The 13.5-mile (21.7 km) aqueduct begins at the Sudbury Dam, and passes through the towns of Southborough, Framingham, Wayland, and Weston.

The purpose of the aqueduct and Weston Reservoir were to channel water to the suburbs north of Boston via Spot Pond in Stoneham.

The aqueduct was built between 1901 and 1903, under the supervision of Frederic P. Stearns, the chief engineer of the MWRA predecessor, the Metropolitan Water Board.

There are two chambers where water flow through the aqueduct is metered: both are located in Framingham, and consist of a concrete substructure, on top of which stands a small building housing equipment.

At each end of the siphons stands a control house that is 21 feet (6.4 m) square, styled similarly to the metering chambers.