The Indian name for the Charles River was "Quinobequin," meaning meandering. Captain John Smith, however, named the Charles River for Charles I of England and, in doing so, interested the monarch in its potential for trade and settlement. The Charles River offered the opportunity for early settlers to acquire land, wealth and freedom from political and religious oppression by providing a water highway to the interior. The winding river rambles for 80 miles from its headwaters, covers an area over 300 square miles and is the most densely populated river basin in New England.

The Charles River is one of the most beautiful urban rivers in the country. In cooperation with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the US Army Corps of Engineers has implemented a program that not only protects the urbanized watershed from flooding, but also safeguards valuable wetlands and provides areas for wildlife and recreation.

Torrential rains from hurricanes in 1938, 1955 and 1968 caused water levels to rise and rivers to overflow their banks in communities across New England. The floodwaters caused millions of dollars in damage and took hundreds of lives throughout New England. Along the Charles River, the residents and properties of the lower Charles are the most seriously affected when flooding occurs.

As a result of these floods, the Corps of Engineers conducted a study that determined the best way to protect the populous lower basin of the Charles River was to construct a pumping station capable of rapidly discharging the floodwater into Boston Harbor. The study also determined that the best way to protect the middle and upper portions of the river system from future flooding would be to protect the natural storage capacities of the wetlands.