Taunton River

Description

The Taunton River, historically also called the Taunton Great River, is a river in southeastern Massachusetts in the United States. It arises from the confluence of the Town River and Matfield River, in the town of Bridgewater. From there it meanders through the towns of Halifax, Middleborough and Raynham, through the city of Taunton for which it is named, the towns of Berkley, Dighton, Somerset, and the Assonet section of Freetown, to Fall River where it joins Mount Hope Bay, an arm of Narragansett Bay. The total length of the river is 59.5 kmfrom the junction of the Town and Matfield Rivers in Bridgewater to the mouth of the Quequechan River in Fall River. It has a watershed of 1,456 km2. The rivers watershed includes the Hockomock Swamp, the largest freshwater wetland in the state. The Taunton River is one of the flattest rivers in New England, dropping only about 6 m in elevation over its length. The river is tidal as far north as Taunton. The Taunton River is the longest coastal river in New England without dams, and is the principal river that makes up the Taunton River Watershed.