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Description:
Chautauqua NWR was established by Executive Order which authorized the purchase of lands owned by defunct Chautauqua Drainage and Levee District. It extends from Illinois River mile 124.0 to 129.5. Originally this segment of the Illinois River floodplain was composed of a series of backwater lakes. In the early 1900's, like many floodplain wetlands, the area was diked, drained, and converted for agricultural production. During the 1930's, a series of navigation locks and dams were built on the Illinois River for barge traffic. Commercial navigation and the diversion of Lake Michigan water down the Illinois River exacerbated the impacts of agricultural uses by raising the low mean water levels by about four feet. The Refuge is an important link in the chain of resting, feeding and wintering areas for waterfowl and other migratory birds in the Mississippi Flyway. Directions:
Chautauqua Refuge is located 8 miles north of Havana, Illinois, or 30 miles south of Pekin, Illinois, on the Manito Blacktop.
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