Borough of Staten Island (Richmond County) from Central New Jersey along with the Arthur Kill a more narrow channel of water between Staten Island and New Jersey. As the Raritan River flows eastward towards Raritan Bay, it joins the Millstone River flowing north in the vicinity of Bound Brook, New Jersey. The Millstone River traces an arc through several New Jersey Counties, originating in Monmouth County and flowing more-or-less west through Mercer County, then northwest through Somerset County, then northward towards Bound Brook. Delaware and Raritan Canal The Delaware and Raritan Canal runs along east side of the Millstone River for much of its length, from Lake Carnegie near the border between West Windsor Township and Princeton to the location where the Millstone River empties into the main course of the Raritan River in Franklin Township. There the canal continues along the right (south) bank of the Raritan. The land between canal and river is a flood plain that generally consists of swamps, wooded areas and some farmland. A number of spillways allow water to run off from the canal into the Millstone River during periods of heavy water flow. In Lawrenceville, New Jersey, at a site known as Bakers Basin today located along U.S. Route 1, the canal makes the few mile remaining connection into Trenton, the state capital, and then into the Delaware River. Hence the Millstone and Raritan Rivers enabled the major shipping route between New York and Philadelphia in the early 19th century. From New York, of course, goods could be shipped north along the Hudson River and Erie Canal to upstate New York, and thence to Western Pennsylvania, Ohio, and other Great Lakes States upstream of Niagara Falls. Gallery Tributaries Beden Brook Pike Run Rock Brook Bear Brook Cranbury Brook Cedar Brook Devils Brook Shallow Brook Harrys Brook Heathcote Brook Carters Brook Heathcote Brook Branch Indian Run Brook Little Bear Brook Millstone Brook Peace Brook Rocky Brook Timber Run Royce Brook Simonson Brook Six Mile Run Stony Brook Baldwins Creek Duck Pond Run Honey Branch Lewis Brook Peters Brook Stony Brook Branch Woodsville Brook Ten Mile Run Van Horn Brook Crossings New Jersey Route 33 in Millstone Township, New Jersey New Jersey Turnpike U.S. Route 130 connecting Cranbury Township, New Jersey to East Windsor Township, New Jersey U.S. Route 1 connecting Plainsboro Township, New Jersey to West Windsor Township, New Jersey New Jersey Route 27