Middlesex Fells Reservation

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A cliff in the Fells.

Middlesex Fells Reservation is a Massachusetts state park located in Malden, Medford, Melrose, Stoneham, and Winchester. The park is managed by the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR).

1 Description
2 History
3 Recreational Opportunities
4 External links

[edit] Description

Middle Reservoir seen from the causeway separating it from South Reservoir.

Middlesex Fells Reservation is a 2,575 acre park principally used for mountain biking, hiking, horseback riding, rock climbing and skiing.

Features of the park include Bellevue and Spot Ponds (used as back-up reservoirs for the Quabbin Reservoir and two observation towers featuring scenic views of Boston and the surrounding area.

In the summer months, sailing lessons are offered on Spot Pond.

Today the park surrounds two currently inactive reservoirs, Spot Pond and the Fells Reservoir, and the three (North, Middle, and South) active reservoirs supplying the town of Winchester. Spot Pond and the Fells Reservoir are part of the Wachusett water system, one of six primary water systems that feed metropolitan Boston's waterworks.

[edit] History

Created in 1891 and managed by the Commonwealth starting in 1893, the reservation was begun by the donation of "Virginia Wood" by Charles Eliot to The Trustees of Reservations.

The reservation's land was once favored for timber, granite quarrying, and ice cultivation. The former mill village of "Haywardville" was located within the reservation. Many mills, including one that manufactured some of the first vulcanized rubber products, were located here.

The area around Middlesex Fells was first explored by John Winthrop, Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, in 1632.