As one of the most notable small rivers in U.S. history, it was the scene of an important early battle of the American Revolutionary War and was the subject of a 19th-century book by Henry David Thoreau.

Native Americans called it the Musketaquid or "grass-grown" river because its sluggish waters abound in aquatic or semi-aquatic vegetation and its banks are fringed with wild grasses and sedges which stretch for miles along both sides of this placid stream.

[2] This creates an ideal environment for a variety of fish, including bass, shad, alewife (river herring), pickerel, carp and American eel.

[3] Native Americans wove sticks in intricate designs to trap alewives and other migrating fish at the mouths of rivers throughout this region.

Henry David Thoreau wrote his first book, A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers, in 1849 while living at nearby Walden Pond.

Thoreau recounted his exploration of the natural beauty of the river, and his accompanying thoughts on such eternal themes as truth, poetry, travel and friendship.

These facilities played a crucial role in preventing further degradation of the river ecosystem by operating within federally mandated limits.

As a result, fish consumption is prohibited in such areas, due to the presence of mercury-laden sediment originating from the Nyanza Superfund site and other sources.

Following this investigation, the company voluntarily ceased operations until it could install ion exchange equipment to comply with environmental regulations.

Fish and Wildlife Service, the Massachusetts Riverways Program, and volunteers from the Sudbury Valley Trustees (SVT) released 7,000 adult alewives into the Concord River.