flows are often thick and move swiftly, causing discharge measurements to be very dangerous. Discharge measurements should not be taken during ice-flow conditions. FLOODS: Maximum recorded discharge was 117,000 cfs, (gage height 27.19 ft.), which occurred on February 23, 1997, based on a stage area and velocity rating. Maximum gage height reached 32.02 ft on March 7, 1985. The flood of March 22, 1979, reached a stage of 32.67 ft, from information furnished by the Corps of Engineers, discharge was about 140,000 cfs, based on a rating curve extended above 32.20 ft. POINT OF ZERO FLOW: Not applicable. WINTER FLOW: There will be backwater from ice during the winter period. Barge traffic will prevent complete ice cover except during extreme cold periods. Discharges computed via the velocity/deflection meter method are generally considered to include effects of backwater from ice. For example, as cross-sectional area increases due to backwater from ice, cross-sectional velocity should generally decrease. Therefore, the decrease in velocity should compensate for the increase in area. Discharge may need to be estimated for backwater from ice when ice is in the main channel but not in the lock, or vice versa. REGULATION AND DIVERSION: Some regulation by Locks and dams upstream from station at Starved Rock and downstream at Peoria Personnel to contact about a specific subject are listed on the staff page. The URL of this page is <il.water.usgs.gov/proj/lirb/bst/site_descrip/henry.html> Please send comments about this page to: <djfazio@usgs.gov>. This page was last updated on November 15, 1999. |
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