Ohio River - Geography and Hydrography

Geography and Hydrography

The Ohio River is formed by the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers at Point State Park in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. From there, it flows northwest through Allegheny and Beaver counties, before making an abrupt turn to the south-southwest at the West Virginia–Ohio–Pennsylvania triple-state line (near East Liverpool, Ohio; Chester, West Virginia; and Midland, Pennsylvania). From there, it forms the border between West Virginia and Ohio, upstream of Wheeling, West Virginia.

The river then follows a roughly southwest and then west-northwest course until Cincinnati, before bending to a west-southwest course for most of its length. Its course forms the northern borders of West Virginia and Kentucky; and the southern borders of Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, until it joins the Mississippi River near the city of Cairo, Illinois.

Major tributaries of the river, indicated by the location of the mouths, include:

• Allegheny River – Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
• Monongahela River – Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
• Saw Mill Run - Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
• Chartiers Creek – Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
• Beaver River – Rochester, Pennsylvania
• Wheeling Creek – Wheeling, West Virginia
• Middle Island Creek – St. Marys, West Virginia
• Little Muskingum River – Ohio
• Duck Creek – Ohio
• Muskingum River – Marietta, Ohio
• Little Kanawha River – Parkersburg, West Virginia
• Hocking River – Hockingport, Ohio
• Kanawha River – Point Pleasant, West Virginia
• Guyandotte River – Huntington, West Virginia
• Big Sandy River – Kentucky-West Virginia border
• Little Sandy River – Greenup, Kentucky
• Kinniconick Creek – Vanceburg, Kentucky
• Scioto River – Portsmouth, Ohio
• Little Scioto River – Sciotoville, Ohio
• Little Miami River – Cincinnati, Ohio
• Licking River – Newport-Covington, Kentucky
• Great Miami River – Ohio-Indiana border
• Salt River – West Point, Kentucky
• Kentucky River – Carrollton, Kentucky
• Green River – Kentucky
• Wabash River – Indiana-Illinois border
• Saline River – Illinois
• Cumberland River – Smithland, Kentucky
• Tennessee River – Paducah, Kentucky
• Cache River – Illinois
• Little Beaver Creek - East Liverpool, Ohio