The Canoe River is a river in southeastern

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

. It is longU.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data
The National Map
, accessed April 1, 2011 and part of the Taunton River Watershed. The Canoe River arises from headwaters near Lake Massapoag in

Sharon Sharon ( 'plain'), also spelled Saron, is a given name as well as a Hebrew name. In Anglosphere, English-speaking areas, Sharon is now predominantly a feminine given name, but historically it was also used as a masculine given name. In Israel, ...

, and meanders generally southwards through the towns of Sharon, Foxborough,

Mansfield Mansfield is a market town and the administrative centre of the Mansfield District in Nottinghamshire, England. It is the largest town in the wider Mansfield Urban Area and the second largest settlement in Nottinghamshire (following the city ...

, and Easton to empty into Winnecunnet Pond in Norton. Winnecunnet Pond is emptied by the

Snake River The Snake River is a major river in the interior Pacific Northwest region of the United States. About long, it is the largest tributary of the Columbia River, which is the largest North American river that empties into the Pacific Ocean. Begin ...

which flows into Lake Sabbatia which was formed by damming the Mill River which joins the Taunton River and ultimately empties into

Narragansett Bay Narragansett Bay is a bay and estuary on the north side of Rhode Island Sound covering , of which is in Rhode Island. The bay forms New England's largest estuary, which functions as an expansive natural harbor and includes a small archipelago. S ...

. The river provides drinking water for about 50,000 people in the region who receive their water from its

aquifer An aquifer is an underground layer of water-bearing material, consisting of permeability (Earth sciences), permeable or fractured rock, or of unconsolidated materials (gravel, sand, or silt). Aquifers vary greatly in their characteristics. The s ...

. It has been designated a sole source aquifer and since 1991, an Area of Critical Environmental Concern by the

Commonwealth of Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

History

The river has a number of earlier names. The section near the headwaters in Sharon were once called Massapoag Brook, and the section in that town alone powered six industrial mills in the nineteenth century.Diana Muir, Reflections in Bullough's Pond, 2000, p. 167, ff.

References

{{Coord, 41.973, N, 71.136, W, display=title Rivers of Bristol County, Massachusetts Taunton River watershed Rivers of Norfolk County, Massachusetts Rivers of Massachusetts

History

See also

References