South Saskatchewan River
Swift Current Creek is the largest tributary to the South Saskatchewan River. The first known name for the Swift Current Creek is believed to have come from the Cree, who referred to it as "kisiskâciwan". The word means "it flows swiftly," and the same word is used to describe the Saskatchewan River. When early fur traders found the creek on their westward treks in the 1800's, they named it "Riviere Au Courant," which means "Swift Current." Henri Julien, an artist with the North West Mounted Police expedition that arrived in 1874, referred to it as "Du Courant," while Commissioner French noted "Strong Current Creek" in his diary during the same period. This seems rather ironic given the snail's pace of the Swift Current Creek in most years.
The Swift Current Creek changes significantly from the headwaters northeast of Eastend, at the foot of the Cypress Hills in the southwest corner of Saskatchewan, to the mouth into the South Saskatchewan River north of Stewart Valley. Elevation at the headwaters is 1143 m (3750'). In the City of Swift Current it is at 743 m (2438') and at the mouth which is approximately one third of the distance from the headwaters to the city, the elevation is 556 m (1824').
