Connecticut Water Trails Association
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Connecticut Water Trails Association |
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Connecticut Water Trails Program Connecticut Rivers West River
Site
Location: Basic Information: The West River is a freshwater stream in southern Connecticut. It flows through the towns of Bethany, Woodbridge, and New Haven before discharging into the West Haven Harbor. Within the city of New Haven,
the river is surrounded by Edgewood Park and the West River Memorial
Park along much of its length. While the river's natural channel winds
along the western edge of the West River Memorial Park, a very straight
channel cuts through its middle and terminates at the park's northern
edge (Derby Avenue). This channel was constructed for aesthetic
purposes. There is a public canoe launch, maintained by the City of New
Haven Department of Parks, Recreation, and Trees, in the constructed
channel at Derby Avenue.
Season: Site Contact Information: Site Coordinates: Latitude: 72.950486 W Latitude: 41.30638 N Source : Bethany
USGS Quadrangles: Driving Directions: Directions Map: ITouch Map: West River Boat Launch Information: ADA Access: Site Description: Environment: Additional Info: Dams: The river is dammed in several places and some of the reservoirs are used by the South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority to provide a percentage of the public water supply. The reservoirs are named Lily Pond (or Pond Lily), Konolds Pond, Lake Dawson, Lake Watrous, and Lake Bethany, in order from south to north. Tide Gate: The river flows through a tide gate where it crosses under Orange Avenue (U.S. Route 1, also referred to as the Boston Post Road). Under unaltered conditions, the river would likely be brackish along much of its length due to salt water mixing at high tide. The tide gate prevents this from happening by only allowing water past at low tide. The gate was installed with the goal of controlling flooding in mind, however, after heavy rains, the gate often exacerbates flooding, as it prevents drainage during high tide. The large quantity of Phragmites australis, or common reed, growing along the river's banks can most likely be attributed to the tide gate. Phragmites cannot tolerate high salinity, and the tide gate maintains the river's salinity at a level low enough for the plant to survive. Site History:Prior to the European settlers arriving, the New Haven region was inhabited by Quinnipiac and Pequot tribes. In 1638, John Davenport and Theophilus Eaton arrived to establish the colony that would become New Haven. They found few native inhabitants due to wars and epidemics and the region, with lowland salt marshes, was likely seen as a blessing to the early colonists. Other areas along the Connecticut coast were dense with forests, which the Europeans viewed as refuges of evil which hid savage men and wild beasts. Immediately, early colonists relied on harvesting salt hay for their livestock, which helped to convert the area to agricultural land. Through the 18th and 19th century the salt marsh areas around the Quinnipiac River, Mill, and West Rivers were harvested for their salt hay. Unfortunately, the early soil was bad for crops, so New Haven farmers exported the salt hay and other livestock products. Continued fertilization with manure led to better agriculture and a rise in milk and horses as commodities.
Until construction of
the first upriver dams in the late 1800's, West River had a much higher
flow, given its steady descent and narrow channeling through hard
metamorphic schist. Around the time of the American War for Independence
the first mills began to harness West River’s fast-moving water. Between
1776 and the 1860s, Woodbridge, Hamden, and New Haven saw numerous mills
spring up along West River; gunpowder mills, Throughout the 19th century, New Haven’s industrial economy grew as did its population. The new immigrants had little connection to the land and they wished to make it more like Europe, bringing English grasses and filling in the marshes. The city was under constant pressure to convert marshes to parks, dumps, industrial areas. In 1878 it was first discovered that mosquitoes spread disease and for years after, the city spent considerable effort trying to eradicate the insect. Knowing that salt marshes bred mosquitoes, 1889 New Haven mayor Henry peck created Edgewood Park, damning the wetlands as “breeders of disease.” Mayor Sargent acquired numerous marshes and pushed for filling the wetlands as the city’s industry and population continued to grow. In 1912, the Anti-Mosquito Committee was formed to raise money to drain and spray marshlands. Meanwhile, near the head of West River, the New Haven Water Company (NHWC) built Lake Watrous in 1888, with parts of the lake in Woodbridge and Bethany. Over the next twenty years, the NHWC constructed several more dams on the West River. The New Haven Water Company was a private utility formed in the 1849 to provide water to the people in the Greater New Haven area. Helped along during its initial building and operations by Eli Whitney, NHWC operated from 1862 until the 1970s. In 1974, after the passing of the federal Safe Drinking Water Act, NHWC attempted to generate capital for a filtration plant by selling over 60 percent of its 26,000 acres. The local communities and others throughout the state were in an uproar. With several New Haven area legislators, the people of Greater New Haven pressured state legislators to block the land sale and create the South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority (RWA) in 1977. The RWA is a publicly-owned utility who has expanded its mission beyond supply and protection of water resources to include recreation and education. The Whitney Water Center at the base of Lake Whitney in New Haven teaches 10,000 children each year about the basics of drinking water science. Through much of the 1900s, the long battle of New Haven versus the marsh lands greatly affected West River. In 1920, tidal floodgates were installed near Route 1 to prevent salt water from infiltrating West River and helping to breed mosquitoes. What happened, though, is that freshwater marshes developed in place of salt marshes. And so New Haven continued to fill in the wetlands until in 1970 over sixty percent of wetlands in New Haven had been filled in favor of highways, airports, marinas, dumps, and parking. It was not until the 1950s that people began to appreciate the importance of wetlands for the area’s ecosystem. New Haven and West Haven wetlands are major bird sanctuaries and the estuarine environment is significant to the exchange of nutrients. Eventually the city began using alternative methods to reduce mosquitoes, such as predatory species like killfishes and topminnows. While the city is no longer filling in its marshlands, little is under way to restore any of the region to wetlands.
In addition, prior to
public ownership of the river itself, businesses redirected West River
to suit their industrial needs. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers spent
much of the 1900s redirecting West River to suit industrial and flood
control needs. In 1982 New Haven experienced the worst flooding on
record, which prompted construction of a completely channelized area
around Blake Street in Westville
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