Download coordinates as: Big Sandy Creek, often called the Big Branch, is a tributary of the Illinois River in central Illinois.

[1] Most of the Big Sandy Creek drainage is intensely farmed arable land.

Because the land is sandy, nitrogen runoff due to fertilizer application is significant.

In addition, Jacksonville and Winchester drain their sewage into the creek.

Sand discharged by the alluvial creeks may have helped form McEvers Island, a silt island in the Illinois River just below the mouth of the creek.