Waterways of Bedford              HOME

River/Brook	Description	Current Condition
Springs Brook	Springs Brook originates from Fawn Lake and a pond at Middlesex Community College, flows south to join the Shawsheen River north of Page Road.
Beaver Brook	Beaver Brook drains a small watershed east of Route 3 in the Middlesex Turnpike area, joining the Shawsheen at the Billerica line.
Concord River	Forming the western boundary of the town, the Concord is bordered by extensive wetland and floodplain areas, approximately 700 acres lying within the Great Meadows National Wildlife Refuge. The Concord River in Bedford is approximately 400 feet wide and flows for a distance of approximately 3 miles from the Concord to Billerica boundaries. It has a low velocity and flat downstream slope, and retains a fairly constant elevation at approximately 112 feet above mean sea level. The embankments of the river are very low, and are bordered by extensive shrub swamp, red and silver maple floodplain forest, and open marshes. The shoreline in Bedford is undeveloped, and few signs of human habitation are visible.
Elm Brook	Elm Brook, originating in Concord, flows over most of the southern width of the town, converging with the Shawsheen just north of Great Road in the town center.
Hartwell Brook	Drains the meadows south of Raytheon and flows northeast into Elm Brook
Mill Brook	Near Billerica, flows into Concord
Mongo Brook	Mongo Brook flows from Concord Road to Elm Brook, draining the wetlands between Davis and Concord Roads.
Peppergrass Brook	Rises south of Carlisle Road, flows from a tributary stream east of North Road and from a pond on the Harvard University property off Old Causeway Road.
Mill Brook	Tributaries to Mill Brook originate in wetlands lying along the northern section of Springs Road, crossing North Road in two locations to the extensive wetlands between North and Dudley Roads, and joining Mill Brook at the Billerica boundary.
Shawsheen River	The headwaters of the Shawsheen originate at Hanscom Field and flow north through the eastern section of Bedford toward Billerica, with expansive grassy marshes and wet meadows bordering most of the northern reach from Page Road to Middlesex Turnpike. The Shawsheen is associated with two distinct floodplains and several small sub-watersheds which drain approximately two-thirds of the town through Elm Brook, Mongo Brook, Kiln Brook, Springs Brook, Beaver Brook, and Vine Brook.
Tar Kiln Brook	Empties into the Shawsheen River
Vine Brook	Vine Brook rises in Burlington at the Burlington and Vine Brook malls, flowing south of Route 62 to the Wilson Mill Pond, and thence through the spillway and north to the Shawsheen near Route 3.