Chelsea Creek

Chelsea Creek
Federal Name: Chelsea River
View across toward Chelsea from East Boston.
Country	United States
State	Massachusetts
Cities	Chelsea, Revere, Boston
Source
- location	Revere, Massachusetts, United States
Mouth	Mystic River
- location	Boston, Massachusetts, United States
- elevation	0 ft (0 m)
- coordinates	42°23′1″N 71°2′36″W / 42.38361°N 71.04333°W / 42.38361; -71.04333

Chelsea Creek, shown on federal maps as the Chelsea River,^[1] is a 2.6-mile-long (4.2 km) waterway that runs along the shore of Chelsea, Massachusetts and separates that community from the cities of Boston and Revere as well as feeding part of the current Belle Isle Marsh Reservation that separates Boston from Revere. The creek starts as Mill Creek at a former pond at the intersection of Revere Beach Parkway (Massachusetts Route 16) and U.S. Route 1, now a shopping center. Mill Creek meanders east for 0.5 miles, then takes a sharp turn south, becoming Chelsea Creek, and widens significantly as it runs between Chelsea and the neighborhood of East Boston.^[2] In that area the waterway is used by oil tankers to transport fuel to adjacent oil tanks. The creek then turns southwest and runs into the Mystic River shortly before it empties into Boston Harbor.^[3]

In May 1775, the colonists won their first offensive victory of the American Revolution over the British in a naval battle known as the Battle of Chelsea Creek.^[4]

Crossings

• Parkway Plaza, between Chelsea and Revere
• Broadway, between Chelsea and Revere
• Old mill building at Mill Street, Revere
• MBTA Newburyport/Rockport Line Commuter Rail
• Grand Junction Railroad bridge (removed)
• Chelsea Street Bridge (vertical-lift bridge as of 2012)
• Andrew McArdle Bridge (Pearl Street, Chelsea / Meridian Street, East Boston) (bascule bridge)

References