The Sandy River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data
The National Map
accessed June 30, 2011

tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage ...

of the

Kennebec River The Kennebec River (Abenaki language, Abenaki: ''Kinəpékʷihtəkʷ'') is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed June 30, 2011 river within the U.S. state of Maine. It ri ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

. The Sandy River originates in the Sandy River Ponds () at an elevation of in Sandy River Plantation. The river flows south to a confluence with Chandler Mill Stream in Maine Township E and then easterly to its confluence with Saddleback Stream in

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

, and Orbeton Stream in Phillips. The river then flows southeasterly through the villages of Phillips and Strong. The river flows south from Strong to

Farmington Farmington may refer to: Places Canada *Farmington, British Columbia * Farmington, Nova Scotia (disambiguation) United States *Farmington, Arkansas *Farmington, California *Farmington, Connecticut *Farmington, Delaware * Farmington, Georgia * ...

and flows northeasterly from Farmington Falls through New Sharon to discharge into the

Norridgewock Norridgewock was the name of both an Indigenous village and a band of the Abenaki ("People of the Dawn") Native Americans/First Nations, an Eastern Algonquian tribe of the United States and Canada. The French of New France called the village Ke ...

a short distance south of the

Madison Madison may refer to: People * Madison (name), a given name and a surname * James Madison (1751–1836), fourth president of the United States Place names * Madison, Wisconsin, the state capital of Wisconsin and the largest city known by this ...

town line.

Maine State Route 4 State Route 4 (SR 4) is a long state highway located in southern and western Maine. It is a major interregional route and the first such route to be designated in the state. The southern terminus is at the New Hampshire border in South Berwick, ...

follows the river from the Sandy River Ponds and bridges it at Strong along the way to Farmington, where it is again bridged. The river is bridged once more at Farmington by

U.S. Route 2 U.S. Route 2 or U.S. Highway 2 (US 2) is an east–west U.S. Highway spanning across the northern continental United States. US 2 consists of two segments connected by various roadways in southern Canada. Unlike some routes, whi ...

. Route 2 follows the river downstream to New Sharon where it makes the last bridged crossing of the river before its confluence with the Kennebec.

History

The

Abenaki people The Abenaki (Abenaki: ''Wαpánahki'') are an Indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands of Canada and the United States. They are an Algonquian-speaking people and part of the Wabanaki Confederacy. The Eastern Abenaki language was predom ...

found the lower river a good route for

canoe A canoe is a lightweight narrow water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using a single-bladed paddle. In British English, the term ...

travel; Phillips remained an important

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...

location until

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, a ...

s prevented anadromous

fish migration Fish migration is mass relocation by fish from one area or body of water to another. Many types of fish migrate on a regular basis, on time scales ranging from daily to annually or longer, and over distances ranging from a few metres to thousa ...

. Fish would wait at Salmon Hole until flow enabled them to swim into the higher-gradient

spawning Spawn is the eggs and sperm released or deposited into water by aquatic animals. As a verb, ''to spawn'' refers to the process of releasing the eggs and sperm, and the act of both sexes is called spawning. Most aquatic animals, except for aquati ...

gravel Gravel is a loose aggregation of rock fragments. Gravel occurs naturally throughout the world as a result of sedimentary and erosive geologic processes; it is also produced in large quantities commercially as crushed stone. Gravel is classifi ...

s upstream of that point. European settlement of the lower valley began during the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

. Building of water-powered mills had produced incorporated towns as far upstream as Madrid by the time of Maine statehood in 1820. Early European settlers farmed the river lowlands between the last spring frost in May and the first autumn frost in September.York (1976) p. 24. Tree-cutting began after the autumn harvest; logs and lumber were moved on sleds while snow covered the ground from December through March. A major flood in October 1869, locally known as the "pumpkin freshet", destroyed every bridge over the river and most of the early mills. Rebuilding brought larger mills to Phillips, Farmington, and New Sharon, and the river was closely followed by the

narrow gauge A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structu ...

Sandy River Railroad The Sandy River Railroad was a narrow gauge railway built to serve the towns of Strong and Phillips in the Sandy River valley upstream of Farmington. The Sandy River Railroad was the first narrow gauge common carrier railroad built in the State ...

from Phillips to Farmington in 1879. Construction of the

Phillips and Rangeley Railroad The Phillips and Rangeley Railroad was a narrow gauge common carrier railroad in the State of Maine. It connected the towns of Phillips and Rangeley and was built to serve the forestry and resort industries of Franklin County. This railroad ...

up Orbeton Stream in 1891 enabled logging of the headwaters. Large steam sawmills on Redington Pond at the head of Orbeton Stream and on Toothaker Pond in Phillips converted the aboriginal

spruce A spruce is a tree of the genus ''Picea'' (), a genus of about 35 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal (taiga) regions of the Earth. ''Picea'' is the sole genus in the subfami ...

forests to lumber between 1891 and 1908. Pulpwood cutting kept the railroad profitable through

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, but sustained forest yield was insufficient to pay operating costs. The railroad went into receivership in 1923 and was dismantled from 1934 to 1936. A week of rain on accumulated winter snow washed out the Redington Pond dam and produced the largest recorded river flow of on 18–19 March 1936.York (1976) pp. 237–238.

Notes

References

* * * *
Maine Streamflow Data from the USGSMaine Watershed Data From Environmental Protection Agency
{{Rivers of Maine Tributaries of the Kennebec River Rivers of Franklin County, Maine Rivers of Somerset County, Maine Phillips, Maine

History

See also

Notes

References