Taunton River

Taunton River
Taunton Great River
River
View of Taunton River looking north from the Veterans Memorial Bridge
Country	United States
State	Massachusetts

Cities	Bridgewater, Taunton, Fall River

Mouth	Mount Hope Bay

Length	36 mi (58 km)

Map of Taunton River Watershed

Taunton River at Weir Village, Taunton

Taunton River at Fall River

The Taunton River is a Wild and Scenic River

The Taunton River (historically also called the "Taunton Great River"), is a river in southeastern Massachusetts in the United States. It arises from the confluence of the Town River and Matfield River, in the town of Bridgewater. From there it meanders through the towns of Halifax, Middleborough and Raynham, through the city of Taunton for which it is named, the towns of Berkley, Dighton, Somerset, and the Assonet section of Freetown, to Fall River where it joins Mount Hope Bay, an arm of Narragansett Bay.

Description

The total length of the river is 37.0 miles (59.5 km) from the junction of the Town and Matfield Rivers in Bridgewater to the mouth of the Quequechan River in Fall River.^[1] It has a watershed of 562 square miles (1,456 km²). The river's watershed includes the Hockomock Swamp, the largest freshwater wetland in the state. The Taunton River is one of the flattest rivers in New England, dropping only about twenty feet (6 m) in elevation over its length.^[2] The river is tidal as far north as Taunton.

Flora and fauna

The river is home to much biodiversity, including some animals found nowhere else in the state. Over 154 bird species (including bald eagles) have been documented along the Taunton River, primarily during breeding season. The watershed supports 28 species of reptiles and amphibians, and 29 species of fish, including native brook trout and Atlantic sturgeon, which can be found in the lower part of the watershed.^[2] The Mystic Valley Amphipod, which is native only to eastern New England, has been found in various wetlands throughout the watershed. All along the river, otters can be found on the shoreline, and even harbor seals have been sighted in the watershed, even in some of the smaller tributaries (such as the Nemasket River).^[3] The watershed also is home to 7 species of freshwater mussels, and the largest herring run in New England.^[2] In 2005, a young harp seal was found in the Nemasket River (a tributary of the Taunton).^[4] In early summer 2014, a young male Beluga whale was sighted in the Taunton River,^[5] and in late August 2014, a basking shark was also spotted in the Taunton.^[6]

Over 360 plant species were sampled from the floodplain wetlands and the immediate river corridors, and various vegetative communities can be found along the river. These include Atlantic White Cedar Swamps, Forested Bogs, and Coastal Plain Pondshores, among many others.^[2]

History

Since the development of industry beginning with the iron works of the mid-17th century, the Taunton River has played an important role in the economy of the Greater Taunton Area. The shipbuilding industry was very active in the Taunton area during the 19th century.^[7]

The river today

The Taunton River is the longest coastal river in New England without dams and supports 45 species of fish and many species of shellfish. The Taunton River is the principal river that makes up the Taunton River Watershed. The watershed is the habitat for 154 types of birds, including 12 rare types. It is also home to otter, mink, grey fox and deer.^[8]

Battleship Cove, the world's largest museum of warships, is located on the Fall River side of the river at its confluence with Mount Hope Bay, beneath the Braga Bridge.

After over five years of study for possible inclusion in the National Wild and Scenic River System, such designation was obtained in April 2009.^[9]

Crossings

List of crossings of the Taunton River

Main tributaries

References

↑ USGS Map check
1 2 3 4 Taunton River Ecology
↑ "Taunton River Stewardship Plan: Taunton River Wild & Scenic River Study". Retrieved September 3, 2014.
↑ Danielle Drolet (March 30, 2005). "Wayward seal barking up the wrong river". Retrieved September 3, 2014.
↑ Katie Brace (June 25, 2014). "Beluga Whale Spotted in Taunton River". Retrieved September 3, 2014.
↑ Doug Saffir (August 29, 2014). "Sharks, Sharks Everywhere: Large Shark Spotted in Taunton River". Retrieved September 3, 2014.
↑ History of the Taunton River
↑ Herald News June 26, 2008
↑ Decades-long fight to protect Taunton River succeeds

External links

Taunton River Watershed

Tributaries	Assonet River Canoe River Cedar Swamp River Cocasset River Cotley River Forge River Hockomock River Matfield River Mill River Nemasket River Rumford River Salisbury Plain River Satucket River Segreganset River Snake River Taunton River Three Mile River Town River Wading River Winnetuxet River

Lakes/Ponds	Assawompset Pond Great Quittacas Pond Little Quittacas Pond Lake Nippenicket Norton Reservoir Lake Mirimichi Lake Rico Lake Sabbatia Leach Pond Long Pond Pocksha Pond Somerset Reservoir Turnpike Lake Watson Pond Winnecunnet Pond

Miscellaneous	Assonet Bay Hockomock Swamp

Narragansett Bay

Islands	Aquidneck Island Conanicut Island Prudence Island Patience Island Hog Island Dutch Island Coaster's Harbor Island Cornelius Island Despair Island Dyer Island Fox Island Goat Island Gould Island Greene Island Hope Island Lime Rock Rabbit Island Rock Island Rose Island Starvegoat Island Whale Rock

Major rivers	Blackstone River Pawtuxet River Providence River Taunton River Sakonnet River Seekonk River

Cities & towns	Providence Newport Cranston Warwick East Providence Barrington Bristol East Greenwich Jamestown Middletown Narragansett North Kingstown Portsmouth Warren

Bridges	Claiborne Pell Newport Bridge Jamestown Verrazzano Bridge Mount Hope Bridge Sakonnet River Bridge Jamestown Bridge

Fall River, Massachusetts

History	American Printing Company Battle of Freetown B.M.C. Durfee High School Bradford Durfee College of Technology Corky Row Historic District Downtown Fall River Historic District Fall River Branch Railroad Fall River Railroad (1846) Fall River Railroad (1874) Fall River Iron Works Fall River Line Great Fall River fire of 1928 Highlands Historic District (Fall River, Massachusetts) History of Fall River, Massachusetts Lower Highlands Historic District Historic Places Oak Grove Cemetery Pocasset Manufacturing Company Slade's Ferry Bridge The Skeleton in Armor Truesdale Hospital USS Fall River (CA-131)

Geography	Fall River granite Freetown-Fall River State Forest Mount Hope Bay Quequechan River Taunton River Watuppa Ponds

People	Mariano S. Bishop Lizzie Borden Nathaniel B. Borden Richard Borden Matthew Borden Charlie Buffinton James Buffington Robert Correia John W. Cummings Orin Fowler Chris Herren Emeril Lagasse List of mayors of Fall River, Massachusetts Humberto Sousa Cardinal Medeiros Joe Raposo Jerry Remy Melvin Zais

Places	Academy Building Al Mac's Diner-Restaurant Battleship Cove Bishop Connolly High School B.M.C. Durfee High School Braga Bridge Bristol Community College Copicut Woods Diman Regional Vocational Technical High School Durfee Mills Fall River Government Center Fall River Heritage State Park Flint Mills Interstate 195 (Rhode Island-Massachusetts) King Philip Mills List of mills in Fall River, Massachusetts Marine Museum at Fall River New Harbour Mall Old Colony & Fall River Railroad Museum Quequechan Club Roman Catholic Diocese of Fall River Route 24

Other	The Herald News WHTB WSAR

Coordinates: 41°46′59″N 71°07′05″W / 41.783°N 71.118°W / 41.783; -71.118

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