Concord River
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- For the river in Maine, see Concord River (Maine)
The Concord River is a tributary of the Merrimack River in eastern Massachusetts in the United States, approximately 15 mi (24 km) long. It drains a small rural and suburban region northwest of Boston. One of the most famous small streams in U.S. history, it was the scene of an important early battle of the American Revolutionary War and was the subject of a famous 19th century essay by Henry David Thoreau.
[edit] Description
It begins in Middlesex County, formed by the confluence of the Sudbury and Assabet rivers, near Concord town center. It flows generally north, from eastern Concord (along the northwestern edge of the Boston metropolitan area), joining the Merrimack River from the south on the eastern side of Lowell. It is a gently flowing stream with little variation in topography along most of its route. Its drainage basin stretches into Worcester County and includes 36 towns within Massachusetts.
The river was known as the "Musketaquid" by Native Americans. The river valley was settled in the 1630s by English colonists, who gave it the present name. On April 19, 1775, the Old North Bridge over the river in the town of Concord was famously the scene of the Battle of Lexington and Concord, where the first shots were fired in the Revolutionary War (on the same day as those at nearby Lexington). The small wooden Concord Bridge is preserved by the National Park Service.
Thoreau was a famous resident of the region in the 1840s, living at nearby Walden Pond. In 1849, he wrote his first book, A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers, while living at Walden Pond. The book recounted a seven-day boat trip on the rivers with his brother John, who had since died. Thoreau recounted his exploration of the natural beauty of the river, and his accompanied thoughts on such eternal themes such as truth, poetry, travel, and friendship. Despite the growth of the suburbs in the vicinity of the river, it remains a popular canoeing destination today (see McAdow in References). The last mile of the river in Lowell is serious class 3+/4 whitewater.[1]
[edit] References
- McAdow, Ron (2000). The Concord, Sudbury and Assabet Rivers, A Guide to Canoeing, Wildlife and History, Second Edition. Bliss Publishing Co., Inc. ISBN 0-9625144-4-6.
