Willimantic River facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Willimantic River
The Willimantic River flows past the old American Thread Company mill in Willimantic, CT.
Country	United States
State	Connecticut
Counties	Tolland, Windham
Physical characteristics
Main source	Confluence of Middle River and Furnace Brook Stafford Springs, Tolland County, Connecticut, United States 41°57′09″N 72°18′07″W / 41.95250°N 72.30194°W / 41.95250; -72.30194
River mouth	Confluence with Natchaug River to form Shetucket River Willimantic, Windham County, Connecticut, United States 41°42′46″N 72°11′30″W / 41.71278°N 72.19167°W / 41.71278; -72.19167
Length	25 mi (40 km)
Basin features
Basin size	225 sq mi (580 km2)

The Willimantic River is a tributary of the Shetucket River, approximately 25 mi (40 km) long in northeastern Connecticut in the New England region of the United States.

It is formed in northern Tolland County, near Stafford Springs by the confluence of Middle River and Furnace Brook. It flows south to the city of Willimantic, where it joins the Natchaug River to form the Shetucket. It is joined by the Hop River on the Coventry, Columbia, and Windham town border.

Name

The word Willimantic is of Algonquian origin, either Mohegan-Pequot or Narragansett. It is commonly translated as "land of the swift running water", but the word more likely originally meant "place near the evergreen swamp". The word was first attested in English writing as Waramanticut in 1684, and later as Wallamanticuk, Wewemantic and Weammantuck before being standardized as Willimantic.

Geography

Shortly upstream from its confluence with the Natchaug, the Willimantic experiences a drop of ninety feet in one mile. The river powered textile mills from Stafford Springs to Willimantic, including the American Thread Company mill. None of these mills are operating as of 2007, having all been destroyed or converted to other uses such as apartment space.

A popular long paddling route begins south of Stafford Springs along Route 32 where the river is mostly quickwater all of the way to the flatwater of Eagleville Pond. The remainder is fairly easy going to the take-out at Route 66. Beware of the dam at the Route 275 bridge. Other access points may be at the N. River Road bridge, the Route 74 bridge, the Depot Rd bridge, the Route 195 bridge, the Jones Crossing bridge, the Merrow Road bridge, the U.S. Route 44 bridge, Brigham bridge, near the Route 275 dam, the Depot Rd bridge, the Route 31 bridge, and the Flanders Rd bridge.

Crossings

County	Town	Carrying
Windham	Windham
		Closed Bridge
		The Garden Bridge
		South St. (Frog Bridge)
		Providence and Worcester Railroad
		Willimantic Footbridge
		Route 32
Windham/Tolland	Windham/Columbia	Air Line State Park Trail
		Route 66
	Windham/Coventry	US 6 (Willimantic Bypass)
Tolland	Mansfield/ Coventry	Flanders Rd.
		Route 31
		Providence and Worcester Railroad
		Depot Rd.
		Providence and Worcester Railroad
		Route 275
		Plains Rd.
		Merrow Rd.
	Mansfield/ Tolland	Route 195
	Willington/ Tolland	Providence and Worcester Railroad (Twice in a row)
		S. River Rd./Depot Rd.
		Route 74
		I-84
		Providence and Worcester Railroad
		Route 32
	Ellington/ Willington	Providence and Worcester Railroad
	Stafford	Private Dr.