Belleville Pond Dam, Ryan Park - North Kingstown, RI - Water Dams on Waymarking.com

In North Kingstown is Ryan Park, which has a large water body in the center of the park known as Belleville Pond. The pond, which has several lobes, has a dam on the east end.

The dam is a mostly earthen dam, with a new concrete spillway. According to one site, the dam height is 8 feet with a length of 600 feet. Maximum discharge is 328 cubic feet per second. Its capacity is 461 acre feet. Normal storage is 403 acre feet. The surface area of the pond behind it is 108 acres. The dam stops the Annaquatucket River, a small waterway that flows generally eastward and empties into Naragansett Bay a few miles away.

According to another source, the dam was originally built in 1800 and was associated with a textile mill complex. The complex no longer exists. In 2007, the dam was reconstructed to include the new spillway.

Ryan Park is a municipal park with two main areas: an area of athletic fields, and an area of pond and woods. The woods have several trails to walk on, including a path across an arched bridge at the center of the pond. You can walk on the dam to the spillway on either side. To cross the river, there is a path that leads to a bridge, downstream.

The pond also is used for canoeing or kayaking. At least two were seen while visiting. The entrance nearest to the dam is off Oak Hill Road.

Sources:

RI Planning (162-03 Rivers Classifications):
(visit link)

findlakes.com (Belleville Pond):
(visit link)


Town of North Kingstown, RI (Map of Ryan Park):
(visit link)

Waterway where the dam is located: Annaquatucket River Main use of the Water Dam: Other Material used in the structure: embankment Height of Dam: 8 ft Date built: 01/01/1800 Fishing Allowed: yes Motor Sports Allowed: no

Visit Instructions:
Photo of the Dam and a description of your visit.

Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log User Rating   11/01/2012 Roscoe45 visited it