The Sakonnet River extends northward from Rhode Island Sound to Mount Hope Bay, passing along the east side of Aquidneck Island, the largest island in Narragansett Bay. The Corps’ project is located at the northern end of the river, between the island town of Portsmouth and the mainland town of Tiverton.

The project, completed in 1905, involved deepening and widening the small section of channel that passed through the draw opening of Stone Bridge, which at that time connected Tiverton and Portsmouth. The channel was deepened to 25 feet and widened to 100 feet. Stone Bridge was removed by the state in 1956 following the construction of a new highway bridge about one mile northward.