Stony Brook was formerly a major watercourse in the city of Boston. It originates at Turtle Pond in the Stony Brook Reservation; it flows through Hyde Park, Jamaica Plain, and Roxbury. It formerly emptied into the Back Bay, a tidal part of the Charles River.
In the 18th century, water-powered industry grew up along it (including Pierpoint('s) Mill[1]) and it served as the sewer (excluding human waste) for the neighborhoods it ran through.
The Boston and Providence Railroad (now the Providence/Stoughton Line) was built along the valley of Stony Brook in 1834.
In the 19th century, many breweries and other industries grew up along Stony Brook.[2]
In the late 19th century, various parts of Stony Brook were converted into underground culverts or sewers. In around 1882, the Back Bay Fens were dredged to convert them into a holding basin for storm overflow from Stony Brook, following Olmsted's plan, and at around the same time its waters were diverted into an intercepting sewer near the current Ruggles Station.