Lawrence Brook
Encyclopedia
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 Raritan River
Raritan River
The Raritan River is a major river of central New Jersey in the United States. Its watershed drains much of the mountainous area of the central part of the state, emptying into the Raritan Bay on the Atlantic Ocean.-Description:...
. Its entire course is in Middlesex County
Middlesex County, New Jersey
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 750,162 people, 265,815 households, and 190,855 families residing in the county. The population density was 2,422 people per square mile . There were 273,637 housing units at an average density of 884 per square mile...
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Course
Originally a 10 miles (16.1 km) stream, its course now includes man-made lakes created by dams built in the 19th and 20th centuries: Deans Pond (South Brunswick), Davidsons Mill Pond (South Brunswick), Farrington LakeFarrington Lake
Farrington Lake is a scenic freshwater reservoir in Middlesex County, New Jersey near Milltown, New Jersey. Created by a dam on the Lawrence Brook, a tributary of the Raritan River, the lake is in fact a widened section of the Lawrence Brook...
(South Brunswick, North Brunswick and East Brunswick), Mill Pond (Milltown), and Westons Mill's Pond (Milltown
Milltown, New Jersey
Milltown is a Borough in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 6,893.Milltown was incorporated as a borough by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on January 29, 1889, from portions of North Brunswick Township, based on the...
, East Brunswick, North Brunswick and New Brunswick). Its lowest section, near the Raritan River, is tidal; it hosts marine wildlife and is regarded as a coastal area.
Its drainage basin
Drainage basin
A drainage basin is an extent or an area of land where surface water from rain and melting snow or ice converges to a single point, usually the exit of the basin, where the waters join another waterbody, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea, or ocean...
, the Lawrence Brook watershed, is a 40 square miles (103.6 km²) area, identified by the USGS code HUC 02030105130.
In its Westons Mill Pond section, Lawrence Brook crosses Rutgers University
Rutgers University
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey , is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey, United States. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American...
's Cook Campus, along the vegetable research Farm, the Equine Research farm, Rutgers Gardens
Rutgers Gardens
Rutgers Gardens are horticultural, display, and botanical gardens, including arboretums, located on the Cook Campus, Rutgers University, 112 Ryders Lane, North Brunswick in Middlesex County, New Jersey, in the United States...
and Helyar forest.
Though not obvious from the roadways, Lawrence Brook is a wildlife corridor, a bird migration area and a highly sensitive body of water. Power boats, except with an electric motor, are not permitted on the brook.
History
- This stream was called Piscopeek by the Unami Lenni LenapeLenapeThe Lenape are an Algonquian group of Native Americans of the Northeastern Woodlands. They are also called Delaware Indians. As a result of the American Revolutionary War and later Indian removals from the eastern United States, today the main groups live in Canada, where they are enrolled in the...
Indians. Its current name comes from Mr.Thomas Lawrence, a New York City baker, who acquired its surrounding land in the 17th century. Some historical maps show the spelling Lawrence's Brook. - In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Farrington Lake area served as a resort area, with a trolley line running from Princeton.
Succession of ponds, lakes and reservoirs
(Upstream)- Deans Pond (South Brunswick)
- Davidsons Mill Pond (South Brunswick)
- Farrington LakeFarrington LakeFarrington Lake is a scenic freshwater reservoir in Middlesex County, New Jersey near Milltown, New Jersey. Created by a dam on the Lawrence Brook, a tributary of the Raritan River, the lake is in fact a widened section of the Lawrence Brook...
(South Brunswick, North Brunswick, East Brunswick) - Mill Pond (Milltown)
- Westons Mill PondWestons Mill PondThe Westons Mill Pond is a dammed section of the Lawrence Brook located in East Brunswick, New Jersey, United States. It is one of a series of dams on the Lawrence Brook. The Westons Mill Pond Dam is the dam that controls reservoir output.-The dam:...
(Milltown, East Brunswick, North Brunswick, New Brunswick)
(Downstream)
Parks along Lawrence Brook
- Davidsons Mill Pond County Park (South Brunswick)
- Ireland Brook County Park (South Brunswick and East Brunswick)
- Bicentennial Park (East Brunswick)
- North Brunswick Memorial Park (North Brunswick)
- Brook Park (Milltown)
- Mill Pond Park (Milltown)
- Rutgers GardensRutgers GardensRutgers Gardens are horticultural, display, and botanical gardens, including arboretums, located on the Cook Campus, Rutgers University, 112 Ryders Lane, North Brunswick in Middlesex County, New Jersey, in the United States...
and Helyar Woods (Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey)
Main tributaries
- Brook from the beaver pond to Davidsons Mill Pond
- Ireland Brook
- Oakeys BrookOakeys Brook (New Jersey)Oakeys Brook is a tributary of the Lawrence Brook, a branch of the Raritan River in Middlesex County, New Jersey in the United States.Its source is in western South Brunswick. It drains into Farrington Lake in western East Brunswick.-Course:...
- Cow Yard Brook, a branch of the Oakeys Brook
- Beaverdam Brook
- Sucker BrookSucker BrookSucker Brook is a small tributary of the Lawrence Brook in central New Jersey in the United States.-Course:Its source is several pools located in a housing development at . It travels in a pipe under Route 130, and then runs between a housing development...
- Sawmill Brook
- Brook in Rutgers GardensRutgers GardensRutgers Gardens are horticultural, display, and botanical gardens, including arboretums, located on the Cook Campus, Rutgers University, 112 Ryders Lane, North Brunswick in Middlesex County, New Jersey, in the United States...
(along the bamboo forest), sometimes called Doc Brook - Brook in Rutgers' Helyar Woods (with a small waterfall), sometimes called Helyar Brook
- Terhune RunTerhune RunThe Terhune Run is a small tributary of the Lawrence Brook found in eastern South Brunswick, New Jersey, United States.-Course:The Terhune Run starts at , near the intersection of Route 1 and Major Road...
- Great DitchGreat DitchThe Great Ditch is a drainage ditch that drains certain areas of the Pigeon Swamp State Park.-Course:The Great Ditch starts at , in the Pigeon Swamp State Park...