The Red River is a 7.5 miles (12.1 km) tributary of Panther Creek in Woodford County, Illinois. Its headwaters are located southeast of Eureka

Eureka, Illinois

Eureka is a city in Woodford County, Illinois, United States. The population was 5,295 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Woodford County. The city was founded in the year 1855. Eureka is part of the Peoria, Illinois Metropolitan Statistical Area....

, and after draining several townships it flows into Panther Creek in Palestine Township. Soon afterwards, Panther Creek itself flows into the Mackinaw River

Mackinaw River

The Mackinaw River, also called Mackinac River, is a river in the U.S. state of Illinois. It flows through what was once the Grande Prairie region of central Illinois...

 near Congerville

Congerville, Illinois

Congerville is a village in Woodford County, Illinois, United States. The population was 466 as of the 2000 census. Congerville is part of the Peoria, Illinois Metropolitan Statistical Area.-State Record:...

. Via the Mackinaw River, the Red River of Illinois is part of the Illinois River

Illinois River

The Illinois River is a principal tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately long, in the State of Illinois. The river drains a large section of central Illinois, with a drainage basin of . This river was important among Native Americans and early French traders as the principal water route...

 and 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...

 watershed.

The Red River's drainage pattern is an unusual example of a watercourse officially designated as a river

River

A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...

 flowing into and feeding a larger watercourse that is officially designated as a creek

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...

. Usually the etymology

Etymology

Etymology is the study of the history of words, their origins, and how their form and meaning have changed over time.For languages with a long written history, etymologists make use of texts in these languages and texts about the languages to gather knowledge about how words were used during...

flows the other way: smaller creeks feed larger rivers.