The Seekonk River is a
tidal extension of the
Providence River in the
U.S. state of
Rhode Island. It flows approximately 8 km (5 mi). The name may be derived from an Algonquian word for skunk, or for black goose. The river is home to the
Brown University men's rowing
The Brown University men's rowing team represents Brown University in men's intercollegiate rowing and is the oldest organized intercollegiate sport at the university. Since its revival in 1949, the Brown University rowing program has become one ...
team,
India Point Park, Blackstone Park,
Crook Point Bascule Bridge
The Crook Point Bascule Bridge (or the Seekonk River Drawbridge) is a defunct Scherzer rolling lift railway bridge which spans the Seekonk River, connecting the city of Providence, Rhode Island, to the city of East Providence. Stuck in the open ...
, Narragansett Boat Club (the oldest rowing club in the country),
Swan Point Cemetery, and the Bucklin Point waste-water treatment facility. The River is listed by RIDEM as an impaired waterway.
Course
The river begins where the
Blackstone River reaches sea level below
Pawtucket Falls. From there it flows due south between
Providence and
East Providence, picks up flow from the
Ten Mile River, and eventually flows into the
Providence River between
Bold Point
Bold Point is an area of East Providence, Rhode Island protruding into the Providence River. It was home to Providence Dry Dock and Marine Railway Co. around the turn of the 20th century, and today is home to Bold Point Park.
History
Bold Point ...
and
India Point. The Seekonk River is the northernmost point of
Narragansett Bay tidewater.
Slate Rock
A prominent boulder on the west shore of the Seekonk River (near the current Gano Park) was once one of Providence's most important historic landmarks. Slate Rock was said to be the spot where a group of Narragansetts first welcomed the exiled
Roger Williams
Roger Williams (21 September 1603between 27 January and 15 March 1683) was an English-born New England Puritan minister, theologian, and author who founded Providence Plantations, which became the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantation ...
in 1636 with the famous phrase "What cheer, netop?", and directed him to his eventual settlement location at the fork of the Woonasquatucket and Moshassuck Rivers.
The historic rock was accidentally blown up by city workers in 1877. They were attempting to expose a buried portion of the stone, but used too much dynamite and the stone was "blasted to pieces."
Pieces of the stone were later sold for souvenirs. A monument in nearby Slate Rock Park commemorates the location.
Flora and fauna
The Seekonk River is home to numerous fauna that either migrate to the bay at some point during the year or live there year-round. There are several species of
fish,
shellfish
Shellfish is a colloquial and fisheries term for exoskeleton-bearing aquatic invertebrates used as food, including various species of molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms. Although most kinds of shellfish are harvested from saltwater envir ...
and
crab
Crabs are decapod crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura, which typically have a very short projecting "tail" (abdomen) ( el, βραχύς , translit=brachys = short, / = tail), usually hidden entirely under the thorax. They live in all the ...
that have been documented. Birds include
Loon
Loons (North American English) or divers (British / Irish English) are a group of aquatic birds found in much of North America and northern Eurasia. All living species of loons are members of the genus ''Gavia'', family Gaviidae and order Gavi ...
,
Cormorants,
Herons,
Gulls,
Terns,
Swan
Swans are birds of the family (biology), family Anatidae within the genus ''Cygnus''. The swans' closest relatives include the goose, geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in the subfamily Anserinae where they form t ...
s and
Geese.
Numerous flora also make the Seekonk River their home both on land and underwater. Common
aquatic vegetation includes grasses like
spartina grass and
phragmites in most high marsh areas and brown and green
seaweed
Seaweed, or macroalgae, refers to thousands of species of macroscopic, multicellular, marine algae. The term includes some types of '' Rhodophyta'' (red), ''Phaeophyta'' (brown) and ''Chlorophyta'' (green) macroalgae. Seaweed species such as ...
in the intertidal zone. Other vegetation that makes its home along the river include shrubs like
rosa rugosa, various trees like the
willow,
oak and
beech
Beech (''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia, and North America. Recent classifications recognize 10 to 13 species in two distinct subgenera, ''Engleriana'' and ''Fagus''. The ''Engle ...
.
Crossings

Below is a list of all crossings over the Seekonk River. The list starts at the headwaters and goes downstream.
*Pawtucket
**
Main Street Bridge
**
Pawtucket River Bridge
The Pawtucket River Bridge is a twin span, six-lane highway bridge that carries Interstate 95 (I-95) over the Seekonk River in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. The original bridge was built in 1958 and rehabilitated in 1996. The bridge was demolishe ...
; Carries
Interstate 95
Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from U.S. Route 1, US Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Miami, Florida, to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between M ...
and
U.S. 1
U.S. Route 1 or U.S. Highway 1 (US 1) is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway System, United States Numbered Highway that serves the East Coast of the United States. It runs from Key West, Florida, north to Fort Kent, ...
**
Division Street Bridge
The Division Street Bridge is an historic roadway and sidewalk stone arch bridge in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, carrying Division Street over the Seekonk River. The structure was built in 1875–1877 at a cost of USD$95,000. It is a nine-span ston ...
*Providence
**
Henderson Bridge
**
Crook Point Bascule Bridge
The Crook Point Bascule Bridge (or the Seekonk River Drawbridge) is a defunct Scherzer rolling lift railway bridge which spans the Seekonk River, connecting the city of Providence, Rhode Island, to the city of East Providence. Stuck in the open ...
**
Washington Bridge
The Washington Bridge is a -long arch bridge over the Harlem River in New York City between the boroughs of Manhattan and the Bronx. The crossing, opened in 1888, connects 181st Street (Manhattan), 181st Street and Tenth Avenue (Manhattan), Am ...
; Carries
Interstate 195,
U.S. 6 and
U.S. 44
U.S. Route 44 (US 44) is an east–west United States Numbered Highway that runs for through four states in the Northeastern United States. The western terminus is at U.S. Route 209, US 209 and New York State Route 55 (NY 55) ...
.
Tributaries
*
Blackstone River
*
Ten Mile River
*
Bucklin Brook
Bucklin Brook is a brook in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. It is 3 miles long and was at one time the source of drinking water for the city from a reservoir that was located at present day McCoy Stadium. The upper portion of the stream up to the stadiu ...
See also
*
List of rivers in Rhode Island
*
Green Jacket Shoal
Green Jacket Shoal is a shoal and ship graveyard in Providence River, between the cities of East Providence and Providence, Rhode Island, United States. It contains a large amount of debris from a century of abandoned and wrecked ships, des ...
, a ship graveyard at the mouth of the river
References
*Maps from the
United States Geological Survey
{{authority control
Rivers of Providence County, Rhode Island
Tributaries of Providence River
Geography of Providence, Rhode Island
East Providence, Rhode Island
Pawtucket, Rhode Island
Rivers of Rhode Island