LOUP RIVER

river, rising in three branches (North Loup, Middle Loup, and South Loup rivers) in east-central Nebraska, U.S., and flowing east past Fullerton and Genoa to join the Platte River in Platte county just southeast of Columbus. The Loup River itself is 68 miles (109 km) long; including the North Loup, it is 300 miles (485 km) in length. Diversion Dam, southwest of Genoa, and Sherman Dam on Oak Creek are part of the Loup power project. The river's name is derived from the French (meaning wolf) used to designate the Skidi Indians, the local branch of the Pawnee Indian tribe.