Weymouth Fore River is a small bay

Bay

A bay is an area of water mostly surrounded by land. Bays generally have calmer waters than the surrounding sea, due to the surrounding land blocking some waves and often reducing winds. Bays also exist as an inlet in a lake or pond. A large bay may be called a gulf, a sea, a sound, or a bight...

 or estuary

Estuary

An estuary is a partly enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea....

 in eastern 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...

 and is part of the Massachusetts Bay

Massachusetts Bay

The Massachusetts Bay, also called Mass Bay, is one of the largest bays of the Atlantic Ocean which forms the distinctive shape of the coastline of the U.S. state of Massachusetts. Its waters extend 65 miles into the Atlantic Ocean. Massachusetts Bay includes the Boston Harbor, Dorchester Bay,...

 watershed

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 headwater of Weymouth Fore River is formed by the confluence

Confluence

Confluence, in geography, describes the meeting of two or more bodies of water.Confluence may also refer to:* Confluence , a property of term rewriting systems...

 of the Monatiquot River

Monatiquot River

The Monatiquot River is a river in Braintree, Massachusetts, formed by the confluence of the Farm River and Cochato River in the Braintree Municipal Golf Course, flowing in swampy meanders to the northeast, and emptying into the tidal Weymouth Fore River estuary. Its drainage area is .The river...

 and Smelt Brook in the Weymouth Landing area of Braintree

Braintree, Massachusetts

The Town of Braintree is a suburban city in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Although officially known as a town, Braintree adopted a municipal charter, effective 2008, with a mayor-council form of government and is considered a city under Massachusetts law. The population was 35,744...

. From Weymouth Landing, the 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...

 marks the boundary between Braintree and Weymouth

Weymouth, Massachusetts

The Town of Weymouth is a city in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2010 census, Weymouth had a total population of 53,743. Despite its city status, it is formally known as the Town of Weymouth...

, flowing NE for 0.5 mile (0.80467 km) and then N for 0.5 mile (0.80467 km) before widening considerably and turning WNW for 0.7 miles (1.1 km). At this point the river's western shore is now in Quincy

Quincy, Massachusetts

Quincy is a city in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Its nicknames are "City of Presidents", "City of Legends", and "Birthplace of the American Dream". As a major part of Metropolitan Boston, Quincy is a member of Boston's Inner Core Committee for the Metropolitan Area Planning Council...

 at the south end of the former Fore River Shipyard

Fore River Shipyard

The Fore River Shipyard of Quincy, Massachusetts, more formally known as the Fore River Ship and Engine Building Company, was a shipyard in the United States from 1883 until 1986. Located on the Weymouth Fore River, the yard began operations in 1883 in Braintree, Massachusetts before being moved...

. Here the river turns NNE for 1 miles (1.6 km) as it passes through a heavily industrialized area around the former shipyard and is crossed by the Fore River Bridge, a temporary lift bridge

Lift bridge

A vertical-lift bridge or lift bridge is a type of movable bridge in which a span rises vertically while remaining parallel with the deck....

 which carries Massachusetts Route 3A

Massachusetts Route 3A

Route 3A is a state highway in eastern Massachusetts, which parallels Route 3 and U.S. Route 3 from Cedarville in southern Plymouth to Tyngsborough at the New Hampshire state line....

 between Quincy and Weymouth. A quarter mile beyond the bridge Weymouth Fore River is joined by Town River at Germantown, Quincy, gradually widening to nearly 1 miles (1.6 km) as it travels the final 2 miles (3.2 km) NE before ending as it enters Hingham Bay

Hingham Bay

Hingham Bay is the easternmost of the three small bays of outer Boston Harbor, part of Massachusetts Bay and forming the western shoreline of the town of Hull and the northern shoreline of Hingham in the United States state of Massachusetts. It lies east of Quincy Bay and is met at the southwest by...

.

Recreation along Weymouth Fore River includes Smith Beach/Watson Park in East Braintree along the NW shore near Weymouth Landing at the river's south end and Wessagussett Beach on the SE shore in North Weymouth before the river enters Hingham Bay. The United States Naval Shipbuilding Museum

United States Naval Shipbuilding Museum

The United States Naval Shipbuilding Museum is a private non-profit museum in Quincy, Massachusetts featuring USS Salem , a heavy cruiser docked at the former Fore River Shipyard where she was laid down in 1945. The museum was established in 1993 in response to efforts by local officials and...

 located in Quincy Point

Quincy Point

Quincy Point is a neighborhood of Quincy, Massachusetts. "The Point" is generally defined as the land east of Quincy Center, the downtown district. Quincy Point is bordered on the west by Elm Street, on the east by Weymouth Fore River and the Braintree city line, on the north by Town River and on...

 at the west end of the Fore River Bridge features the USS Salem (CA-139)

USS Salem (CA-139)

The third USS Salem is a Des Moines-class heavy cruiser, formerly commissioned in the United States Navy. The world's last all-gun heavy cruiser to enter commission, she is currently open to the public as a museum ship in Quincy, Massachusetts.-Construction and shakedown:Salem was laid down on 4...

, a preserved heavy cruiser

Heavy cruiser

The heavy cruiser was a type of cruiser, a naval warship designed for long range, high speed and an armament of naval guns roughly 203mm calibre . The heavy cruiser can be seen as a lineage of ship design from 1915 until 1945, although the term 'heavy cruiser' only came into formal use in 1930...

 which is open to the public.

The major commercial enterprises located in the heavily industrialized area around the former shipyard include:

• Braintree
  • Citgo Petroleum Corporation, major oil and gasoline distribution terminal

• Quincy
  • Daniel J. Quirk, Inc., motor vehicle storage and distribution facility
  • Jay Cashman
    Jay Cashman
    Jay Cashman, Inc. is an American heavy-construction company based in Quincy, Massachusetts, with satellite offices in Boston, Jupiter, Florida, and Staten Island, New York. , the company has about 1,000 employees. Cashman was one of the major contractors on the Boston's Central Artery/Tunnel...
    
    , Inc., heavy construction and marine equipment services
  • Massachusetts Water Resources Authority
    Massachusetts Water Resources Authority
    The Massachusetts Water Resources Authority is a public authority in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts that provides wholesale drinking water and sewage services to certain municipalities and industrial users in the state, primarily in the Boston area.The authority receives water from the Quabbin...
    
    , sewage sludge heat-drying and pelletizing facility
  • Quincy Bay Terminal Company, short line freight rail service to CSXT South Braintree
  • Twin Rivers Technologies LP, oleochemical
    Oleochemical
    Oleochemicals are chemicals derived from plant and animal fats. They are analogous to petrochemicals derived from petroleum.The formation of basic oleochemical substances like fatty acids, fatty acid methyl esters , fatty alcohols, fatty amines and glycerols are by various chemical and enzymatic...
    
     and biofuel
    Biofuel
    Biofuel is a type of fuel whose energy is derived from biological carbon fixation. Biofuels include fuels derived from biomass conversion, as well as solid biomass, liquid fuels and various biogases...
    
     production

• Weymouth
  • Boston Generating LLC, 832MW Fore River Station, natural gas and oil electricity generation
    Electricity generation
    Electricity generation is the process of generating electric energy from other forms of energy.The fundamental principles of electricity generation were discovered during the 1820s and early 1830s by the British scientist Michael Faraday...