America’s Founding Fish to Hopefully Return to the Millstone River Bordering Montgomery, Rocky Hill, and Princeton

By Barbara A. Preston | Posted Jan. 3, 2026

Jim Waltman, executive director of The Watershed Institute, is working hard to bring American shad back to its ancestral rivers in New Jersey — and specifically to the Millstone River. 

By removing obsolete dams, the shad will thrive, and water quality is also greatly improved, he said. The river is the source of drinking water for many residents in Montgomery, Princeton, and throughout the region. Waltman spoke about the importance of the Watershed’s initiative on Dec. 18, when he thanked Montgomery Township Committee members for passing a resolution to endorse the removal of the Blackwells Mills Dam from the Millstone River.

Above: Shad illustration by American artist Duane Raver (May 4, 1927—February 15, 2022).

The old Blackwells Mills Dam stretches across the Millstone River between Hillsborough and Franklin townships, creating a barrier. Fish are not able to pass to the southern section of the river in Montgomery, Rocky Hill, and Princeton. Removal of the dam will expand the migratory fish habitat by about 10 miles.

American shad, a migratory fish that live in salt water in the Atlantic Ocean, spawn in freshwater. Over the last decade, dam removals and adaptation have allowed the shad to return to the Millstone River for the first time in hundreds of years. They now make it up to the Blackwells Mills Dam.

The Blackwells Mills dam, originally built of stone and timber circa 1747, was reconstructed of cast-in-place concrete in 1933. According to the Watershed Institute, it no longer serves a compelling purpose.

(Photo by Barbara A. Preston)

“There’s many reasons to remove the dam,” Waltman said. “It will improve the water quality in the river and restore this important fish, the American shad.

Removing the dam will enhance water quality by restoring better flow to the river — decreasing the likelihood of harmful algal blooms, which produce toxins that kill fish, mammals, and birds, and can be harmful to humans.

The Founding Fish

Waltman said, “We’re a couple weeks away from the semiquincetennial — the 250th anniversary of our country. Part of our history is the American shad, which have actually been referred to as America’s founding fish.”

Shad was an important source of nutrition for native Americans and early settlers. It also had commercial value, according to a book by John McPhee who lives in Princeton. McPhee wrote a book titled “The Founding Fish.” While most of the book is about the better known, larger rivers, including the Schuylkill and Delaware rivers, McPhee gives a comprehensive history of the American shad.

Jim Waltman, executive director of The Watershed Institute, with a copy of John McPhee's book titled "TheFounding Fish."

(Photo by Barbara A. Preston)

The Millstone River

Waltman also cited a travel log written by Johann David Schoepff about his travels in the Millstone Valley from 1783 to 1784. Schoepff wrote the following about the Millstone River:

“These waters contain a multitude of fish, pike and suckers, and formerly shad, in numberless schools came high up this river, but dams of which many have been built ..., keep back the shad.” — Johnann David Schoepff.

In other words, folks were mourning the loss of American shad from the Millstone River as far back as 1784.

Good News for Shad

American shad have been on the move in the Millstone, thanks to great efforts that are being made to restore migratory routes of anadromous fish species (those which live in the ocean but spawn in fresh water), including river herring and American shad.

A flurry of dam removals have taken place along the Raritan, Musconetcong, and Millstone rivers in recent years, with hopefully more on the way.

Advertisement

The Watershed Institute, based in Pennington, has been working with federal and state agencies to try to remove the Blackwells Mills Dam — so far without success.

“We’ve hit a little bit of loggerheads,” Waltman said. “So we are very appreciative of Montgomery Township Committee passing a resolution in favor of removing the dam. I hope to come back someday to celebrate the return of American shad to Montgomery Township.”

The resolution urges the NJ Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) and its Commissioner Shawn LaTourette to remove the dam. The NJDEP owns it, as part of the D&R Canal State Park, and had indicated a decision would be made by last summer. Yet, no decision was made.

Shad are one of the migratory fish that will benefit from the removal of the Blackwells Mills dam. These fish live in salt water but spawn in freshwater. Due to dams blocking their migratory paths to ancestral spawning grounds and over fishing, the shad population has significantly declined. Efforts are now focused on restoring the shad to the Millstone River (from the Raritan River to Princeton).

Montgomery resident and Environmental Commission chairperson Mary Reece also spoke at the meeting. “I want to echo the comments from Jim Waltman. I’m appreciative of your passing this resolution,” Reece said. “We also want to thank Mike Martin for bringing this to the attention of the township committee.”