Location: 180 Island Rd, Northampton, MA 01060 or on the right driving (S) on Route 5
You might have heard of the varying meander path of the Mississippi River, or the wide bends and turns formed as the river flows. The water erodes the outside edges of the turns (where velocity is highest) and deposits sediment on the inside of the bends (where velocity is lowest), causing the path of the river to constantly evolve. Sometimes, bends get so loopy, that a large rush of water (like something caused by a flood after a powerful rain storm) passes right over it, cutting the bend off from the river and forming a curved lake known as an oxbow.
In 1840, a large storm caused such a surge, creating the Oxbow Lake in Holyoke. Famous painter Thomas Cole painted this lake. View from Mount Holyoke, Northampton, Massachusetts, commonly referred to as The Oxbow is currently housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. College President Edward Hitchcock actually witnessed the formation of the lake. This hydrological drama contradicted the contemporary theological view of an unchanging Earth, making Hitchcock quite a radical thinker for his time.
Visit the The Dynamic Modern Connecticut River exhibit at the Beneski Museum of Natural History to learn more about the Oxbow lake and modern Valley geology.
