Mill River
Encyclopedia
River
A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...
in the U.S. state of Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
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The river starts in the town of Cheshire
Cheshire, Connecticut
Cheshire is a town in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 28,543 at the 2000 census. The center of population of Connecticut is located in Cheshire. In 2009 Cheshire was ranked 72 in Money Magazine's 100 Best Places to Live.Likewise, in 2011 Cheshire was ranked 73 in...
, flows through Hamden
Hamden, Connecticut
Hamden is a town in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. The town's nickname is "The Land of the Sleeping Giant." Hamden is home to Quinnipiac University. The population was 58,180 according to the Census Bureau's 2005 estimates...
and New Haven
New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven is the second-largest city in Connecticut and the sixth-largest in New England. According to the 2010 Census, New Haven's population increased by 5.0% between 2000 and 2010, a rate higher than that of the State of Connecticut, and higher than that of the state's five largest cities, and...
, and discharges into New Haven Harbor
New Haven Harbor
New Haven Harbor is an inlet on the north side of Long Island Sound in the state of Connecticut in the United States. The harbor area is an inlet carved by the retreat of the glaciers during the last ice age approximately 13,000 years ago....
on Long Island Sound
Long Island Sound
Long Island Sound is an estuary of the Atlantic Ocean, located in the United States between Connecticut to the north and Long Island, New York to the south. The mouth of the Connecticut River at Old Saybrook, Connecticut, empties into the sound. On its western end the sound is bounded by the Bronx...
. The river's length is 17.4 miles (28 km). The river is dammed in southern Hamden to form Lake Whitney
Lake Whitney (Connecticut)
Lake Whitney is a lake in Hamden, Connecticut that is a part of the Mill River. The lake was a water source for the New Haven, Connecticut metro area, until it was discontinued in the early 1990s...
, which is operated as a reservoir by the South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority
South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority
The South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority is a public water supply utility in Connecticut, United States.The Authority supplies water in a 15-town region with a population of about 400,000. Historically it was the water supplier in the towns of Bethany, Branford, Cheshire, East Haven,...
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A mill for grinding corn was built on a Quinnipiack
Quinnipiack
This article is about the Native American nation. For the university, see Quinnipiac University.The Quinnipiac — rarely spelled Quinnipiack — is the English name for the Eansketambawg a Native American nation of the Algonquian family who inhabited the Wampanoki This article is about the Native...
ford near East Rock
East Rock
East Rock of south-central Connecticut, United States, with a high point of , is a long trap rock ridge located on the north side of the city of New Haven...
in 1642. By 1780 there were eight mills. In time the river provided power for Eli Whitney
Eli Whitney
Eli Whitney was an American inventor best known for inventing the cotton gin. This was one of the key inventions of the Industrial Revolution and shaped the economy of the Antebellum South...
's gun factory, now the Eli Whitney Museum
Eli Whitney Museum
The Eli Whitney Museum, in Hamden, Connecticut, is an experimental learning workshop for students, teachers, and families. The museum focuses on teaching experiments that are the roots of design and invention, featuring hands-on building projects and exhibits on Eli Whitney and A. C...
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Mill River passes through Sleeping Giant State Park
Sleeping Giant (Connecticut)
Sleeping Giant of south-central Connecticut, with a high point of , is a rugged traprock mountain located north of New Haven. It is part of the narrow, linear Metacomet Ridge that extends from Long Island Sound near New Haven, north through the Connecticut River Valley of Massachusetts to the...
in northern Hamden and East Rock Park
East Rock Park
East Rock Park is a park in the city of New Haven and the town of Hamden, Connecticut that is operated as a New Haven city park. The park surrounds and includes the mountainous ridge named East Rock and was developed with naturalistic landscaping....
below Lake Whitney in Hamden. These are among the river's reaches that remain undeveloped and are popular spots for fishing
Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
and hiking
Hiking
Hiking is an outdoor activity which consists of walking in natural environments, often in mountainous or other scenic terrain. People often hike on hiking trails. It is such a popular activity that there are numerous hiking organizations worldwide. The health benefits of different types of hiking...
.
English Station
English Station
English Station is an abandoned thermal power plant. Located at , it occupies eight acres of land on Ball Island in the Mill River. It was constructed from 1924 to 1929 and is situated in the Mill River neighborhood of New Haven, Connecticut....
, an abandoned power plant, lies on Ball Island in the New Haven terminus of the river.
Further reading
- 1998. The Streets of New Haven - The Origin of Their Names, (2nd ed.) ISBN 0-943143-02-0