The Mumford River is an 18.3 miles (29.5 km) river in south-central Massachusetts

Massachusetts

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...

. It is a tributary of the Blackstone River

Blackstone River

The Blackstone River is a river in the U.S. states of Massachusetts and Rhode Island. It flows approximately 48 mi and drains a watershed of approximately 540 sq. mi...

.
The river rises from its headwaters in Sutton

Sutton, Massachusetts

-Library:The Sutton Free Library was established in 1876. In fiscal year 2008, the town of Sutton spent 0.7% of its budget on its public library—some $18 per person.-Education:...

 and Douglas

Douglas, Massachusetts

Douglas is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 8,471 as of the 2010 census. It includes the sizable Douglas State Forest, managed by the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation .- History :...

 at Manchaug Pond and flows east in a meandering path through a series of ponds (Manchaug, Stevens, Gilboa, Lackey, Whitins, just west of Whitinsville

Whitinsville, Massachusetts

Whitinsville is an unincorporated village and census-designated place on the Mumford River, a tributary of the Blackstone River, in the town of Northbridge in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 6,704 at the 2010 census. Whitinsville is pronounced as if it were...

), and joins the Blackstone River

Blackstone River

The Blackstone River is a river in the U.S. states of Massachusetts and Rhode Island. It flows approximately 48 mi and drains a watershed of approximately 540 sq. mi...

 in Uxbridge

Uxbridge, Massachusetts

Uxbridge is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, in the United States. It was first settled in 1662, incorporated in 1727 at Suffolk County, and named for the Earl of Uxbridge. Uxbridge is south-southeast of Worcester, north-northwest of Providence, and southwest of Boston. It is part of...

.

The river was named for a hunter, named Mumford, at Mendon

Mendon, Massachusetts

Mendon is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 5,839 at the 2010 census.Mendon is very historic and is now part of the Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor, the oldest industrialized region in the United States.- Early history :The Nipmuc people...

, who drowned in this river in the 17th century. This occurred before the towns through which this river flows were formed from Mendon. These towns include Douglas, Sutton, Northbridge

Northbridge, Massachusetts

Northbridge is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 15,707 at the 2010 census. The Northbridge Town Hall is located at 7 Main Street in Whitinsville. The town is now a part of the Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor, of the National Park...

, and Uxbridge. Mendon was first settled in 1660. This river was a source of water power for a number of mills and factories in America's earliest industrialization, in the historic Blackstone Valley

Blackstone Valley

The Blackstone Valley or Blackstone River Valley is a region of Massachusetts and Rhode Island. It was a major contributor to the American Industrial Revolution...

. The Whitin Machine Works

Whitin Machine Works

The Whitin Machine Works was founded by Paul Whitin and his sons in 1831 on the banks of the Mumford River in South Northbridge, Massachusetts. The village of South Northbridge became known as Whitinsville in 1835, in honor of its founder....

 grew up at Whitinsville on the Mumford River, and was once the largest manufacturer of textile machines in the world. The Linwood Mill and the Crown and Eagle Mill at North Uxbridge also grew up on the Mumford, as did the historic Capron Mill

Bernat Mill

The Bernat Mill, also known as Capron Mill, and later "Bachman Uxbridge Worsted Company", was a yarn mill in Uxbridge, Massachusetts, USA, that was destroyed by fire on July 21, 2007....

at Uxbridge.