The Charles River from the Boston side, facing Cambridge and the main campus of Harvard University.

The Charles River is a small, relatively short Massachusetts (USA) river that separates Boston from Cambridge and Charlestown. It is fed by some 80 brooks and streams, and several major aquifers, as it flows snakelike for 80 miles, starting at Echo Lake in Hopkinton, through 58 cities and towns in eastern Massachusetts, before emptying into Boston Harbor. Its watershed contains 33 lakes and ponds, mostly manmade. Despite the river's length, and relatively large drainage area (308 square miles), its source is only 26 miles from its mouth, and the river drops only 350 feet from source to sea. It is the most densely populated river basin in New England. Download high resolution version (576x768, 81 KB) Charles River, Ice, Cambridge, Painter. ... Download high resolution version (576x768, 81 KB) Charles River, Ice, Cambridge, Painter. ... State nickname: Bay State Official languages English Capital Boston Largest city Boston Governor Mitt Romney (R) Senators Edward Kennedy (D) John Kerry (D) Area  - Total  - % water Ranked 44th 27,360 km² 25. ... The Murray River in Australia. ... City nickname: Beantown, The Hub (of the Solar System), Athens of America Official website: www. ... Cambridge City Hall Cambridge is a city in the Greater Boston area of Massachusetts, United States. ... Birdseye view of Boston, Charlestown, and Bunker Hill between 1890 and 1910. ... Hopkinton is a town located in southwestern Middlesex County, Massachusetts, about 40 km (25 mi) from Boston. ...

Harvard University, Boston University, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology are all located along the Charles River; at Boston proper it opens out into a broad basin and is lined by parks such as the Charles River Esplanade (in which stands the Hatch Shell where concerts are given in summer evenings). The river is well known for its rowing, sculling, and sailing, both recreational and competitive. The Head of the Charles Regatta is held annually, in October. Harvard University is a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA, and a member of the Ivy League. ... Boston University is a non-sectarian private university located in Boston, Massachusetts. ... The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, or MIT, is a research and educational institution located in the city of Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA. MIT is a widely renowned leader in science and technology, as well as in many other fields, including management, economics, linguistics, political science, and philosophy. ... Boston is a town and small port c. ... ... The Boston Pops performing at the Hatch Shell on July 4, 2005 The Hatch Shell is an outdoor concert venue adjacent to the Charles River Esplanade near downtown Boston. ... Rowing in the Amstel River by a student rowing club. ... The GB coxless pair of Toby Garbett & Rick Dunn at Henley Royal Regatta 2004. ... Wooden sailing boat Sailing is the skillful art of controlling the motion of a sailing ship or smaller boat, across a body of water using wind as the source of power. ... The Head of the Charles Regatta is a rowing race held annually on the Charles River, which separates Boston, Massachusetts from Cambridge. ... October is the tenth month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar and one of seven Gregorian months with the length of 31 days. ...

Despite its famous water pollution, making the Charles "Swimmable by 2005" became an important EPA goal¹. While this promise was not reached in time, swimming and fishing are progressively re-emerging as about 90% of the length of the river is now considered safe for swimming². Health risks remain however, particularly after rainstorms and when walking in certain riverbeds stirs up toxic sediment. This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... EPA redirects here. ...

Early history of the Charles River

The river's name, before the English, was once thought to be Quinobequin (meandering), though that attribution has been discredited by, among others, the Harvard University Librarian in 1850. The river was used by Native Americans for local transportation and fishing, and as part of the way from southeastern Massachusetts to northern New England. Captain John Smith gave the river its current English name in honor of Charles I of England, his reigning monarch. Subsequent European settlers harnessed the river for industrialization, and by 1640 entrepreneurs on the Neponset River had diverted its water to power their mills. Captain John Smith John Smith (1580-1631) was an English soldier and sailor, now chiefly remembered for his role in establishing the first permanent English settlement in North America, and his brief association with the Native American princess Pocahontas. ... Charles I (19 November 1600–30 January 1649) was King of England, Scotland and Ireland from 27 March 1625, until his execution. ... The Neponset River is a river in eastern Massachusetts. ...

Waltham was the site of the first 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 the 9.5-mile tidal estuary from Watertown Dam to Boston Harbor. Waltham is a city located in Middlesex County, Massachusetts. ... Francis Cabot Lowell (April 7, 1775 - April 10, 1817) was the American business man for whom the city of Lowell, Massachusetts, United States is named. ... 1814 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Hydraulic turbine and electrical generator. ...

Today's design of the Charles River

A rainy day at the Charles River Esplanade, in Boston, Massachusetts.

A sunny day on the Charles River Esplanade.

Today's Charles River basin between Boston and Cambridge is almost entirely a work of human aesthetics and design, and forms one of the finest planned landscapes in the United States. Its design was the work of noted landscape architects Charles Eliotand Arthur Shurcliff, had apprenticed with Frederick Law Olmsted, and by the architect and landscape architect Guy Lowell. This designed landscape now includes over 20 parks and natural areas along 19 miles of shoreline, from the New Dam at the Charlestown Bridge to the dam near Watertown Square. Download high resolution version (2592x1944, 1010 KB)A rainy day at the Charles River Esplanade, in Boston, Massachusetts. ... Download high resolution version (2592x1944, 1010 KB)A rainy day at the Charles River Esplanade, in Boston, Massachusetts. ... ... City nickname: Beantown, The Hub (of the Solar System), Athens of America Official website: www. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (2560x1920, 1063 KB) A summer day on the Charles River Esplanade, Boston, Massachusetts. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (2560x1920, 1063 KB) A summer day on the Charles River Esplanade, Boston, Massachusetts. ... ... A landscape architect is primarily a designer of spaces, mostly landscapes, and sometimes gardens, in the field of landscape architecture. ... Charles Eliot (1959-1897), noted American landscape architect. ... Arthur Asahel Shurcliff (1865 - 1957) was a noted American landscape architect. ... Frederick Law Olmsted, oil painting by John Singer Sargent, 1895, Biltmore Estate, Asheville, North Carolina Frederick Law Olmsted (April 26, 1822 – August 28, 1903) was a United States landscape architect, famous for designing many well-known urban parks, including Central Park in New York City, the countrys oldest... Guy Lowell (August 6, 1870-February 4, 1927) was an American architect and landscape architect. ...

Eliot first envisioned today's river design in the 1890s, but major construction began only after his death with the damming of the river's mouth at today's Museum of Science, an effort led in 1902-03 by James Jackson Storrow. The new dam, completed in 1910, stabilized 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 Helen Storrow donated one million dollars toward the creation of a more generously landscaped park along the Esplanade; it was dedicated in 1936 as the Storrow Memorial Embankment. 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 Charles in popular culture

The Charles River is an icon for Boston and is featured in the song Dirty Water by The Standells: Dirty Water is a song composed in the 1960s and performed by the California rock and roll band, The Standells. ... The Standells were a 1960s rock and roll band from Los Angeles, California who, like the The Seeds, exemplified the garage rock style. ...

Down by the River...

Down by the banks of the River Charles

(Oh, that's what's happenin' baby)

That's where you'll find me

Along with lovers, muggers, and thieves.

(Ahh, but they're cool people)

Charles River crossings (Partial List)

The following bridges and tunnels cross the river from east to west.

• Charlestown Bridge 1900 (earlier bridge 1786)
• Charles River Dam 1978
• Warren Bridge 1828 (removed 1962)
• Charlestown High Bridge (removed 2004) 1956
• Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge 2003
• Leverett Circle Connector Bridge 1999
• Orange Line Haymarket North Extension (tunnel) 1975
• MBTA Commuter Rail Charles River Bridge 1931
• Boston and Lowell Railroad Charles River Bridge (removed) 1835 (first movable railroad bridge in the United States [1])
• Green Line Lechmere Viaduct 1912
• Charles River Dam Bridge 1910
• Longfellow Bridge (Red Line in median, built as the Cambridge Bridge, renamed in 1927) [1907]]
• Harvard Bridge 1891
• Boston University Bridge (built as the Cottage Farm Bridge, renamed in 1949) 1928
• Grand Junction Railroad bridge (crosses the river under the Boston University Bridge)
• River Street Bridge 1926
• Western Avenue Bridge 1924
• John W. Weeks Bridge (the only pedestrian bridge across the basin, with Harvard University's steam tunnel inside) 1926
• Anderson Memorial Bridge (a memorial to Nicholas Longworth Anderson donated by his son Larz Anderson) 1912
• Eliot Bridge 1950
• Arsenal Street Bridge 1925
• North Beacon Street Bridge 1917
• Watertown Bridge about 1907
• Watertown Dam (about 1634)
• Pedestrian bridge
• Bridge Street
• Farwell Street
• Railroad bridge
• Newton Street
• Elm Street
• Railroad bridge
• Pedestrian bridge
• Dam
• Moody Street
• Prospect Street
• Commonwealth Avenue
• Massachusetts Turnpike main road and two bridges for exit ramp loop
• Recreation road (pedestrian?)
• CSX railroad bridge (Framingham/Worcester Line)
• Pedestrian bridge
• I-95 (Route 128) to Mass Pike connector
• I-95/Route 128
• Park Road
• Rt 109 Medfield/Millis Line
• Rt 27 Medfield/Sherborn Line

1900 (MCM) is a common year starting on Monday. ... 1786 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (the link is to a full 1978 calendar). ... 1828 was a leap year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... 1962 (MCMLXII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Charlestown High Bridge, which spanned the Charles River in Boston, Massachusetts, was part of Interstate 93 and US Highway 1 at the north end of the Central Artery. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1956 (MCMLVI) was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Leonard P. Zakim Bridge TD Banknorth Garden and Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge in Boston On the Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge, travelling southbound The Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge in Boston, Massachusetts 42. ... 2003 (MMIII) is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1999 (MCMXCIX) is a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... The Orange Line is one of the four subway lines of the MBTA. It extends from Forest Hills in Jamaica Plain, Boston in the south to Oak Grove in Malden, Massachusetts in the north. ... 1975 (MCMLXXV) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1975 calendar). ... The MBTA Commuter Rail is the regional rail arm of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. ... 1931 (MCMXXXI) is a common year starting on Thursday. ... The Lowell Line running from Boston, Massachusetts to Lowell, Massachusetts, originally the Boston and Lowell Railroad, is the oldest continually operated passenger train line in the western hemisphere. ... 1835 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... A Boston College-bound (B line) Type 8 (Breda) Green Line car at Blandford Street, on the Boston University campus. ... 1912 (MCMXII) was a leap year starting on Monday. ... The Charles River Dam Bridge, also called Craigies Bridge or the Canal Bridge, is a six-lane bascule bridge across the Charles River, connecting Leverett Circle in downtown Boston to Monseigneur OBrien Highway in East Cambridge, Massachusetts. ... 1910 (MCMX) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Taken late on a February 2002 afternoon, the MBTAs Red line trains crossing at rush hour with the Beacon Hill and the Boston skyline in the distance. ... View of Boston from the Red Line The Red Line is the newest of the MBTA rapid transit lines in the Boston, Massachusetts area. ... The Harvard Bridge (also known locally as the MIT bridge or the Mass Ave bridge) is the longest bridge over the Charles River. ... 1891 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... The Boston University Bridge, originally the Cottage Farm Bridge, is a bridge over the Charles River connecting Boston to Cambridge, Massachusetts. ... 1928 (MCMXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Grand Junction Railroad was an 8. ... 1926 (MCMXXVI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1924 (MCMXXIV) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Harvard University is a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA, and a member of the Ivy League. ... A utility tunnel is a subterreanean space for wires, conduits, pipes, and other conveyences used in the delivery of utilities with enough room for a human to enter. ... 1926 (MCMXXVI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1912 (MCMXII) was a leap year starting on Monday. ... 1950 was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1925 (MCMXXV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1917 (MCMXVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar (see link for calendar) or a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. ... It has been suggested that Commonwealth avenue be merged into this article or section. ... View of the Turnpike from an overpass by Boston University, facing east (towards central Boston). ... Categories: Companies traded on NYSE | Railway companies of the United States | Alabama railroads | Connecticut railroads | Delaware railroads | Florida current railroads | Georgia railroads | Illinois railroads | Indiana railroads | Kentucky railroads | Louisiana railroads | Maryland railroads | Massachusetts railroads | Michigan railroads | Mississippi railroads | New Jersey railroads | New York railroads | North Carolina railroads | Ohio railroads | Pennsylvania... The Boston and Albany Railroad (AAR reporting mark BA) was a railroad connecting Boston, Massachusetts to Albany, New York, later becoming part of the New York Central Railroad system. ... Interstate 95 or (I-95) is an interstate highway that runs 1907 miles (3070 kilometers) north and south along the eastern United States coast. ...

See also

• List of Massachusetts rivers

This is a list of rivers in the U.S. state of Massachusetts Acushnet River Agawam River Annisquam River Assabet River Assonet River Barrington River Blackstone River Bluefish River Bungay River Burnshirt River Canoe River Charles River Chicopee River Clam River Concord River Connecticut River Cotley River Crooked River Deerfield...

References

• Inventing the Charles River, by Karl Haglund, MIT Press, 2003, in collaboration with the Charles River Conservancy.
• Gaining Ground: A History of Landmaking in Boston, by Nancy S. Seasholes, MIT Press, 2003.

External links

• 42.354326° N 71.09166° W Map and satellite photo links to the Charles River
• Charles River Watershed Association, includes swimmability maps
• Charles River Conservancy
• "Swimmable by 2005" EPA Effort
• Charles River Museum of Industry