Podunk River Explained

The Podunk River is a stream in Hartford County, Connecticut. It is a tributary to the Connecticut River.^[1]

The stream headwaters arise at 41.8525°N -72.5253°W at an elevation of 305feet.^[2] The stream flows to the southwest and enters the Connecticut River just northwest of East Hartford^[1] at 41.7856°N -72.6436°W and an elevation of 7feet.

The name is derived from the Algonquin words pod for low and unk for beyond or "the low land beyond" or along the Connecticut and its tributary the Podunk River where they farmed the fertile soil along the streams.^[3]

Notes and References

1. Hartford North CT, 7.5 Minute Topographic Quadrangle, USGS, 1964 (1992 rev.)
2. Manchester, CT, 7.5 Minute Topographic Quadrangle, USGS, 1963 (1992 rev.)
3. Shea, Jim (January 22, 2007). "Proud to Be Podunk". Hartford Courant.