The James River in North and South Dakota

The James River (also known as the Jim River or the Dakota River) is a tributary of the Missouri River, approximately 710 mi (1,143 km) long, in the U.S. states of North Dakota and South Dakota. The river provides the main drainage of the flat lowland area of the Dakotas between the two plateau regions known as the Coteau du Missouri and the Coteau des Prairies. This narrow area was formed by the lobe of a glacier during the last ice age, and as a consequence the watershed of the river is slender and it has fewer major tributaries for a river of its length.

The river rises in Wells County, North Dakota, approximately 10 mi (16 km) northwest of Fessenden. It flows briefly east, then generally SSE through eastern North Dakota, past Jamestown, where it is joined by the Pipestem River . It enters northeastern South Dakota in Brown County, where it is impounded to form two reservoirs northeast of Aberdeen.

At Columbia, it is joined by the Elm River . Flowing southward across eastern South Dakota, it passes Huron and Mitchell, where it is joined by the Firesteel River . South of Mitchell, it flows southeast and joins the Missouri just east of Yankton

The river was named Rivière aux Jacques by French explorers. By the time Dakota Territory was incorporated, it was being called the James River. However, the Organic Act of 1861 that formed the territory renamed it the Dakota River. Apparently this did not catch on, as the river retains its pre-1861 name.

See also

• List of North Dakota rivers
• List of South Dakota rivers