Editing Fall River, Massachusetts (section)

==Geography==
[[File:View of Bay, Fall River, MA.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|Fall River on [[Mount Hope Bay]] in 1905]]
According to the [[United States Census Bureau|U.S. Census Bureau]], the city has a total area of {{convert|104.2|sqkm|order=flip}}, of which {{convert|85.8|km2|order=flip}} is land and {{convert|18.4|km2|order=flip}}, or 17.68%, is water.<ref name="Census 2010">{{cite web|url=http://factfinder2.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_DP/G001/1600000US2523000|title=Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Fall River city, Massachusetts|publisher=U.S. Census Bureau, American Factfinder|access-date=February 5, 2013}}</ref>

Water power from the [[Quequechan River]] and natural [[granite]] helped form and shape Fall River into the city it is today. The Quequechan River once flowed through downtown unrestricted, providing water power for the mills and, in the last {{convert|1/2|mile|km|1}} of its length, down a series of eight steep waterfalls falling {{convert|128|feet}} into the [[Taunton River]] at the head of the deep [[Mount Hope Bay]]. Fall River and surrounding areas are located in the northeastern coastal forests, which make up the temperate broadleaf and mixed forest biome.

Fall River was the only city on the East Coast of the United States to have had an exposed waterfall in part of its downtown area; it flowed less than {{convert|1/2|mile|km|1}} into a sheltered harbor at the edge of downtown. Fall River has two large lakes (originally one lake) and a large portion of protected woodlands on the eastern part of the city, which is higher in elevation, with the Quequechan River draining out of the ponds and flowing {{convert|2.5|miles}} through the heart of the city, emptying out an estimated {{convert|26|e6USgal|e6l}} per day into the deep Mount Hope Bay/Taunton River [[estuary]] in the western part of the city.

The city lies on the eastern border of Mount Hope Bay, which begins at the mouth of the Taunton River starting south from the [[Charles M. Braga Jr. Memorial Bridge]]. The greater portion of the city is built on hillsides rising quite abruptly from the water's edge to a height of more than {{convert|60|m|order=flip}}. From the summits of these hills, the terrain extends back in a comparatively level table-land, on which a large section of the city now stands.

Two miles (3&nbsp;km) eastward from the shore lies a chain of deep and narrow ponds, {{convert|8|mi|km|spell=in}} long, with an average width of three-quarters of a mile, and covering an area of {{convert|3,500|acre|km2|abbr=on}}. These ponds are supplied by springs and brooks, draining a watershed of {{convert|20,000|acre|km2|abbr=on}}. The northern pond is the North [[Watuppa Pond]], the city's main reservoir. The southern pond is the South Watuppa Pond. The narrow strip of land where the two ponds meet is known as The Narrows. East of the North Watuppa Pond is the Watuppa Reservation, which includes several thousand acres of forest-land for water supply protection that extends north into the [[Freetown-Fall River State Forest]], and east to the [[Copicut Reservoir]]. Copicut Pond is located on the border of [[Dartmouth, Massachusetts|Dartmouth]] in North Dartmouth's Hixville section that borders Fall River. Copicut Hill, the highest point in Fall River, is located between North Watuppa Pond and the Copicut Reservoir. The hill has a summit elevation of greater than {{convert|123|m|order=flip}} above sea level.<ref>U.S. Geological Survey ''Fall River, MA'' 7.5 by 15-minute quadrangle, 1985.</ref>

The Quequechan River breaks out of its bed in the west part of the South Watuppa Pond, just west of The Narrows, and flows through the city (partially underground in conduits) where it falls to a channel leading to what is now [[Fall River Heritage State Park]] at [[Battleship Cove]] on the Taunton River. The Quequechan River originally flowed unconfined over an almost level course for more than a mile. In the last half-mile (800 m) of its progress it rushes down the hillside in a narrow, precipitous, rocky channel, creating the falls for which Fall River is named. In this distance the total fall is about {{convert|132|ft|m}}. and the volume of water {{convert|122|cuft|m3}} per second.
[[File:Quequechan River Rail Trail, Fall River MA.jpg|thumb|Quequechan River Rail Trail]]
[[File:Granite Mills, Fall River, MA.jpg|thumb|right|Fall River's [[Granite Mills]] in 1908]] [[File:Statue of Lafayette in Lafayette Park, Fall River, Massachusetts.jpg|thumb|right|upright=.7|Statue of [[Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette|Marquis de Lafayette]] stands in Lafayette Park.]]

Originally an attractive feature of the landscape, the Quequechan has seldom been visible since it was covered over by cotton mills and the [[Bay Colony Railroad]] line in the 19th century. As the Quequechan became an underground feature of the industrial landscape, it also became a sewer. In the 20th century the mills were abandoned and some of them burned, exposing the falls once more. Because of highway construction in the 1960s, the waterfalls were buried under [[Interstate 195 (Rhode Island-Massachusetts)|Interstate 195]], which crosses the Taunton River at Battleship Cove. Plans exist to "daylight" the falls, restore or re-create them, and build a green belt with a bicycle path along the Quequechan River.

In the south end, Cook Pond, also formerly known as Laurel Lake, is located east of the Taunton River and west of the South Watuppa Pond. The area between the modern day Cook and South Watuppa Ponds, east of the Taunton River and north of [[Tiverton, Rhode Island]], was once referred to as "Pocasset Swamp" during [[King Philip's War]] in 1675–1676.

Fall River is a part of the [[South Coast (Massachusetts)|South Coast]] region of Massachusetts.

===Neighborhoods===
The city is divided into two by [[Interstate 195 (Rhode Island–Massachusetts)#Massachusetts|Interstate 195]], which runs directly through downtown and underneath Fall River City Hall. The two sections of the city contain a number of distinct neighborhoods.

'''Northern Neighborhoods ("The North End"; North of I-195, extending to the city's northern border with Freetown, Massachusetts, and western border with Dartmouth, Massachusetts)'''
* Waterfront/Battleship Cove (east of Route 79 to the edge of the Taunton River/Mount Hope Bay)
* The Highlands
** Lower Highlands (Bedford St, up High St to Prospect St)
** Upper Highlands (Prospect St along President Ave, up to Wilson Rd)
* Fall River Industrial Park ("Airport Road", area north of Wilson Rd bounded to the west by Route 24 and to the east by Riggenbach Rd)
* Fall River/Freetown State Forest
'''Southern Neighborhoods ("The South End"; South of I-195, extending to the city's southern border with Tiverton, Rhode Island)'''
* Flint Village ("The Flint")South and east of Bedford and Quarry Sts, respectively)
* Globe Village (Cook Pond, Broadway)
* Townsend Hill (South Main and Bay St Neighborhoods bordering Tiverton, R.I.)
* [[Maplewood, Fall River, Massachusetts|Maplewood]]

===Parks===
Fall River has 23 municipal parks and playgrounds, including three designed by landscape architect [[Frederick Law Olmsted]].<ref name="23Parks">{{cite news |title=Fall River has 23 parks and playgrounds for recreational fun |url=https://www.heraldnews.com/x447613659/Fall-River-has-23-parks-and-playgrounds-for-recreational-fun |access-date=February 15, 2020 |publisher=Fall River Herald News |date=May 15, 2011}}</ref><ref name="O&V">{{cite news |last1=Dion |first1=Marc Munroe |title=OLMSTED FACTS: Frederick Law Olmsted famed for parks nationwide |url=https://www.heraldnews.com/article/20110515/NEWS/305159723 |access-date=February 15, 2020 |publisher=Fall River Herald News |date=May 15, 2011}}</ref> Fall River's more notable parks include:
* [[Kennedy Park (Fall River, Massachusetts)|Kennedy Park]] (Olmsted, 1868): South Main Street, 54 acres, four tennis courts, three baseball fields, two basketball courts, softball field, skating pond, playground<ref name="23Parks" />
* North Park  (Olmsted, 1901): President Avenue, 25 acres, two baseball fields, two basketball courts, playground, skating pond, skate park<ref name="23Parks" />
* [[Ruggles Park]] (Olmsted, 1903): Locust Street, 9 acres, basketball court, playground, softball field<ref name="23Parks" />
* Bicentennial Park: Davol Street, 2 acres, boat ramp<ref name="23Parks" />
* Lafayette Park: Eastern Avenue, 11 acres, baseball field, basketball court, playground, swimming pool, tennis court, skate park<ref name="23Parks" />
* [[Quequechan River]] Rail Trail: 2.5 mile Bike path from Britland Park and Rodman Street to Westport Line on Route 6<ref>{{Cite web|title=Fall River|url=https://www.southcoastbikeway.com/fall-river.html|access-date=August 1, 2021|website=South Coast Bikeway|language=en|archive-date=August 1, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210801054451/https://www.southcoastbikeway.com/fall-river.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>

The city is also home to several Massachusetts state parks, including [[Fall River Heritage State Park]] and [[Freetown-Fall River State Forest]].