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The Shawsheen River Recreational Map highlights the many recreational opportunities in the Shawsheen River Watershed, including boating, hiking, biking, fishing and sightseeing.  This map displays the vision of the community and is designed to provide both visitors and local residents with the resources they need to take full advantage of this rich watershed.

Click Here to access the Shawsheen River Interactive Recreational Map

The Shawsheen River Watershed

• The Shawsheen River Watershed has a total drainage area of approximately 78 square miles, including approximately 60 miles of named rivers and streams, and encompassing all or part of 12 Massachusetts’ municipalities
• The main stem of the Shawsheen River flows for approximately 25 miles, losing 70 feet in elevation from its headwaters at Hanscom Military Base, to its confluence with the Merrimack River in Lawrence
• Approximately 4.5% of the watershed area is covered by wetlands or open water
• The watershed supports a population of approximately 250,000 people
• According to legend, the name "Shawsheen" is actually a Native American word, meaning "serpent" or "serpentine", which refers back to the meandering nature of the river.  The river was given the name "Shawshin" by the General Court of Massachusetts on May 1644.  In 1636 Matthew Craddock, governor of the colonial company in England, wrote to Governor John Winthrop in America expressing a desire to obtain a grant of two thousand acres of land "at a place called Shawe Shynn." (- William Dunn, Watershed Team Leader, Massachusetts Watershed Initiative, Executive Office of Environmental Affairs, http://www.state.ma.us/envir/mwi/shawsheen.htm, - Bedford Historical Society)

The Shawsheen River Watershed is part of the Massachusetts Watershed Initiative, an Executive Office of Environmental Affairs (EOEA) program.  For more information, contact the Shawsheen River Watershed Team Leader:

William Dunn, Watershed Team Leader

131 Barnum Road, Building #3701

Devens, MA 01432

william.j.dunn@state.ma.us

(508) 792-7716 x151

Recreational Opportunities in the Shawsheen River Watershed

Links to Additional Recreational Resources

Contact Your Town Conservation Commission

Find out More About the Shawsheen River Watershed

Download a Copy of the Brochure in Adobe Acrobat Format