joins up with the Connecticut River in Windsor. When Europeans first arrived, the "Tunxis Sepus" territory consisted of a 165-mile square area bounded by Simsbury to the North, Wallingford to the South, to the northwest by Mohawk country, and on the east by the current towns of Windsor, Hartford and Wethersfield. In 1645, the Town of Farmington, Connecticut was named by the Connecticut General Assembly, and this was re-affirmed in 1650 by the execution of a deed by the General Assembly and the reservation of land for the "Tunxis Indians" near "Indian Neck" on the east bank of the Farmington River.. A group of twenty wigwams existed in Farmington at the beginning of the eighteenth century, but only four or five families resided in the settlement by 1761 The land of the Massaco was subsequently purchased by the Dutch. This and its settlement during the era of the Connecticut Colony are described in the early history of Simsbury. The Spoonville Dam, built on the Farmington River in 1899 below the Tariffville Gorge in East Granby, was breached in the Flood of 1955 and remained as a partial dam for several decades before being removed in July 2012. The dam, as well as the bridge crossing the Farmington River downstream at Route 187, derived its name from the silver plating factory erected in 1840 on the north bank of the river. It was the first factory of its kind in the United States. Historical crossings Several bridges constructed in the 19th century and early 20th century still span the Farmington River to this day. Among these are: Farmington River Railroad Bridge, a stone arch bridge in Windsor, Connecticut built in 1867 Drake Hill Road Bridge, a Parker through-truss bridge in Simsbury, Connecticut constructed in 1892 Town Bridge, a Parker through-truss bridge in Canton, Connecticut constructed by the Berlin Iron Bridge Company in 1895 Richards Corner Bridge, a Pratt through-truss bridge in New Hartford, Connecticut built in 1930 which spans the East Branch Farmington River Pleasant Valley Bridge, a Parker through-truss bridge in Barkhamsted, Connecticut built in 1939 Unionville Bridge, a Warren through-truss bridge in Unionville, Connecticut built in 1939 Recreation The river has several whitewater sections that are popular for tubing and kayaking. One of these, the colloquial "Upper Farmington" section of the West Branch in New Boston, Massachusetts, is about 7 miles (11 km) long. It is Class 2 through