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{{short description|Lake in the town of Webster, Massachusetts, United States}}
{{Infobox_lake
{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2014}}
|lake_name = Chaubunagungamaug
{{Infobox body of water
|image_lake = Lake Chaubunagungamaugg.jpg
| name = Lake Chaubunagungamaug
|caption_lake =
| other_name = Webster Lake
|image_bathymetry = '''This Lake Is Super Sexy And Totally Likes Eating Boys Names Keith >;De'''
| image = Lake Name.jpg
|caption_bathymetry =
| caption = Name of the lake on a bridge
|location = ]
| image_bathymetry =
|coords = {{coord|42|02|30|N|71|50|30|W|type:waterbody_region:US-MA}}
| caption_bathymetry =
|type =
| location = ]
|inflow =
| coords = {{Coord|42|02|30|N|71|50|30|W|type:waterbody_region:US-MA|display=inline,title}}
|outflow =
| type = ]
|catchment =
| inflow =
|basin_countries = United States
| outflow =
|length = {{convert|3.25|mi|km|abbr=on}}
| catchment =
|width = {{convert|1.125|mi|km|abbr=on}}
| basin_countries = ]
|area = {{convert|1442|acre|ha|abbr=on}}
| length = {{convert|3.25|mi|km|abbr=on}}
|depth =
| width = {{convert|1.125|mi|km|abbr=on}}
|max-depth =
| area = {{convert|1442|acre|ha|abbr=on}}
|volume =
| depth = {{convert|13|ft|m|abbr=on}}
|residence_time =
| max-depth = {{convert|49|ft|m|abbr=on}}
|shore =
| volume =
|elevation =
| residence_time =
|islands =
| shore = {{convert|17|mi|km|abbr=on}}
|cities =
| elevation = {{convert|477|ft|m|abbr=on}}
| islands = 8
| cities = <!-- Map -->
| pushpin_map = Massachusetts#USA
| pushpin_label_position =
| pushpin_map_alt = Location of Lake Chaubunagungamaug in Massachusetts, USA.
| pushpin_map_caption = <!-- Below -->
| website =
| reference =
}} }}
'''Lake Chaubunagungamaug''', also known as '''Webster Lake''', is a lake in the ] of ]. It is located near the ] border and has a surface area of 1,442 acres. Since 1921, the lake has also been known by a much longer name having 45 letters comprising fourteen syllables: '''Lake Char&shy;gogg&shy;a&shy;gogg&shy;man&shy;chaugg&shy;a&shy;gogg&shy;chau&shy;bun&shy;a&shy;gung&shy;a&shy;maugg'''. The lake has become famous beyond ] for having the longest name of any geographic feature in all of the United States.


==Name==
'''Lake Chaubunagungamaug''' ({{pronEng|tʃəˌbʌnəˈɡʌŋɡəmɑːɡ}}), also known as "'''Webster Lake'''", is a ] in the ] of ], United States. It is located near the ] border and has a surface area of 1,442 acres (5.83 km²).
The lake's name comes from the ] ] of the ], and is often said to mean, "Fishing Place at the Boundaries—Neutral Meeting Grounds".<ref name="Association">{{cite news|url=http://www.websterlakeassociation.com/GeneralInterest/Fabricationleavesusgasping.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030723082834/http://websterlakeassociation.com/GeneralInterest/Fabricationleavesusgasping.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 23, 2003 |title=Fabrication leaves us gasping - Old twist to name of lake comes to light |last=Patenaude |first=Ed |date=June 28, 2001 |work=Worcester Telegram & Gazette |access-date=May 31, 2011 }}</ref> A more fitting translation is "lake divided by islands", according to anthropologist ].<ref name=Goddard />


Today, "Webster Lake" may be the name most used, but some (including many residents of Webster) take pride in reeling off the longer versions.<!--Not a reliable source: <ref name="miller">{{cite web|last=Miller|first=Jeff|date=1 April 2006|url=http://members.aol.com/gulfhigh2/words10.html|title=A Collection of Word Oddities and Trivia|access-date=May 25, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071013132235/http://members.aol.com/gulfhigh2/words10.html|archive-date=2007-10-13}}</ref> --> This lake has several alternative names. Lake Chaubunagungamaug is the name of the lake as recognized by the ],<ref>{{cite gnis|619290|Lake Chaubunagungamaug|2011-04-14}}</ref> and is the name appearing in the earliest local records.<ref name=Goddard />
'''Lake Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg'''
({{IPA|/ˌleɪk tʃəˈɡɑːɡəɡɑːɡ ˌmænˈtʃɑːɡəɡɑːɡ tʃəˌbʌnəˈɡʌŋɡəmɑːɡ/}}),
a 45-letter alternative name for this body of water, is often cited as the longest ] in the ] and one of the longest in the world. Today, "Webster Lake" may be the name most used, but some (including many residents of Webster), take pride in reeling off the longer versions.<ref name="miller">{{cite web |last=Miller |first=Jeff |date=] ] |url=http://members.aol.com/gulfhigh2/words10.html |title=A Collection of Word Oddities and Trivia |accessdate=2006-05-25}}</ref>


]-speaking people had several different names for the lake as recorded on old maps and historical records. However, all of these were similar in part and had almost the same translation. Among other early names were "Chabanaguncamogue" and "Chaubanagogum".<ref name="oldewebster"> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110514183435/http://oldewebster.com/history/lake_chargogg.htm |date=May 14, 2011 }}, from the ''Webster TIMES Centennial Anniversary Issue, 1859-1959''.</ref> Early town records show the name as "Chabunagungamaug Pond", which was also the name of the local ] town (recorded in 1668 and 1674 with somewhat different spellings). This has been translated as "boundary fishing place",<ref name="trumbull">Trumbull, James Hammond. 1881. ''Indian Names of Places etc., In and On the Borders of Connecticut: With interpretations of Some of Them''. Reprinted in facsimile 1974 under title ''Indian Names in Connecticut'' by Archon Books, Hamden, Conn.</ref> but something close to "fishing place at the boundary" or "that which is a divided island lake" may be more accurate.<ref name="goddard">Goddard, Ives. 1974. in ''International Journal of American Linguistics'' Vol. 43, No. 2 (Apr., 1977), pp. 157–159, University of Chicago Press.</ref>
==The name==
]
This lake has several alternative names, but Lake Chaubunagungamaug is the official name of the lake as recognized by the ].<ref>{{Gnis|619290}}</ref> Nonetheless, many area residents, as well as the official website of the town of Webster, prefer the longer version.<ref>, accessed ], ].</ref>


A 1795 map of Massachusetts indicated the name, using the long-form's first eight syllables, as "Chargoggagoggmanchoggagogg".<ref>{{cite web|last1=Osgood|first1=Carleton|title=An accurate map of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts...|url=http://maps.bpl.org/id/10654|website=Boston Public Library|date=1795}}</ref> A survey of the lake done in 1830 lists the name as "Chaubunagungamaugg", the six-syllable older name. The following year, both ] and ], which then adjoined the lake, filed maps listing the lake by its eight-syllable form, as "Chargoggagoggmanchoggagogg".<ref name="oldewebster"/> Anthropologist Ives Goddard considers that 1831 name to be a cartographer's creation that corrupted the actual name while confusing this lake with nearby Manchaug Pond.<ref name=Goddard />
The name comes from the language of the local ] people and means something close to "] place at the ]". The lake was an important fishing spot on the borders of several tribal ] and lay at the nexus of many local paths of the ] system. For these reasons the lake was often used as a meeting place.


===Long name===
]-speaking peoples had several different names for the lake as recorded on old maps and historical records. However, all of these were similar in part and had almost the same translation. Among other early names were "Chabanaguncamogue" and "Chaubanagogum".<ref name="oldewebster"></ref>
The exaggerated name "Lake Char&shy;gogg&shy;a&shy;gogg&shy;man&shy;chaugg&shy;a&shy;gogg&shy;chau&shy;bun&shy;a&shy;gung&shy;a&shy;maugg" ({{IPA|/ˌleɪk tʃɚˈɡɒɡəɡɒɡ ˌmænˈtʃɔːɡəɡɒɡ tʃəˌbʌnəˈɡʌŋɡəmɔːɡ/}})<ref>, '']'' (November 19, 2004).</ref><ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071213043816/http://www.oldewebster.com/home_archive.htm |date=December 13, 2007 }} (Accessed September 16, 2015).</ref> is a 45-letter alternative name for this body of fresh water, often cited as the longest ] in the ]<ref>{{cite book|last=Ash|first=Russell|title=Boring, Botty and Spong|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bb-UfSQy7xYC&pg=PA68|date=10 November 2011|publisher=RHCP|isbn=978-1-4090-9739-6|page=68}}</ref> and one of the longest in the world. Many area residents, as well as the official website of the town of Webster, consider the longer version correct.<ref>, accessed January 15, 2007.</ref>


]The humorous translation is: "You fish on your side, I'll fish on my side, and no one shall fish in the middle". Its humorous translation was perhaps invented by Laurence J. Daly, editor of ''The Webster Times''.<ref name="Association" /><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/5198455/Longest-place-name-in-US-spelt-wrongly.html|title=Longest Place Name in US Spelt Wrongly|first=Sarah|last=Knapton|date=April 22, 2009|access-date=March 28, 2012|newspaper=The Telegraph|location=London}}</ref> According to Ives Goddard, Curator of Anthropology at the ], Daly created this "monstrosity" around 1921, though this is probably not correct, as the name was in use as early as {{circa|1910}} on postcards.<ref name="Goddard">{{Cite news |date=1990-09-29 |title=Opinion {{!}} Time to Retire an Indian Place-Name Hoax |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/09/29/opinion/l-time-to-retire-an-indian-place-name-hoax-571390.html |access-date=2024-05-30 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>
A map of 1795, showing the town of ], indicated the name as "Chargoggaggoggmanchoggagogg". A survey of the lake done in 1830 lists the name as Chaubunagungamaugg, the older name. The following year, both Dudley and ], which adjoined the lake, filed maps listing the name as "Chargoggagoggmanchoggagogg".<ref name="oldewebster"/>


]
Lake Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg, the extra-long version of the name, is the longest place name in the ] and 6th longest in the world. Its 15 uses of "g" are the most instances of any letter in a word. The name also contains 9 instances of the letter "a" (not including the "a" in "lake"), more than any word in the English language.<ref name="miller"/>


This longest name means approximately "] at Manchaug at the fishing place at the boundary" and was applied in the 19th century when ] built factories in the area. "Manchaug" is derived from the "Monuhchogoks", a group of Nipmuck that lived by the lakeshore. ] of the long name varies, even on official signs near the lake. Webster ]s use this long form of the name in various capacities.<ref name="oldewebster"/><ref></ref> Spellings of the long name vary; in 2009, following six years of press reports, the local Chamber of Commerce agreed to have the spelling changed on its signs, but a 45-letter version of the name arrayed in a semicircle is still used.<ref name="brianlee">{{cite news|title=Misspelling on Lake Signs to Get Overdue Correction|url=http://www.telegram.com/article/20090414/NEWS/904140367|author=Brian Lee|publisher=Worcester Telegram & Gazette|date=2009-04-14}}</ref> Webster public schools use one long form of the name in various capacities.<ref name="oldewebster"/><ref></ref>


==Geography==
Larry Daly, ] of ''The Webster Times'', wrote a ]ous article in the 1920s about the lake and the disputes concerning the meaning of its name. He proposed the ] ] "You Fish on Your Side, I Fish on My Side, Nobody Fish in the Middle"<ref></ref>. It has met with so much popular acceptance that relatively little attention has been paid to the actual translation.
]
Webster Lake is a {{convert|1442|acre|km2|adj=on}}<ref>, Division of Fisheries and Wildlife, Commonwealth of Massachusetts (February 1998), via Archive.org</ref> lake with a {{convert|17|mi|km|adj=on}} shoreline in southern Massachusetts, near the Connecticut border. It is the fourth largest fresh body of water in Massachusetts, after slightly larger ], The ] in Clinton, and the much larger ]. The average depth is {{convert|13|ft|m}} and the maximum depth is {{convert|49|ft|m}}.<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304053239/http://www.websterlakeassociation.org/WRSReports/WRS.BGA.Phase%201.2014.pdf |date=March 4, 2016 }}, Prepared by Water Resource Services, Inc., for the Webster Lake Association (November 2014).</ref>


Although the lake is natural in origin, its outlet has a dam that raises the water level by roughly {{convert|2|ft|m}}.<ref name=assn> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190521225137/http://websterlakeassociation.org/LakeAbout.shtml |date=May 21, 2019 }}, Webster Lake Association. Accessed September 6, 2015.</ref> The dam initially provided water for a mill, and subsequently the water rights to the lake were owned by Cranston Print Works; currently, the dam is owned by Webster Lake Preservation LLC.<ref name=assn />
Two songs about the lake's name have been written. One was a regional song from the 1930s and the other was recorded by ] and ] and released in 1954 by ]. The latter incorporates the tale about the lake's name according to Daly.


The lake is commonly divided into three smaller bodies of water: North Pond, Middle Pond, and South Pond. They are connected by narrow channels.<ref name=assn />
]
In the 1950s, a plan to set the official name of the water to Lake Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg rather than the longer version inspired a ] of ] verse which concludes:
<blockquote>
"Touch not a g!" No impious hand<br />
Shall wrest one from that noble name<br />
Fifteen in all their glory stand<br />
And ever shall the same.<br />
For never shall that number down,<br />
Tho ] shout and thunder;<br />
Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg's renown<br />
Shall blaze, the beacon of the town,<br />
While nations gaze and wonder.<ref></ref></blockquote>


== The lake == ===Islands===
Webster Lake has about 7–8 islands. Some have houses and are habitable; a few are extremely small and uninhabitable. They include:
Lake Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg was formed by the retreat of ]s and is replenished from an underwater ]. The area includes three smaller bodies of water joined by narrow channels: North Pond, Middle Pond and South Pond. There are 17 miles of shore line. The length of the Lake is 3.25 miles, and at its widest point in Middle Pond, the distance is 1.125 miles. The shore line of North Pond is 5.78 miles, of Middle Pond, 7.06 miles, and South Pond is 4.17 miles.<ref name="oldewebster"/><ref name="landscape"></ref>
* Long Island: The largest island in Webster Lake. It has many homes and has electric power lines, underground/underwater municipal water and sewer service, and several fire hydrants. It is in the Middle Pond.
* Goat Island: The second largest island. It has a few homes and boats. It is in the Middle Pond but isolated from the cluster of islands that include Long Island.
* Well Island: A smaller island with one house west of Long Island in the Middle Pond.
* Strip Island: Generally northeast of Long Island and north of Cobble Island with one house, also in the Middle Pond.
* Cobble Island: East of Long Island, in the Middle Pond.
* Little Island: In South Pond, right out of the no wake zone from the Middle Pond, one house.
* Birch Island: Large island on west edge of Middle Pond with Pout Pond on west side and swamp surrounding entire island. It is located roughly between Treasure Island and The Narrows with access by a bridge on Birch Island Road near The Narrows. There are many homes on island and establishment once called Birch Island Pavilion, now called Waterfront Mary's.
* Misery Island is a small island near east side of Narrows in Middle Pond. May be called either Misery Island or Skunk Island, depending on the map.


===Marinas===
These waters attracted ] to the area; along with ] and other local sites, the ]s and associated factories near this lake marked the beginning of the ] in the ]. The "Englishmen at Manchaug," reference dates from this time. Now where the lake connects to an inlet of the ] there is a source of ].<ref name="oldewebster"/><ref name="landscape"/>
Webster Lake has two marinas:
* Lakeview Marine: The only full-service marine store and service shop on Webster Lake.
* Point Breeze: A restaurant with a small marina. Point Breeze Marina has the only dockside gas pump on the lake.


==In popular culture==
Lake Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg stands at the approximate halfway point between the ] of ] and ]. ] passes along the north shore of the lake near the route's intersection with ]. The lake is a center for recreational activity in this part of ] and attracts people for ], ] and ]. In warm weather, the 11-acre ''Memorial Beach'' is a popular destination. In the winter, the lake attracts ] and ].<ref name="landscape"/>
In the 1950s, a plan to shorten the official name of the lake inspired a poem of ] verse which concludes:
{{poemquote|"Touch not a g!" No impious hand
Shall wrest one from that noble name
Fifteen in all their glory stand
And ever shall the same.
For never shall that number down,
Tho ] shout and thunder;
{{shy|Char|gogg|a|gogg|man|chaugg|a|gogg|chau|bun|a|gung|a|maugg}}'s renown
Shall blaze, the beacon of the town,
While nations gaze and wonder.<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200815072422/http://www.oldewebster.com/history/evolution.htm |date=August 15, 2020 }}.</ref>}}

Three songs about the lake's name have been written. The first was a regional song from the 1930s. The second, "The Lake Song ({{shy|Char|gogg|a|gogg|man|chaugg|a|gogg|chau|bun|a|gung|a|maugg}})", was recorded by ] and ] and released in 1954 by ] and incorporates the tale about the lake's name according to the name's inventor, Laurence J. Daly, editor of ''The Webster Times''. The most recent was released in 2010 by ].


==See also== ==See also==
*] * ]
* ]
*]
* ], the longest place name in New Zealand, and the world
* ], the longest place name in the UK
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]


==References== ==References==
{{reflist}} {{Reflist}}


==External links== ==External links==
{{commons}} {{commons category|Lake Chaubunagungamaug}}
{{wiktionary|Chaubunagungamaug}}
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*{{Gnis|619290}} for official name
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{{Massachusetts lakes and ponds}}
{{Geolinks-US-cityscale|42.0417|-71.8417}}


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Latest revision as of 20:51, 29 December 2024

Lake in the town of Webster, Massachusetts, United States

Lake Chaubunagungamaug
Webster Lake
Name of the lake on a bridge
Location of Lake Chaubunagungamaug in Massachusetts, USA.Location of Lake Chaubunagungamaug in Massachusetts, USA.Lake ChaubunagungamaugShow map of MassachusettsLocation of Lake Chaubunagungamaug in Massachusetts, USA.Location of Lake Chaubunagungamaug in Massachusetts, USA.Lake ChaubunagungamaugShow map of the United States
LocationWebster, Massachusetts
Coordinates42°02′30″N 71°50′30″W / 42.04167°N 71.84167°W / 42.04167; -71.84167
TypeLake
Basin countriesUnited States
Max. length3.25 mi (5.23 km)
Max. width1.125 mi (1.811 km)
Surface area1,442 acres (584 ha)
Average depth13 ft (4.0 m)
Max. depth49 ft (15 m)
Shore length17 mi (27 km)
Surface elevation477 ft (145 m)
Islands8
Shore length is not a well-defined measure.

Lake Chaubunagungamaug, also known as Webster Lake, is a lake in the town of Webster, Massachusetts. It is located near the Connecticut border and has a surface area of 1,442 acres. Since 1921, the lake has also been known by a much longer name having 45 letters comprising fourteen syllables: Lake Char­gogg­a­gogg­man­chaugg­a­gogg­chau­bun­a­gung­a­maugg. The lake has become famous beyond Central Massachusetts for having the longest name of any geographic feature in all of the United States.

Name

The lake's name comes from the Algonquian language of the Nipmuc, and is often said to mean, "Fishing Place at the Boundaries—Neutral Meeting Grounds". A more fitting translation is "lake divided by islands", according to anthropologist Ives Goddard.

Today, "Webster Lake" may be the name most used, but some (including many residents of Webster) take pride in reeling off the longer versions. This lake has several alternative names. Lake Chaubunagungamaug is the name of the lake as recognized by the U.S. Department of the Interior, and is the name appearing in the earliest local records.

Algonquian-speaking people had several different names for the lake as recorded on old maps and historical records. However, all of these were similar in part and had almost the same translation. Among other early names were "Chabanaguncamogue" and "Chaubanagogum". Early town records show the name as "Chabunagungamaug Pond", which was also the name of the local Nipmuc town (recorded in 1668 and 1674 with somewhat different spellings). This has been translated as "boundary fishing place", but something close to "fishing place at the boundary" or "that which is a divided island lake" may be more accurate.

A 1795 map of Massachusetts indicated the name, using the long-form's first eight syllables, as "Chargoggagoggmanchoggagogg". A survey of the lake done in 1830 lists the name as "Chaubunagungamaugg", the six-syllable older name. The following year, both Dudley and Oxford, which then adjoined the lake, filed maps listing the lake by its eight-syllable form, as "Chargoggagoggmanchoggagogg". Anthropologist Ives Goddard considers that 1831 name to be a cartographer's creation that corrupted the actual name while confusing this lake with nearby Manchaug Pond.

Long name

The exaggerated name "Lake Char­gogg­a­gogg­man­chaugg­a­gogg­chau­bun­a­gung­a­maugg" (/ˌleɪk tʃɚˈɡɒɡəɡɒɡ ˌmænˈtʃɔːɡəɡɒɡ tʃəˌbʌnəˈɡʌŋɡəmɔːɡ/) is a 45-letter alternative name for this body of fresh water, often cited as the longest place name in the United States and one of the longest in the world. Many area residents, as well as the official website of the town of Webster, consider the longer version correct.

Patch using longer name of lake

The humorous translation is: "You fish on your side, I'll fish on my side, and no one shall fish in the middle". Its humorous translation was perhaps invented by Laurence J. Daly, editor of The Webster Times. According to Ives Goddard, Curator of Anthropology at the Smithsonian Institution, Daly created this "monstrosity" around 1921, though this is probably not correct, as the name was in use as early as c. 1910 on postcards.

The lakeside

Spellings of the long name vary; in 2009, following six years of press reports, the local Chamber of Commerce agreed to have the spelling changed on its signs, but a 45-letter version of the name arrayed in a semicircle is still used. Webster public schools use one long form of the name in various capacities.

Geography

Oblique view of Lake Chaubunagungamaug in 1974

Webster Lake is a 1,442-acre (5.84 km) lake with a 17-mile (27 km) shoreline in southern Massachusetts, near the Connecticut border. It is the fourth largest fresh body of water in Massachusetts, after slightly larger Long Pond, The Wachusett Reservoir in Clinton, and the much larger Quabbin Reservoir. The average depth is 13 feet (4.0 m) and the maximum depth is 49 feet (15 m).

Although the lake is natural in origin, its outlet has a dam that raises the water level by roughly 2 feet (0.61 m). The dam initially provided water for a mill, and subsequently the water rights to the lake were owned by Cranston Print Works; currently, the dam is owned by Webster Lake Preservation LLC.

The lake is commonly divided into three smaller bodies of water: North Pond, Middle Pond, and South Pond. They are connected by narrow channels.

Islands

Webster Lake has about 7–8 islands. Some have houses and are habitable; a few are extremely small and uninhabitable. They include:

  • Long Island: The largest island in Webster Lake. It has many homes and has electric power lines, underground/underwater municipal water and sewer service, and several fire hydrants. It is in the Middle Pond.
  • Goat Island: The second largest island. It has a few homes and boats. It is in the Middle Pond but isolated from the cluster of islands that include Long Island.
  • Well Island: A smaller island with one house west of Long Island in the Middle Pond.
  • Strip Island: Generally northeast of Long Island and north of Cobble Island with one house, also in the Middle Pond.
  • Cobble Island: East of Long Island, in the Middle Pond.
  • Little Island: In South Pond, right out of the no wake zone from the Middle Pond, one house.
  • Birch Island: Large island on west edge of Middle Pond with Pout Pond on west side and swamp surrounding entire island. It is located roughly between Treasure Island and The Narrows with access by a bridge on Birch Island Road near The Narrows. There are many homes on island and establishment once called Birch Island Pavilion, now called Waterfront Mary's.
  • Misery Island is a small island near east side of Narrows in Middle Pond. May be called either Misery Island or Skunk Island, depending on the map.

Marinas

Webster Lake has two marinas:

  • Lakeview Marine: The only full-service marine store and service shop on Webster Lake.
  • Point Breeze: A restaurant with a small marina. Point Breeze Marina has the only dockside gas pump on the lake.

In popular culture

In the 1950s, a plan to shorten the official name of the lake inspired a poem of doggerel verse which concludes:

"Touch not a g!" No impious hand
Shall wrest one from that noble name
Fifteen in all their glory stand
And ever shall the same.
For never shall that number down,
Tho Gogg and Magogg shout and thunder;
Char­gogg­a­gogg­man­chaugg­a­gogg­chau­bun­a­gung­a­maugg's renown
Shall blaze, the beacon of the town,
While nations gaze and wonder.

Three songs about the lake's name have been written. The first was a regional song from the 1930s. The second, "The Lake Song (Char­gogg­a­gogg­man­chaugg­a­gogg­chau­bun­a­gung­a­maugg)", was recorded by Ethel Merman and Ray Bolger and released in 1954 by Decca and incorporates the tale about the lake's name according to the name's inventor, Laurence J. Daly, editor of The Webster Times. The most recent was released in 2010 by Diane Taraz.

See also

References

  1. ^ Patenaude, Ed (June 28, 2001). "Fabrication leaves us gasping - Old twist to name of lake comes to light". Worcester Telegram & Gazette. Archived from the original on July 23, 2003. Retrieved May 31, 2011.
  2. ^ "Opinion | Time to Retire an Indian Place-Name Hoax". The New York Times. September 29, 1990. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 30, 2024.
  3. "Lake Chaubunagungamaug". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved April 14, 2011.
  4. ^ Old Webster History Archived May 14, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, from the Webster TIMES Centennial Anniversary Issue, 1859-1959.
  5. Trumbull, James Hammond. 1881. Indian Names of Places etc., In and On the Borders of Connecticut: With interpretations of Some of Them. Reprinted in facsimile 1974 under title Indian Names in Connecticut by Archon Books, Hamden, Conn.
  6. Goddard, Ives. 1974. Untitled review of Trumbull in International Journal of American Linguistics Vol. 43, No. 2 (Apr., 1977), pp. 157–159, University of Chicago Press.
  7. Osgood, Carleton (1795). "An accurate map of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts..." Boston Public Library.
  8. "AUDIO: Singing a Name That's Hard to Say", New York Times (November 19, 2004).
  9. "OldeWebster Photo Archive" Archived December 13, 2007, at the Wayback Machine (Accessed September 16, 2015).
  10. Ash, Russell (November 10, 2011). Boring, Botty and Spong. RHCP. p. 68. ISBN 978-1-4090-9739-6.
  11. Town of Webster, accessed January 15, 2007.
  12. Knapton, Sarah (April 22, 2009). "Longest Place Name in US Spelt Wrongly". The Telegraph. London. Retrieved March 28, 2012.
  13. Brian Lee (April 14, 2009). "Misspelling on Lake Signs to Get Overdue Correction". Worcester Telegram & Gazette.
  14. Nipmuc Place Names of New England
  15. "Webster Lake", Division of Fisheries and Wildlife, Commonwealth of Massachusetts (February 1998), via Archive.org
  16. "Webster Lake Cyanobacteria Investigation: Phase I" Archived March 4, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, Prepared by Water Resource Services, Inc., for the Webster Lake Association (November 2014).
  17. ^ "About Webster Lake" Archived May 21, 2019, at the Wayback Machine, Webster Lake Association. Accessed September 6, 2015.
  18. Poem by Bertha A. Joslin Archived August 15, 2020, at the Wayback Machine.

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