63-499: Quincy Bay is the largest of the three small bays of southern Boston Harbor , part of Massachusetts Bay and forming much of the shoreline of the city of Quincy, Massachusetts . Locally in the Wollaston neighborhood of Quincy it is known as Wollaston Bay . The bay is home to Moon Island , Long Island , and Hangman Island . Quincy Bay extends from Squantum and Dorchester Bay in the northwest to Hough's Neck and Hingham Bay in
126-470: A combination of the Winthrop Peninsula and Deer Island to the north, the hooked Nantasket Peninsula and Point Allerton to the south, and the harbor islands in the middle. The harbor is often described as being split into an inner harbor and an outer harbor. The harbor itself comprises 50 square miles (130 km ) with 180 miles (290 km) of shoreline and 34 harbor islands. The inner harbor
189-665: A program to use the great tanks on Moon Island as a fish farm or a temporary home for tuna or lobster in an attempt to implement a recirculating aquaculture system in Boston Harbor. The prices of both these fish types vary by season. The plan was to collect and store fish in the tanks and sell the fish at higher prices when they were out of season. Nothing has come of this plan to date. 42°20′30″N 70°57′58″W / 42.34167°N 70.96611°W / 42.34167; -70.96611 Charles River The Charles River ( Massachusett : Quinobequin ), sometimes called
252-697: A rowing and sculling locale, with many boathouses and the three-mile Head of the Charles Regatta , the world's largest long-distance rowing regatta. The major boathouses, starting up stream near Watertown, are Community Rowing, Inc. , housing competitive, recreational, and learning programs along with the Boston College Crew; Northeastern University's Henderson; Cambridge Boat Club; Newell , home of Harvard Men's Rowing; Weld , home of Harvard Women's Rowing; Riverside Boat Club; Boston University's DeWolfe; Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Pierce; and, in
315-599: A way to use the Charles to power mills. In 1639, the town dug a canal from the Charles to a nearby brook that drained to the Neponset River . By this action, a portion of the Charles's flow was diverted, providing enough current for several mills. The new canal and the brook together are now called Mother Brook . The canal is regarded as the first industrial canal in North America. It remains in use for flood control . Waltham
378-602: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Boston Harbor Boston Harbor is a natural harbor and estuary of Massachusetts Bay , located adjacent to Boston Massachusetts . It is home to the Port of Boston , a major shipping facility in the Northeastern United States . Since its discovery to Europeans by John Smith in 1614, Boston Harbor has been an important port in American history. Early on, it
441-553: Is common along the Charles. With catches from the Charles from Natick to Boston the public is advised not to eat carp , and for non-pregnant, non-nursing adults, to limit large mouth bass consumption to no more than twice a month. Children and pregnant or nursing women should eat nothing from the Charles River. Both cautions are due to PCB and pesticide contamination. Up river from Natick, similar advisories are in effect for all fish on account of mercury , chlordane , and DDT in
504-518: Is fed by approximately 80 streams and several major aquifers as it flows 80 miles (129 km), starting at Teresa Road just north of Echo Lake ( 42°12′54″N 71°30′52″W / 42.215°N 71.514444°W / 42.215; -71.514444 ) in Hopkinton, passing through 23 cities and towns in eastern Massachusetts before emptying into Boston Harbor . Thirty-three lakes and ponds and 35 municipalities are entirely or partially part of
567-724: Is fed by several rivers, including the Neponset River , the Weymouth Fore River , the Weymouth Back River and the Weir River . Dredged deepwater channels stretch from President Roads to the inner harbor, and from Nantasket Roads to the Weymouth Fore River and Hingham Bay via Hull Gut and West Gut. Some commercial port facilities are located in the Fore River area, an area which has a history of shipbuilding including
630-579: Is home to a wide range of freshwater fish species and some diadromous species. There are over 25 species able to be found in the Charles and some of the most common freshwater fish include the Redfin Pickerel, Largemouth Bass, Golden Shiner, Yellow Perch, a variety of sunfish (such as Bluegills, Redbreast Sunfish, and Pumpkinseeds), and some species of catfish (Yellow Bullhead, Brown Bullhead, White Bullhead). The diadromous fish (fish that spend parts of their lives in fresh and salt water) that can be found in
693-493: Is popular with runners and bikers. Many runners gauge their distance and speed by keeping track of the mileage between the bridges along the route. After two decades of water quality improvement efforts spearheaded by the Environmental Protection Agency, on July 13, 2013, swimming for the general public was officially permitted for the first time in more than 50 years. Fishing from the banks or small craft
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#1732852668998756-399: Is still ongoing. Before the clean-up projects, the water was so polluted that The Standells released a song in 1965 called " Dirty Water " which referred to the sorry state of the Charles River. Neal Stephenson , who attended Boston University from 1977 to 1981, based his second novel, Zodiac , around pollution of the harbor. Since the writing of the song, the water quality in both
819-605: The 9 + 1 ⁄ 2 -mile (15 km) tidal estuary from Watertown Dam to Boston Harbor. From 1816 to 1968, the U.S. Army operated a gun and ammunition storage and later production facility known as the Watertown Arsenal . While it was key to many of the nation's war efforts over its several decades in operation, not the least of which being the American Civil War and World War I , its location in Watertown so near
882-732: The Charles River Speedway operated along part of the river. Today's Charles River basin between Boston and Cambridge is almost entirely a work of human design. Owen A. Galvin was appointed head of the Charles River Improvement Commission by Governor William E. Russell in 1891. Their work led to the design initiatives of noted landscape architects Charles Eliot and Arthur Shurcliff , both of whom had apprenticed with Frederick Law Olmsted and Guy Lowell . This designed landscape includes over 20 parks and natural areas along 19 miles (31 km) of shoreline, from
945-689: The Environmental Protection Agency graded the river's 2017 bacterial water quality "A−". A study published in the Journal of the American Water Resources Association in April 2008 and completed by researchers at Northeastern University, found high concentrations of E. coli bacteria in the Charles River after a long period of no rain. Using a mathematical model , the researchers then determined that two major tributaries,
1008-718: The Massachusetts Institute of Technology are located along the Charles River. Near its mouth, it forms the border between downtown Boston and Cambridge and Charlestown . The river opens into a broad basin and is lined by the parks of the Charles River Reservation . On the Charles River Esplanade stands the Hatch Shell , where concerts are given in summer evenings. The basin is especially known for its Independence Day celebration. The middle section of
1071-493: The Massachusetts Water Resources Authority in 1985. The slow progress of the cleanup became a key theme of the 1988 U.S. presidential election as George H. W. Bush defeated Dukakis partly through campaign speeches casting doubt on the governor's environmental record, which Dukakis himself had claimed was better than that of Bush. The court-ordered cleanup continued throughout the next two decades and
1134-601: The River Charles or simply the Charles , is an 80-mile-long (129 km) river in eastern Massachusetts . It flows northeast from Hopkinton to Boston along a highly meandering route, that doubles back on itself several times and travels through 23 cities and towns before reaching the Atlantic Ocean . The indigenous Massachusett named it Quinobequin , meaning "meandering" or "meandering still water". The Charles River
1197-528: The Stony Brook and Muddy River , are the predominant sources of E. coli in the lower Charles River. Starting in 2007, the Charles River Swimming Club has organized an annual race for its members, but obtains a special permit and must monitor water quality and rainfall in the days leading up to the race. The "first public swim" in the Charles since the 1950s was conducted on July 13, 2013, by
1260-619: The polling place is on the mainland at Columbia Point . Since 1920, Boston must pass legislation to redistrict. As of 2018, there were two active voters, staff at the Thompson Island Outward Bound Educational Center . There were previously registered voters at a recovery center and a homeless shelter on Long Island, but few voted and they have closed. In 1996, the Boston Globe reported that Mayor Thomas Menino and MIT engineer Clifford Goudey were planning
1323-585: The "barbarous names" for "English" ones. The Prince made many such changes, but only four survive today, one of which is the Charles River which Charles named for himself. The native name for the Charles River was Quinobequin , possibly meaning "meandering" in Massachusett from quinnuppe or "it turns." Other sources state this name was transferred from the Kennebec River in Maine to Cambridge by Prince Charles at
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#17328526689981386-580: The 1620s, Captain John Smith of Jamestown explored and mapped the coast of New England, originally naming the Charles River the Massachusetts River, which he derived from the Massachusett people living in the region, not from their actual name for the river, Quinobequin . When Smith presented his map to Prince Charles, future King Charles I , he suggested that the Prince should feel free to change any of
1449-674: The 1960s, and the program to clean up the Charles for good took shape in 1965 with the creation of the Charles River Watershed Association. In 1978, a new Charles River Dam was constructed downstream from the Science Museum site to keep salt water out of the basin. In 1995, the United States Environmental Protection Agency declared a goal of making the river swimmable by 2005. In 1996, Governor William Weld plunged, fully clothed, into
1512-572: The Charles River drainage basin . Despite the river's length and relatively large drainage area (308 square miles; 798 km ), its source is only 26 miles (42 km) from its mouth, and the river drops only 350 feet (107 m) from source to sea. The Charles River watershed contains more than 8,000 acres (32 km ) of protected wetlands, referred to as Natural Valley Storage. These areas are important in preventing downstream flooding and providing natural habitats to native species. Harvard University , Brandeis University , Boston University , and
1575-635: The Charles River Basin. In the 1950s a highway, Storrow Drive , was built along the edge of the Esplanade to connect Charles Circle with Soldiers Field Road, and the Esplanade was enlarged on the water side of the new highway. The Inner Belt highway was proposed to cross the Charles River at the Boston University Bridge , but its construction was canceled in the 1970s. As sewage , industrial wastewater and urban runoff flowed freely into
1638-526: The Charles River Conservancy, Charles River Watershed Association (CRWA), Esplanade Association, and DCR. Both the annual race and the Conservancy event have been held in deep water with swimmers jumping in off a dock, to avoid the toxic sediments on the bottom of the river that still make beach swimming dangerous. Swimming without a permit is punishable by a fine up to $ 250. The Charles River
1701-471: The Charles River is often at its worst after a large rainfall because of pollutants carried by runoff, and sewage overflows. For 2011, the EPA reported that the Charles met state bacterial standards for boating and swimming 96% and 89% of the time on dry days, and 74% and 35% of the time on wet days, respectively. Overall boatability and swimability of 82% and 54% in 2011 compared with 39% and 19% in 1995. In June 2018,
1764-561: The Charles are mostly anadromous species (fish that migrate from sea to freshwater to spawn). These include the Alewife Herring, American Shad, White Perch, and Striped Bass. The only catadromous species (fish that migrate from freshwater to sea to spawn) in the Charles is the American Eel. With the many initiatives to improve the health of the river in the years since the formation of the CRWA,
1827-401: The Charles did great environmental harm. The arsenal was declared a Super Fund site, and after its closure by the government it had to be cleaned at significant expense before it could be safely used again for other purposes. Likewise, the many factories and mills along the banks of the Charles supported a buoyant economy in their time but left a legacy of massive pollution. For several years,
1890-705: The Charles near the Museum of Science and river tour boat excursions depart from a lagoon near the museum. In early June, the Hong Kong Boston Dragon Boat Festival is held in Cambridge , near the Weeks Footbridge . The Charles River Bike Path runs 23 miles (37 km) along the banks of the Charles, starting at the Museum of Science and passing the campuses of MIT, Harvard and Boston University. The path
1953-672: The Harbor and the Charles River has significantly improved, and the projects have dramatically transformed Boston Harbor from one of the filthiest in the nation to one of the cleanest. Today, Boston Harbor is safe for fishing and for swimming nearly every day, though there are still beach closings after even small rainstorms, caused by bacteria-laden storm water and the occasional combined sewer overflow. In 2022, pieces of plastic transmission line used in rock explosives, (known as explosive shock tubing) began washing up on coastal shores of Cape Cod and Rhode Island . [1] This led to an investigation that
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2016-528: The Harbor. In the 19th century, two of the first steam sewage stations were built (one in East Boston and one later on Deer Island). With these mandates, the harbor was seeing small improvements, but raw sewage was still continuously pumped into the harbor. In 1919, the Metropolitan District Commission was created to oversee and regulate the quality of harbor water. However, not much improvement
2079-800: The Lower Basin, Union Boat Club. The Lower Basin between the Longfellow and Harvard (Massachusetts Avenue) bridges has the sailing docks of Community Boating , the Harvard University Sailing Center, and the MIT Sailing Pavilion. Sailboat, kayak, and paddleboard rentals are available at the Boston University Sailing Pavilion. Charles River Canoe and Kayak has four locations along the Charles, renting kayaks, canoes, and paddleboards. Duck Boats regularly enter
2142-544: The MIT Sea Grant College Program and the Charles River Alliance of Boaters (CRAB). Online and hardcopy charts are available as a public service. The river is busy, apart from the winter months, with rowing , sculling , canoeing , kayaking , paddleboarding , dragonboating , and sailing , both recreational and competitive. Most of the watercraft activity occurs from the Museum of Science to
2205-628: The New Dam at the Charlestown Bridge to the dam near Watertown Square. Eliot first envisioned today's river design in the 1890s, an important model being the layout of the Alster basin in Hamburg , but major construction began only after Eliot's death with the damming of the river's mouth at today's Boston Museum of Science , an effort led by James Jackson Storrow . The new dam, completed in 1910, stabilized
2268-453: The center of Watertown , above which is a dam. These 17 miles (27 km) see motorboat traffic from two marinas and a boat ramp near Watertown, as well as two marinas downstream and boats entering from Boston Harbor through an old lock next to the Museum of Science. A canoe and kayak ADA-accessible launch at Magazine Beach in Cambridge opened 23 September 2019. The Charles is renowned as
2331-502: The city's waterfront contributed to the problem. That suit was followed by one by Conservation Law Foundation and finally by the United States government , resulting in the landmark court-ordered cleanup of Boston Harbor. The lawsuits forced then-Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis to propose separating the water and sewer treatment divisions from the MDC, resulting in the creation of
2394-555: The companion Deer Island plant adjacent to Winthrop had far-reaching environmental and political effects. Fecal coliform bacteria levels forced frequent swimming prohibitions along the harbor beaches and the Charles River for many years. The city of Quincy sued the Metropolitan District Commission (MDC) and the separate Boston Water and Sewer Commission in 1982, charging that unchecked systemic pollution of
2457-775: The east. Its southwestern shore is Wollaston Beach . The Squantum Yacht Club and the Wollaston Yacht Club are on Quincy Bay along Wollaston Beach. Quincy Shore Drive , one of the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation parkways in the Greater Boston area, travels 2.1 miles (3.4 km) along Quincy Bay, offering panoramic views of the Boston Harbor Islands and the Boston skyline. This Norfolk County, Massachusetts geography–related article
2520-468: The fish. Long before European settlers named and shaped the Charles, Native Americans living in New England made the river a central part of their lives. At the time of European colonization in the early 1600s, settlements of Massachusett people were present along the river at Nonantum in current-day Newton and Pigsgusset in current-day Watertown . Prior to the arrival of Puritan colonists in
2583-405: The harbor until the 19th century. By 1660, almost all imports came to the greater Boston area and the New England coast through the waters of Boston Harbor. A rapid influx of people transformed Boston into an exploding city. The health of the harbor quickly deteriorated as the population of Boston increased. As early as the late 19th century Boston citizens were advised not to swim in any portion of
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2646-557: The harbor, or just outside it in Massachusetts Bay: Two former islands, Castle Island and Deer Island , still exist in a recognizable form. Castle Island was joined to the mainland by land reclamation , while Deer Island ceased to be an island when the channel which formerly separated it from the mainland was filled in by the New England Hurricane of 1938 . Nut Island is a small former island in Boston Harbor that
2709-432: The harbor, river systems, and tidal reservoirs. This interpretation came to be known as the theory of Tidal scour . This understanding of the harbor as a dynamic landscape assuaged concerns some had over the negative impacts of land fill operations of land and real estate developers. As the 19th century progressed, the acceleration of urban growth dramatically increased the need for more land. The Ordinance of 1641 extended
2772-407: The health and variety of fish in the river have greatly improved. One example of this is the reintroduction of American Shad into the Charles. American Shad used to be one of the most common species in the river until the 1800s when population numbers decreased because of new dams and poor water quality. With improved water quality and partial dam breaches created in modern times, the CRWA, along with
2835-409: The inner harbor meets the outer harbor. The outer harbor stretches to the south and east of the inner harbor. To its landward side, and moving in a counterclockwise direction, the harbor is made up of the three small bays of Dorchester Bay , Quincy Bay and Hingham Bay . To seaward, the two deep water anchorages of President Roads and Nantasket Roads are separated by Long Island . The outer harbor
2898-429: The inner harbor was also filling and created widespread anxiety about the destruction of the Boston Harbor. Although the scientific understanding of hydraulics was still in its infancy and there were high degrees of uncertainty regarding the meeting of land and water, scientists and engineers began to describe the Boston Harbor as a series of channels created and maintained by the scouring force of water moving in and out of
2961-551: The law that made land reclamation such a widespread activity in Boston. By the end of the nineteenth century, the city had created more land in two generations than it had in the previous two centuries. Boston Harbor contains a considerable number of islands, 34 of which have been part of the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area since its establishment in 1996. The following islands exist within
3024-491: The little long pond"), and Quinnipiac River ("long pond") in present-day Massachusetts , Connecticut , and New Hampshire . As native populations were driven out by European settlers, the Charles River became an early center for hydropower and manufacturing in North America. Although in portions of its length, the Charles drops slowly in elevation and has relatively little current, early settlers in Dedham, Massachusetts , found
3087-414: The notable Fore River Shipyard . In the 1830s, members of the maritime community observed physical decay in the harbor. Islands in the outer harbor were visibly deteriorating and erosion was causing weathered materials and sediment to move from where it was protecting the harbor to where it would do the most harm. Recent shoaling experiences and comparisons with old charts caused observers to insist that
3150-556: The property rights of riparian owners from the line of low tide to a maximum distance of 100 rods (1,600 ft; 500 m) from the line of high tide. Generally, other states drew the line of private property at high tide. However, extending shore lines into bordering bodies of water was not unique to Boston. Chicago built into Lake Michigan, New York extended itself into the Hudson and East rivers, and San Francisco reclaimed sections of its bay. The Boston Harbor's unique geography inspired
3213-793: The river between the Watertown Dam and Wellesley is partially protected by the properties of the Upper Charles River Reservation and other state parks, including the Hemlock Gorge Reservation , Cutler Park , and the Elm Bank Reservation . A detailed depth chart of the lower basin of the Charles River, from near the Watertown Dam to the New Charles River Dam , has been created by a partnership between
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#17328526689983276-443: The river from the surrounding city, the Charles River became well known for its high level of pollutants , gaining such notoriety that by 1955, Bernard DeVoto wrote in Harper's Magazine that the Charles was "foul and noisome, polluted by offal and industrious wastes, scummy with oil, unlikely to be mistaken for water." Fish kills and submerged vehicles were a common sight, along with toxic chemical plumes that colored parts of
3339-456: The river pink and orange. The Standells sang about the sorry state of the Charles in their 1965 song " Dirty Water ". Once popular with swimmers, awareness of the river's high pollution levels forced the state to shut down several popular swimming areas, including Cambridge's Magazine Beach and Gerry Landing public beaches. Efforts to clean up the river and restore it to a state where swimming and fishing would be acceptable began as early as
3402-573: The river to prove his commitment to cleaning up the river. On November 12, 2004, Christopher Swain became the first person to swim the Charles River's entire length, in an effort to raise public awareness of the river's environmental health. In July 2007, the river hosted the Charles River Masters Swim Race, the first sanctioned race in the Charles in over five decades. A combination of public and private initiatives helped drastically lower levels of pollutants by focusing on eliminating combined sewer overflows and stormwater runoff . Since Weld's stunt,
3465-427: The river's condition has improved dramatically, although it was not deemed entirely swimmable by 2005. The Conservation Law Foundation opposes the permit given to Mirant for the Veolia Energy North America Kendall Cogeneration Station , an electricity plant near Kendall Square , charging that the water it releases causes blooms of hazardous microorganisms because of its warm temperature. The water quality of
3528-403: The time he renamed this river in his name. Still another explanation is that Quinobequin was a descriptive term for any long body of water for Eastern Algonquin peoples, which European explorers and settlers interpreted as a local proper name. Examples include the Kennebec River ("long water place") and Kennebunk in Maine , the Quinebaug River ("long pond"), Quinapoxet River ("at
3591-434: The water level from Boston to Watertown, eliminating the existing mud flats, and a narrow embankment was built between Leverett Circle and Charlesgate. After Storrow's death, his widow Mrs. James Jackson Storrow donated $ 1 million toward the creation of a more generously landscaped park along the Esplanade; it was dedicated in 1936 as the Storrow Memorial Embankment. This also enabled the construction of many public docks in
3654-414: Was conducted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers , it was suspected to have been related to a concluded Boston Harbor dredging project. The outcome was to seek to find methods to prevent future environmental impacts from reoccurring. Boston Harbor is a large harbor which constitutes the western extremity of Massachusetts Bay . The harbor is sheltered from Massachusetts Bay and the open Atlantic Ocean by
3717-430: Was historically the main port of Boston and is still the site of most of its port facilities as well as the Boston waterfront, which has been redeveloped for residential and recreational uses. The inner harbor extends from the mouths of the Charles River and the Mystic River , both of which empty into the harbor, to Logan International Airport and Castle Island , the latter now connected by land in 1928 to Boston, where
3780-412: Was joined by landfill to the Houghs Neck peninsula in northeastern Quincy by the 1940s so it could be used as the site of a sewage treatment facility. Two other former islands, Apple Island and Governors Island , have been subsumed into land reclamation for Logan International Airport . The Harbor Islands have made up Boston's least populated electoral area, Ward 1, Precinct 15, since 1990, though
3843-491: Was recognized by Europeans as one of the finest natural harbors in the world due to its depth and natural defense from the Atlantic as a result of the many islands that dot the harbor. It was also favored due to its access to the Charles River , Neponset River and Mystic River which made travel from the harbor deeper into Massachusetts far easier. It was the site of the Boston Tea Party in 1773, as well as almost continuous building of wharves, piers, and new filled land into
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#17328526689983906-442: Was seen and general public awareness of the poor quality of water was very low. In 1972, the Clean Water Act was passed in order to help promote increased national water quality. Since the mid-1970s organizations within the Boston community have battled for a cleaner Boston Harbor. More recently, the harbor was the site of the $ 4.5 billion Boston Harbor Project. Failures at the Nut Island sewage treatment plant in Quincy and
3969-422: Was the site of the first fully integrated textile factory in America, built by Francis Cabot Lowell in 1814, and by the 19th century the Charles River was one of the most industrialized areas in the United States. Its hydropower soon fueled many mills and factories. By the century's end, 20 dams had been built across the river, mostly to generate power for industry. An 1875 government report listed 43 mills along
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