Welcome to what is perhaps the most calming spot in all of Easthampton, MA. Bring a camp chair and a fishing pole, take a break and enjoy the scenery. Some caches are about the cc and other caches are about the location. This is one of the latter - it’s all about the view.
The cache is NOT in the cemetery, please be respectful while walking through and only visit during daylight hours. Please see parking coordinates - the cache is a short walk from there. Stealth is definitely needed as this is a popular fishing spot.
History and etymology:
Nashawannuck Pond was originally created in 1847 by the Williston - Knight Button Company to answer the need for an abundant, steady water source by area industrial mills. By damming three tributaries in Easthampton, Massachusetts - the Broad Brook, White Brook and Wilton Brook, the mills thrived. The pond was named after Samuel Williston's company, The Nashawannuck Manufacturing Company, makers of the popular "elastic suspenders".
What is the meaning of Nashawannuck?
There are 2 interpretations of this: it seems the second source may be more accurate.
1. Source: Internet : Nashawannuck. The name is apparently Algonquian for “Valley of the Little River.” The “Little River” was probably the Manhan — another local Native American appellation.
2. Source: Indian Place Names by John C. Huden published 1962, page 137, you will see “Nashawannuck Hampden County, Mass. Nipmuck, ’the meadow between.”
page 150 "Nonotuck, Hampshire County, Mass. Natick, ‘in the middle the river,’ or ’narrow river,”
Regarding Nipmuc and Algonquin, the Nipmuc people speak an Algonquian language, according to Britannica. (From the nashawannuckpond.org website.)
A peninsula is a landform that is mostly surrounded by water but remains connected to a larger mainland on one side. The word comes from the Latin phrase paene insula, which translates to "almost an island".
Congratulations to Treefrog1969 for the FTF!