Hatchie River
Encyclopedia
Stream
A stream is a body of water with a current, confined within a bed and stream banks. Depending on its locale or certain characteristics, a stream may be referred to as a branch, brook, beck, burn, creek, "crick", gill , kill, lick, rill, river, syke, bayou, rivulet, streamage, wash, run or...
in northern Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
and southwestern Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
. It is of considerable geographic, cultural
Culture
Culture is a term that has many different inter-related meanings. For example, in 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions...
, and historic significance. In large measure this is because it is the only major stream of West Tennessee
West Tennessee
West Tennessee is one of the three Grand Divisions of the State of Tennessee. Of the three, it is the one that is most sharply defined geographically. Its boundaries are the Mississippi River on the west and the Tennessee River on the east...
that has never been impounded, channelized, or otherwise modified by human activity to any major degree, although several of its tributaries have. Its environs are indicative of what much of West Tennessee must have resembled prior to the time of white
White people
White people is a term which usually refers to human beings characterized, at least in part, by the light pigmentation of their skin...
settlement in early 19th century.
The Hatchie rises in northern Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
and crosses into Hardeman County, Tennessee, near the community of Pocahontas. After a short jog into adjoining McNairy County, Tennessee, the Hatchie flows north, in a serpentine fashion, then turns northwest toward Bolivar
Bolivar, Tennessee
Bolivar is a city in Hardeman County, Tennessee, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 5,802. It is the county seat of Hardeman County. The town was named for South American revolutionary leader Simón Bolívar, but is pronounced to rhyme with the name Oliver. Bolivar...
. While there is usually a discernible main channel, the Hatchie at this point is largely a zone of wetland
Wetland
A wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with water either permanently or seasonally. Wetlands are categorised by their characteristic vegetation, which is adapted to these unique soil conditions....
s approximately one mile (1.6 km) wide. Supposedly Bolivar was the head of navigation
Navigation
Navigation is the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another. It is also the term of art used for the specialized knowledge used by navigators to perform navigation tasks...
for small, shallow-draught steamboat
Steamboat
A steamboat or steamship, sometimes called a steamer, is a ship in which the primary method of propulsion is steam power, typically driving propellers or paddlewheels...
s in the 19th century.
From Bolivar, the Hatchie continues generally northwest, crossing into Haywood County and the southwestern corner of Madison County. it then enters Hatchie National Wildlife Refuge
Hatchie National Wildlife Refuge
Hatchie National Wildlife Refuge is an area of swampy bottomland consisting of a portion of the floodplain of the Hatchie River in West Tennessee, covering 11,556 acres in southern Haywood County. It is a rich environment for aquatic life and waterfowl. The refuge is bisected by both Interstate...
. The rest of the stream course generally trends west. There is a "bow" to the north in the final part of the stream course, which forms the line between Tipton County
Tipton County, Tennessee
Tipton County is a county located on the western end of the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of 2000, the population was 51,271. Its county seat is Covington. Tipton County is part of the Memphis, TN–MS–AR Metropolitan Statistical Area, centered on Shelby County, which borders Tipton on...
and Lauderdale County. The Hatchie enters the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
just north of the Hatchie Towhead and just south of the Lower Hatchie National Wildlife Refuge
Lower Hatchie National Wildlife Refuge
Lower Hatchie National Wildlife Refuge, part of the U.S. National Wildlife Refuge system, is an area of wetlands associated with the confluence of the Hatchie River and the Forked Deer River in West Tennessee near the confluence of the Hatchie River with the Mississippi River...
. The Hatchie is designated as a "scenic river" under the Tennessee Wild and Scenic Rivers Act.
The name "Hatchie River" is in a way a redundancy, as the word "hatchie" means "river" in many Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
languages of the southeast.
Variant names of the Hatchie River include Arteguet River and Big Hatchie River.