The Saugus River is a river in
.
The river is long, drains a watershed of approximately , and passes through
Wakefield
Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 99,251 in the 2011 census.https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/census/2011/ks101ew Census 2011 table KS101EW Usual resident population, ...
,
Lynnfield,
Saugus, and
Lynn as it meanders east and south from its source in
Lake Quannapowitt
Lake Quannapowitt is a lake in Wakefield, Massachusetts. It is one of two large lakes in Wakefield, the other being the man-made Crystal Lake. The lake is named for Quonopohit, the Naumkeag Native American who signed a deed to the town that wo ...
in Wakefield (elevation 90 feet) to its mouth in
Broad Sound. It has at least eight
tributaries
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 b ...
: the Mill River; Bennets Pond Brook; the Pines River; Hawkes Brook; Crystal Pond Brook; Beaver Dam Brook; Strawberry Brook; and Shute Brook.
Although Native Americans called the river ''Aboutsett'' ("winding stream"), European settlers first called it the River at Saugus, where ''Saugus'' (possibly a native word for "long") arguably named the beach running from
Swampscott
Swampscott () is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, located up the coast from Boston in an area known as the North Shore. The population was 15,111 as of the 2020 United States Census. A former summer resort on Massachusetts Ba ...
to
Revere (there are competing theories as to the origin of the word "Saugus"). In early European times,
alewives
The alewife (''Alosa pseudoharengus'') is an anadromous species of herring found in North America. It is one of the "typical" North American shads, attributed to the subgenus ''Pomolobus'' of the genus ''Alosa''. As an adult it is a marin ...
and
bass
Bass or Basses may refer to:
Fish
* Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species
Music
* Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range:
** Bass (instrument), including:
** Acoustic bass gui ...
were harvested from 1632 onwards. The
Saugus Iron Works Saugus may refer to:
Places
* Saugus, Massachusetts, U.S.
* Saugus, Santa Clarita, California, U.S., named after its sister city in Massachusetts
* Saugus, Montana, U.S.
* Saugus River, in Massachusetts, U.S.
Education
* Saugus High School (Calif ...
used water power from the river in by 1642, and the river subsequently attracted grist mills, chocolate mills, wool and flannel mills, and a tannery.
References
Saugus River Watershed Council* "A Gathering of Memories: Saugus 1900-2000" by John Burns, Tom Sheehan, et al.; 2000, Jostens /
Saugus.net, ; http://www.saugus.org/GatheringOfMemories/ (Provides at least three conflicting theories as to the origin of the name "Saugus")
{{authority control
Rivers of Essex County, Massachusetts
Wakefield, Massachusetts
Saugus, Massachusetts
Rivers of Massachusetts