Duxbury, MA 02332, USA
Owned By: Town of Duxbury
This property includes a small historic site and a 13-acre pond. The Cushing Ice House once stood here. It was used to store ice harvested from the pond. Island Creek flows through the pond.
Features
This land is within the region of the Patuxet Wampanoag tribe, who for centuries have inhabited the area around the Jones River now known as Duxbury, Kingston and Plymouth.
Habitats and Wildlife
Island Creek flows from Island Creek Pond, located in the village of Tinkertown. Visit the pond at Duxbury’s Crocker Memorial Park. Fed by natural springs, it flows south for two miles through Mill Pond, under Route 3A (Tremont Street), and into Kingston Bay at Hicks Point.
There is a sluice way downstream of Elm Street and a fish ladder downstream of Tremont Street designed to facilitate the migration of anadromous fish. Alewife and blueback herring, as well as rainbow smelt, swim upstream to spawn in Island Creek Pond. Other fish commonly found here include largemouth bass, pickerel, yellow perch, sunfish, shad, and crappie. The forest surrounding the pond is primarily oak and pine, with some cedar.
The pond’s water quality is impaired, due to the overgrowth of non-native aquatic plants. There is a fishway at the dam, but it has deteriorated and no longer functions.
Historic Site: Yes
Park: No
Beach: No
Boat Launch: Yes
Lifeguards: No
Size: 0.42 acres
Hours: Dawn to Dusk
Parking: Limited roadside parking on Tremont Street (Route 3A).
Cost: Free
Trail Difficulty: No trails.
Dogs: Dogs must remain on leash. Scoop the poop!
Boat Ramp: No
ADA Access: No
Scenic Views: Yes
Waterbody/Watershed: Island Creek watershed