The Woonasquatucket River's headwaters begin in the town of North Smithfield and run 19 miles downstream, dropping over 200 feet, to combine with the Moshassuck River in downtown Providence. Along the way, the river transforms itself through a series of reservoirs, dams, and natural channels.

The Woonasquatucket-- which means where the tide ends in Narragansett-- is tidally influenced up to the Rising Sun Dam in Olneyville.

The Woonasquatucket watershed, on the other hand, is over 50 square miles in area and encompasses all the land where precipitation and groundwater drain eventually to the river.

The first settlers along the Woonasquatucket River were Native Americans that quarried soapstone. Europeans arrived in the 1800's and established communities based in agricultural and industrial economies. Mill activities along the river produced the many dams and reservoirs we see today, now primarily for recreation.

The Woonasquatucket is one of the more diverse of Rhode Island's watersheds in terms of its land use. Highly urbanized in the southern portions and rural in the more northern reaches, the watershed is home to a wide array of both assets and problem areas.

Wetlands are present in every watershed community, although they are continually under threat from development.

Forest land is also present in the watershed to varying degrees within each community.

Bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus), yellow perch (Perca flavescens), and American eel (Anguilia rostrata) are common species of fish found in the Woonasquatucket River, according to RIDEM.

However, the river is highly impacted due to its urban location and use, resulting in habitat impairments. Diminished dissolved oxygen, hydrologic alterations, and pollutant loading all contribute to reduced biodiversity.