Tributaries include the Whitesand River which joins it near Kamsack, Saskatchewan, the Souris River which joins it near Wawanesa, the Birdtail River which joins at the Birdtail Sioux First Nation, the Little Saskatchewan which joins west of Brandon and the Qu'Appelle River which joins near the site of historic Fort Ellice.
He established a grain company in Wawanesa in 1891 and became a leader in regional grain industry associations after Fowler and his family moved to Winnipeg in 1902.
He prepared for a teaching profession at the Normal School of Winnipeg, after which he taught for seven years, three of which he was the principal of the public schools of Wawanesa, Manitoba.
Notable people associated with Wawanesa have included suffragist Nellie McClung and Edna Diefenbaker, the first wife of Prime Minister John Diefenbaker.