Acton’s River Street Dam, Today and Centuries Ago

Dams across the brooks and rivers of the SuAsCo (Sudbury, Assabet, and Concord rivers) watershed provided hydropower for early industrialization. But today, some of those dams pose flood risks, and are being re-evaluated and removed. This post describes the situation at the River Street Dam in Acton.

On December 21, 2020, the Acton Board of Selectmen gave approval for the removal of a dilapidated dam, on Fort Pond Brook, located at 53 River Street. The Massachusetts Office of Dam Safety had ordered our town either to repair or to demolish the hazardous structure, built in the 1800s. 

If all goes ahead, it will be summer, when the water is low, when the dam can be removed. As envisioned in the presentation to the Board of Selectmen, approximately seven acres around the site of the dam will be refashioned to repair decades of inattention. The goals include restoring the natural movement of fish, water, sediment, and nutrients; improving recreational use and public access; and addressing the hazard of potential uncontrolled dam failure. After thoughtful engineering and planning, the town can look forward to a future park, small but exquisite, that will allow the public to learn about the human and natural history of the brook. Before this can happen, many necessary permits need to be secured and funds for the work have to be found.

It is important to recognize how surface water was valued when this dam was built. At that time, water was at the heart of every new town. In the early 18^th century, the flowing water of Fort Pond Brook triggered the ingenuity of residents, who built dams for water-powered mills in Acton. By the 19^th century, the town, with its several mills, had grown in size and in renown.

It has been three years since a special Town committee was established to consider and propose a plan for the 53 River Street property. It may sometimes seem that the slow pace of municipal decision making is a product of 21^st-century regulations and argumentative citizens, but colonists dealt with similar politics and controversy. Argument erupted over the Faulkner dam, upstream from the site of the current River Street Dam, as recounted by Iron Work Farm: In 1740, a warrant was brought to Town Meeting to “know whether the town will insist on Mr. Faulkner opening of his dam 30 days in the year as the law directs, where alewives and fish pass in plenty.” That wasn’t the end of it:

After four years of the town’s insisting that it should be opened, Ammi Ruhamah Faulkner and Samuel Jones, as owners, took the problem to the Middlesex Superior Court, which found that the dam was “so formed in Nature” that opening it would cause “an unspeakable damage” which “cannot… ever serve the Public or any Private Interest.” Evidence presented to the Court also noted that no alewives had been seen in the brook for over twenty years. (from Iron Work Farm: Mill Corner)

The 21^st century brings us new understandings about Acton’s water resources, related to both water quantity and quality. Water is still at the heart of our town, and citizens today will need a new appreciation of our surface waters, rivers, ponds, and brooks, as Acton continues to change and and develop.

Additional information:

• documents from the 53 River Street Master Plan Special Committee
• presentations to Acton Boards/Committees
• River Street Dam Emergency Action Plan
• River Street Dam Removal Preliminary Design Report (updated July 2, 2020)
• River Street Dam Removal Plans (updated July 2, 2020)