The Bellamy River, in Strafford County, southeastern New Hampshire

New Hampshire

New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...

, is a tributary

Tributary

A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...

 of the Piscataqua River

Piscataqua River

The Piscataqua River, in the northeastern United States, is a long tidal estuary formed by the confluence of the Salmon Falls and Cocheco rivers...

 about 15 miles (24.1 km) long. It rises in Swains Lake

Swains Lake

Swains Lake is a water body located in Strafford County in eastern New Hampshire, in the town of Barrington. Water from Swains Lake flows via the Bellamy River to the Piscataqua River estuary....

 in Barrington

Barrington, New Hampshire

Barrington is a town in Strafford County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 8,576 at the 2010 census. The town is a woodland, farm and bedroom community.-History:...

, 9 miles (14.5 km) west of Dover

Dover, New Hampshire

Dover is a city in Strafford County, New Hampshire, in the United States of America. The population was 29,987 at the 2010 census, the largest in the New Hampshire Seacoast region...

. It flows east through the Bellamy Reservoir

Bellamy Reservoir

Bellamy Reservoir is a 382 acre  impoundment located in Strafford County in eastern New Hampshire, United States, in the town of Madbury. It serves as the primary water supply for the city of Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Its outlet is the Bellamy River, a tributary of Great Bay, a tidal...

 in Madbury

Madbury, New Hampshire

Madbury is a town in Strafford County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 1,771 at the 2010 census.-History:Madbury was originally a part of Dover called Barbadoes, after the West Indies island of Barbados with which settlers conducted trade, sending wood and lumber in exchange for...

 and through Dover, then southeast as a tidal river

Tidal river

A tidal river is a river, or more typically a stretch of a river, whose flow and level is influenced by tides. An example of a tidal river is the portion of the Connecticut River flowing from Windsor Locks, Connecticut, to the Atlantic Ocean. The Brisbane River, which flows into the Pacific Ocean...

 to Little Bay, the channel connecting Great Bay

Great Bay (New Hampshire)

Great Bay is a tidal estuary located in Strafford and Rockingham counties in eastern New Hampshire, United States. The bay occupies over , not including its several tidal river tributaries. Its outlet is at Hilton Point in Dover, New Hampshire, where waters from the bay flow into the Piscataqua...

 with the Atlantic Ocean

Atlantic Ocean

The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...

.

The river at one time provided water for swimming behind a dam at Bellamy Park in Dover

Dover, New Hampshire

Dover is a city in Strafford County, New Hampshire, in the United States of America. The population was 29,987 at the 2010 census, the largest in the New Hampshire Seacoast region...

. This park was a favorite spot for local neighborhood children and young adults, but fell into disrepair in the late 1960s. The Dover High School

Dover High School (New Hampshire)

Dover Senior High School serves the city of Dover and the towns of Barrington and Nottingham, New Hampshire.In 2005, DHS became a New Hampshire School of Excellence....

 class of 1976 held a school-approved burning of the remains of the dam as a class activity.

A short distance down the river from the park is the location of a former mill building, abandoned in the mid-20th century. The river helped power machinery in the mill.

Further along is the final dam, at the site of the former Sawyer Woolen Mills, a large manufacturer in Dover

Dover, New Hampshire

Dover is a city in Strafford County, New Hampshire, in the United States of America. The population was 29,987 at the 2010 census, the largest in the New Hampshire Seacoast region...

during the late 19th century and early 20th century. The river supplied the power to this large factory.

Beyond this dam the Bellamy River assumes its tidal nature, reverting to a small trickle at low tide.