The river has played a crucial role in the development of Plainville, Connecticut, in particular.

[1] The river's lower drainage basin consists of industrial and urban areas, and effluents from these areas pollute the river's waters.

[2] The Pequabuck drove a water wheel that provided 8 horsepower to the Upper Lock Shop in Plymouth, Connecticut, a facility which would eventually become the Lewis Lock Company in 1851 and, finally, the once-renowned Eagle Lock Company.

[3]: 55  The river banks were historically the site of one of United States' first malleable iron-producing units, known as Malleable Iron Works (later Andrew Terry and Company).

It is believed that this term originally referred to a pond or wetland at the headwaters of the Pequabuck River.