Androscoggin River

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Androscoggin River
none Drift Boat Fly Fishing on the Androscoggin near Errol, NH
Drift Boat Fly Fishing on the Androscoggin near Errol, NH
Country United States
States Maine, New Hampshire
Major cities Auburn, Lewiston, Berlin
Length 164 mi (264 km) [1]
Watershed 3,450 sq mi (8,935 km²) [1]
Discharge at Auburn
 - average 6,174 cu ft/s (175 m³/s) [2]
 - maximum 135,000 cu ft/s (3,823 m³/s)
 - minimum 340 cu ft/s (10 m³/s)
Discharge elsewhere
 - mouth 6,482 cu ft/s (184 m³/s) [1]
Source Umbagog Lake
 - location Coos County, New Hampshire
 - coordinates 44°46′59″N 71°3′41″W / 44.78306, -71.06139 [3]
 - elevation 1,243 ft (379 m) [4]
Mouth Kennebec River
 - location Merrymeeting Bay, Sagadahoc County, Maine
 - coordinates 43°57′2″N 69°52′39″W / 43.95056, -69.8775 [3]
 - elevation 0 ft (0 m) [5]
Major tributaries
 - left Sunday River, Dead River
 - right Magalloway River, Peabody River, Wild River
Map of the Androscoggin River watershed
Map of the Androscoggin River watershed

The Androscoggin River is a river in the US states of Maine and New Hampshire, in northern New England. It is 178 miles (287 km) long and joins the Kennebec River at Merrymeeting Bay in Maine before its water empties into the Gulf of Maine on the Atlantic Ocean. Its drainage basin is 3,530 square miles in area.

Contents

[edit] Course

The Androscoggin begins in Errol, New Hampshire, where the Magalloway River joins the outlet of Umbagog Lake. The river flows generally south but with numerous bends past the towns of Errol and Milan and the city of Berlin before turning east at the town of Gorham, New Hampshire to cut across the northern end of the White Mountains and enter Maine. Continuing east, the river passes the towns of Bethel, Rumford, and Dixfield before turning south at the town of Livermore Falls and leaving the mountains behind. The river passes through the twin cities of Lewiston and Auburn, turns southeast, passes the community of Lisbon Falls and reaches tidewater just below the final falls in the town of Brunswick. Merrymeeting Bay is a 10-mile long freshwater estuary where the Androscoggin meets the Kennebec River nearly 20 miles inland from the Atlantic Ocean.

[edit] Water quality

The Androscoggin was once badly polluted by a variety of textile mills, paper-making factories, and other industries located along its banks, and helped inspire the Clean Water Act.[6] The river has benefited greatly from environmental work and the departure of certain types of industry from the region, but still has problems with industrial waste and mercury contamination.. One 14-mile stretch requires oxygen bubblers to prevent fish from suffocating.[6] As of May 2007, environmental groups have a lawsuit pending, in an attempt to force the river's paper mills to clean their waste streams.[6]

[edit] Streamflow

Power canal along the Androscoggin River in Gorham, New Hampshire
Power canal along the Androscoggin River in Gorham, New Hampshire

The USGS maintains four river flow gages on the Androscoggin River. All four are below one or more dams.

The first is at Errol, New Hampshire ( 44°46′57″N, 71°07′46″W) where the watershed is 1,046 square miles. Flow here has ranged from 16,500 to 0 ft³/s (467 and 0 m³/s) (zero flow when dam closed). The mean annual flow between 1905 and 2005 is 1,919 ft³/s (54.3 m³/s).

The second is near Gorham, New Hampshire ( 44°26′10″N, 71°11′27″W) where the watershed is 1,361 square miles. Flow here has ranged from 21,900 to a mean daily low of 795 ft³/s (620 and 22.5 m³/s) (lows when dam closed). The mean annual flow between 1905 and 2005 is 2,512 ft³/s (71 m³/s).

The third is at Rumford, Maine ( 44°33′04″N, 70°32′38″W) where the watershed is 2,068 square miles. Flow here has ranged from 74,000 to 625 ft³/s (2,094 and 17.7 m³/s). The mean annual flow between 1905 and 2005 is 3,801 ft³/s (107.6 m³/s).

The fourth is at Auburn, Maine ( 44°04′20″N, 70°12′31″W) where the watershed is 3,263 square miles. Flow here has ranged from 135,000 to 340 ft³/s (3,820.5 and 9.6 m³/s).[2]

[edit] Angling the Androscoggin

The Androscoggin river is a popular fishing destination for anglers seeking Brook, Rainbow and Brown trout as well as Landlocked Salmon and Smallmouth Bass. The upper reaches near Errol, New Hampshire is popular with local and visiting fly fishermen for the chance to catch Landlocked Salmon from a drift boat. Although the upper reaches contain some bass, the river warms as it flows into Maine, and Smallmouth bass are the chief quarry in its lower reaches.

[edit] History

According to the USGS, variant names for the Androscoggin River include: Amasagu'nteg, Amascongan, Ambrose Coggin, Ammeriscoggin, Ammoscoggin , Amos Coggin, Amoscommun, Anasagunticook, Anconganunticook, Andrews Coggin, Andros Coggan, Andros Coggin, Androscoggen, Andrus Coggin, Aumoughcaugen, Pescedona, and Ameriscoggin River.


The Androscoggin drops an average of eight feet per mile, making it a prime industrial river. It flows through Lewiston-Auburn, Maine where it was a major source of power for local industry.

[edit] Major tributaries

Listed from source to mouth of Androscoggin, with location of tributary's mouth:

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c http://mainerivers.org/androscoggin.htm Androscoggin Watershed
  2. ^ a b Water Resources Data - Maine, Water Year 2005, USGS Water Data Reports for the United States, 2005.
  3. ^ a b USGS GNIS: Androscoggin River, USGS GNIS.
  4. ^ Google Earth elevation for GNIS source coordinates.
  5. ^ Google Earth elevation for GNIS mouth coordinates.
  6. ^ a b c NPR: Cities Battle Over River's Pollution Level

[edit] External links

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