Passumpsic River

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Passumpsic River
The Passumpsic River in 1875
Origin	north of East Haven, VT as the Eastern Branch of the Passumpsic
Mouth	Connecticut River at Nine Island near East Barnet, VT
Basin countries	United States
Length	Main stem 20.2 mi (32 km)^[1], 42.8 mi Western branch^[2], 38.6 mi Eastern branch^[3]
Source elevation	968 ft (295 m) Western branch, 1010 ft (308 m) Eastern branch
Mouth elevation	1083 ft (330 m) Main stem

The Passumpsic River is a tributary of the Connecticut River, in Vermont. The main stem of the Passumpsic flows into the Connecticut River near Nine Island, and moves north past the towns of Barnet, VT, Passumpsic, VT, St. Johnsbury, VT, and St. Johnsbury Center, VT until it splits into two distinct branches in Lyndonville, VT. The western branch of the Passumpsic flows along the Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Railway lines until it ends as several small forks near Crystal Lake, northeast of Sutton, VT, and just north of Sheffield, VT. The eastern branch flows through East Burke, VT, Hartwellville, VT, and just past East Haven, VT, where it ends.

[edit] Hydroelectric power

The Passumpsic River sustains several dams that produce hydroelectric power for the region. Central Vermont Public Service, or CVPS, operates the Passumpsic, Pierce Mills, Arnold Falls, and Gage dams. Great Falls Dam and Vail Dam are locally owned by the town of Lyndonville, VT. In 2006, the Passumpsic Valley Land Trust was given a grant by the federal government to remove the East Burke Dam from the eastern branch of the Passumpsic.^[4]

[edit] Popular references

H.P. Lovecraft refers to the river in his horror short story The Whisperer in Darkness as a river in which unusual bodies were seen floating after the heavy Vermont floods of 1927.