Quinebaug River

The Quinebaug River is a river in south-central Massachusetts and eastern Connecticut, with watershed extending into western Rhode Island.

The river is about 80 miles (129 km) in length. It originates from an unnamed pond near Mashapaug Pond in Union, Connecticut, and ponds northwest of Sturbridge, Massachusetts, flows generally southeast and south through Connecticut (Putnam, Danielson, Plainfield, Canterbury and Jewett City), the river joins Aspinook pond which begins in Canterbury and ends in Jewett City. The river then continues to the Shetucket River northeast of Norwich, and from there flows into the Thames River and drains into the Long Island Sound. It is dammed in its upper reaches at East Brimfield Dam and Westville Dam, both for flood control, also in Plainfield and Aspinook dam at the end of Aspinook pond in Jewett City.

The Quinebaug River watershed covers convert|850|sqmi|km2|-1, and extends into western Rhode Island. It is heavily forested with 29 named streams including five major tributaries (the French and Moosup Rivers, and the Wales, Mill and Cady brooks). The watershed also contains 54 lakes and ponds, 31 of which with an area of 10 acres or more, for a total of about 3,000 acres (12 km²); the largest is East Brimfield Reservoir in Brimfield and Sturbridge (convert|420|acre|km2|1). The watershed is home to fish species including trout, smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, northern pike, and panfish. Elevations range from 1,264 feet above sea level on Mount Pisgah in Wales, Massachusetts, to about 25 ft in Norwich, Connecticut.

References

* [http://cfpub.epa.gov/surf/huc.cfm?huc_code=01100001 Environmental Protection Agency]
* [http://ri.water.usgs.gov/basins/quinebaug.htm USGS Quinebaug River Drainage Basin]
* [http://www.mass.gov/dep/water/resources/4142wqar1.pdf Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection]
* [http://www.dem.ri.gov/programs/bpoladm/stratpp/partnership/quinebau/index.htm Rhode Island Watershed Partnership]
* [http://www.bartleby.com/69/40/Q00640.html Columbia Gazetteer of North America]