River Don, South Yorkshire

River Don, South Yorkshire

The River Don (also called Dun in some stretches) is a river in South Yorkshire, England. It rises in the Pennines and flows for 70 miles (110 km) eastwards, through the Don Valley, via Penistone, Sheffield, Rotherham, Mexborough, Conisbrough, Doncaster and Stainforth. It originally joined the Trent, but was re-engineered by Vermuyden as the Dutch River in the 1620s, and now joins the River Ouse at Goole in the East Riding of Yorkshire. Don Valley is the local UK parliamentary constituency near the Doncaster stretch of the river.

The Don can be divided into sections by the different types of structures built to restrict its passage. The upper reaches, and those of several of its tributaries, are defined by dams built to provide a public water supply. The middle section contains many weirs, which were built to supply mills, foundries and cutlers' wheels with water power, while the lower section contains weirs and locks, designed to maintain water levels for navigation. The Don's major tributaries are the Loxley, the Rivelin, the Sheaf, the Rother and the Dearne.

Along the Sheffield–Rotherham stretch of the river are five weirs that punctuate a local walking and cycling route, the Five Weirs Walk. A further walk, the Upper Don Walk, is being developed that will make it possible to walk or cycle from Sheffield city centre up to Oughtibridge.

The Don derives its name from DĂ´n (or Danu), a Celtic mother goddess. The river gave its name to the Don River, one of the principal rivers of Toronto, Canada.

Read more about River Don, South Yorkshire:  History, Hydrology, Settlements On The River Don, Course, Bridges Over River Don, Flora and Fauna

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