365 things to do in Worcester County - learn about History of Lake Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg
No, I did not make this up. Yes, this is an honest to goodness name of a body of water. The origins of the name came from a local Indian Tribe. The lake had several different names; Among early names were Chabanaguncamogue, Chaubanagogum, and Chaubunagungamaug, the latter now incorporated in the long name it is known today. This big lake with the longest name in the United States, was a central gathering place for the Nipmuc Indians and their friends.
All historians - and Indians of this and other territories - have agreed that Chaubunagungamaugg means "Fishing Place at the Boundary".
Here is where the confusion about the name originated: One of the tribes on the other side of the lake was the Monuhchogoks, Manchaug for short. A map of 1795, showing the town of Dudley, indicated the Lake name as "Chargoggaggoggmanchoggagogg". In 1831, both Dudley and Oxford, which adjoined the lake, filed maps listing the name of the pond as Chargoggagoggmanchoggagogg, but a survey of the lake done in 1830 lists the name as Chaubunagungamaugg, the ancient name.
Authorities have indicated that the development of the name to the present long form stems from the time Samuel Slater began his mills near the lake, which was nearer the Manchaug village. Hence the Indian designation Chargoggagoggmanchauggagogg meaning "Englishmen at Manchaug," came into use. Later they added their original Indian descriptive name, and the entire designation becomes "Englishmen at Manchaug at the Fishing Place at the Boundary" -- or Lake Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg.
It is no surprise to anyone that the lake is locally knows as “Webster Lake” and the locals, jokingly translate that name as "You Fish on Your Side, I Fish on My Side, Nobody Fish in the Middle".
Statistics:
The area of the Lake is 1,442 acres, which comprise three spring-fed lakes joined by narrow channels, North Pond, Middle Pond and South Pond. There are 17 miles of shore line. The length of the Lake is 3.25 miles, and at its widest point in Middle Pond, the distance is 1.125 miles. The shore line of North Pond is 5.78 miles, of Middle Pond, 7.06 miles, and South Pond is 4.17 miles.
A depth chart for Webster Lake from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife can be seen at:
http://www.mass.gov/dfwele/dfw/dfw_pond/dfwwebst.pdf
After reading my blog, you to can say that this is one of your 365 things to do in Worcester County - learn about History of Lake Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggcha
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