Billington Sea

Billington Sea


Billington Sea
Location	Plymouth, Massachusetts
Coordinates	41°56′30″N 70°40′36″W / 41.94167°N 70.67667°W / 41.94167; -70.67667
Primary outflows	Town Brook
Basin countries	United States

Surface area	269 acres (1.09 km²)
Average depth	7 ft (2.1 m)
Max. depth	11 ft (3.4 m)

Islands	Seymour Island
Settlements	Billington Sea village

Billington Sea (also Billington's Sea) is a 269-acre (1.09 km²) warm water pond located in Plymouth, Massachusetts. Morton Park lies on the pond's northern shore. The pond is fed by groundwater and cranberry bog outlets. The average depth is seven feet and the maximum depth is 11 feet (3.4 m). The pond provides the headwaters to Town Brook. Seymour Island is located in the center of the pond. Billington Sea was named after its discoverer, Francis Billington, one of the passengers on the Mayflower.

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Description

Billington Sea is located southwest of the center of Plymouth, Massachusetts, west of Massachusetts Route 3 and south of U.S. Route 44. It is 269 acres in surface area with depth averaging 7 feet, with an 11-foot maximum depth. It is a warmwater eutrophic pond with extensive aquatic vegetation and a mostly mud bottom, though with sandy shorelines. Apart from a town park on the northern shore, most of the shoreline is occupied by private residential property.^[1]

History

Billington's Sea was discovered in January 1621 by fourteen-year-old Mayflower passenger Francis Billington, son of John Billington.^[1] According to tradition, Francis Billington climbed up a tree and spotted what he called a "great sea," believing it to be the Pacific Ocean. He and one of the Mayflower's crew members went to explore the sea, but became alarmed when they saw some abandoned Native American houses. They were alone with only a single gun. In memory of Billington's error, the pond has been called "Billington's Sea" since.^[2]^[3]

Recreational uses

A single public boat launch site is located at Morton Town Park on the north shore. The ramp is sandy and suitable only for small craft that can be launched by hand like canoes and kayaks. Recreational fishing is allowed in the pond, with largemouth bass being the primary target species.^[1]

Fish populations

In addition to largemouth bass, the pond also contains pickerel, smallmouth bass, brook trout, black crappie, yellow perch, sunfishes such as pumpkinseed and bluegill, golden shiner, banded killifish, white perch, white sucker, and brown bullhead. A seasonal alewife run enters the pond from Plymouth Bay through Town Brook.^[1]

Surrounding area

Billington Sea is also the name of a small village on the southern shore of the pond along Black Cat Road, northeast of Micajah Heights and northwest of Lout Pond. Briggs Reservoir is located within the village south of Black Cat Road.

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Billington Sea (information from Commonwealth of Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs)
^ Crothers, S. M. (April 1903). "The Honorable Points of Ignorance". The Atlantic Monthly. 91 (546): 495–504. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
^ A Guide to Historic Plymouth James Baker, The History Press, 2008 142 pages, page 103

External links

MassWildlife Pond Map and Info

Lakes and ponds of Massachusetts by drainage system

Lakes

Connecticut River Watershed	Lake Monomonac Lake Wyola
Housatonic River Watershed	Lake Buel Lake Garfield Lake Onota
Merrimack River Watershed	Fairhaven Bay Haggetts Pond Lake Attitash Lake Boon Lake Cochichewick Lake Cochituate Lake Saltonstall Lost Lake Walden Pond
Providence River Watershed	Lake Quinsigamond
Taunton River Watershed	Assonet Bay Lake Nippenicket Lake Rico Lake Sabbatia Long Pond Pocksha Pond
Others	Buffumville Lake Charge Pond Chebacco Lake Crystal Lake Follins Pond Hickory Hills Lake Indian Lake Lake Ashmere Lake Chaubunagungamaug Lake Massapoag Lake Quannapowitt Lewis Lake Mystic Lakes Pine Lake Prankers Pond Silver Lake Wallum Lake Wenham Lake Whites Pond

Ponds

Agawam River Watershed	Fawn Pond Glen Charlie Pond Halfway Pond Little Long Pond (Plymouth) Long Pond (Plymouth) Mill Pond (Wareham) Spectacle Pond (Wareham)
Connecticut River Watershed	Brooks Pond Browning Pond Quaboag Pond Thompson Pond
Eel River Watershed	Boot Pond Cooks Pond Forge Pond Great South Pond Gunners Exchange Pond Hoyts Pond Island Pond (Plymouth) Russell Millpond
Jones River Watershed	Crossman Pond Furnace Pond Harrobs Corner Bog Pond Indian Head Pond Lower Chandler Pond Maquan Pond Oldham Pond Pembroke Street South Pond Reeds Millpond Russell Pond Silver Lake Upper Chandler Pond West Chandler Pond
Mattapoisett River Watershed	Long Pond Snipatuit Pond
Merrimack River Watershed	Tuxbury Pond
Taunton River Watershed	Assawompset Pond Great Quittacas Pond Little Quittacas Pond Monponsett Pond Robbins Pond Tispaquin Pond Watson Pond Watuppa Ponds Winnecunnet Pond
Wankinco River Watershed	East Head Reservoir Parker Mills Pond Tihonet Pond
Others	Abner Pond Arnold School Pond Barrett Pond Bartlett Pond Bates Pond Beaver Dam Pond Big Rocky Pond Big Sandy Pond Billington Sea Black Jimmy Pond Bloody Pond Bullough's Pond Buckmaster Pond Campus Pond Cedar Pond Clay Pit Pond Cliff Pond College Pond Curlew Pond Deer Pond Dug Pond Dunham Pond Elbow Pond Ezekiel Pond Fairyland Pond Fearing Pond Federal Pond Five Mile Pond Flax Pond (Brewster) Fresh Meadow Pond Fresh Pond Fuller Street Pond Gallows Pond Great Herring Pond Great Island Pond Great Pond Hardy Pond Hedges Pond Higgins Pond Hocomonco Pond Horn Pond Houghton's Pond Indian Pond Island Creek Pond Island Pond (Cedarville) Jacobs Pond Jamaica Pond Keene Pond Kings Pond Lake Lashaway Learned Pond Leonards Pond Little Herring Pond Little Long Pond (Wareham) Little Pond Little Rocky Pond Little Sandy Bottom Pond Little Sandy Pond Little West Pond Long Duck Pond Long Island Pond Lout Pond Mary's Pond Mashpee and Wakeby Ponds Menemsha Pond Micajah Pond Mill Pond (Duxbury) Morey Hole Muddy Pond New Long Pond North Hill Marsh Pond North Triangle Pond Pine Street Pond Ponkapoag Pond Redd's Pond Rocky Pond Round Pond Sampsons Pond Sandy Pond Sargent's Pond Savery Pond Sawins Pond Scargo Lake Shallow Pond Ship Pond Shubael Pond Smelt Pond Smith Pool South Meadow Pond South Triangle Pond Spectacle Pond (Sandwich) Spring Pond Spy Pond Stetson Pond Studleys Pond Tremont Mill Pond Triangle Pond Union Pond Vaughn Pond Walker Pond Wampatuck Pond White Pond White Island Pond

This page was last edited on 16 March 2023, at 20:29

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