Everything But Boganegan

This past Monday morning proved perfect for an early (0630) morning launch into the Merrimack River. I'd try locating a place not shown on any modern maps...Boganegan.  I first saw mention of this place while reading John Pendergast's The Bend in the River: A Prehistory and Contact Period History of Lowell, Chelmsford, Dracut, Tyngsborough, and Dunstable (Nashua, NH), Massachusetts.  Pendergast wrote the following about John Cromwell, the first European settler in the area which became Tyngsborough: "His dwelling was on the present site of the Pheasant Lane Mall in Tyngsborough and Nashua, just south of the Middle/Late Archaic fishing weir originally called Boganegan after an individual Indian or a small group which lived near the weir (see Map 9 from Pendergast's book above).  The prehistoric name of the area where his house was located is Naacook, 'fishing place.'  The stone piles jutting out into the river are still visible and is presently known as 'Dead Man's'.  It is about two miles north of the Tyngsborough Bridge.  At this site square holes have been driven into large stones in the river much like those which 10th and 11th century Western European seamen dropped metal pins into to moor their vessels."

This being more than enough information to whet my appetite, I paddled away from Riverfront Park and headed upriver.  Knew I'd reached the Pheasant Lane Mall upon seeing this...

...assemblage of 8 mostly submerged shopping carts, perhaps a modern-day fish weir?

The only rocks I could find that jutted out into the river were these...

...on the west shore.  

There was also this one...

...and these having a hand-laid look...

I never saw any stones with the square holes Pendergast mentioned.  I did note some large submerged rocks near the eastern shore but, again, didn't see any square holes.  If there is an ancient fish weir in this area it's probably submerged deep below the surface since the 1847-built Pawtucket Dam significantly raised the water level.

I went as far as Salmon Brook...

So while I didn't find Boganegan either on the river or on the internet, I did find some old iron tools...

...that may have dropped out of a collapsing riverbank...

...and encountered a large flotilla of ducklings...

Also found some trash which included a couple of older bottles, REX Distillers Boston, MA and CERTO...

Even came across an old Nashua and Lowell Railroad milepost overlooking the river which showed the number 6 on both sides...

...keeping things in perfect balance.

Took a last peek at the stately Tyngsborough Bridge...

...before ending my search.