Bob Kitchen of the Fall River Historical Society led a walk along Tattapanum Trail off of Wilson Road on April 5, 2008, to show how geologic forces have shaped not only the natural landscape but the course of human history in and around Fall River. After explaining how a large uprising of granite bedrock forms the floor of Fall River and the surrounding area, Bob described the action of the Glaciers more than 14,000 years ago that deposited granite boulders across the landscape, leaving Fall River with many large rocks just below the surface or, in some cases, at the surface (like the "erratic" Rolling Rock on Eastern Avenue). Most of Fall River's mills were constructed from granite, often taken from the site where the mill was constructed. The Quequechan River drains the water from the North and South Watuppa ponds, falling over 130 feet from the western edge of the granite outcropping to the Taunton River below. Click here for pictures of the recent Slocum's River Walk and links to other walks arranged by the Trustees of Reservations. For information on other Trustees programs, please call 508.679.2115 x10 or visit their website.

(Top row) Bob Kitchen of the Fall River Historical Society holds up a copy of Roadside Geology of Massachusetts by James W. Skehan, an expert on the geology of Southeastern Massachusetts, and points out the geological substrate of the area before leading the group on the Tattapanum Trail. (Middle row) Bob points out the scattered stone "cobble" deposited by the flow of water from the glacier across the trail through the woods. (Bottom row, left) Bob explains how most of Fall River sits on a granite batholith that extends from Wareham to the edge of the Taunton River. (Bottom row, center) The Tattapanum Trail, which begins off of Wilson Road near the end of Riggenbach Road, runs about a mile through the forest to the East Look vista. (Bottom row, right) Trustees of Reservation Education Coordinator Linton Harrington listens as Norm Lamontagne of Fall River asks a question about the local geology.