Breakheart Reservation

Breakheart Reservation is a public recreation area covering in the towns of Saugus and Wakefield, Massachusetts. The reservation features a hardwood forest, two freshwater lakes, a winding stretch of the Saugus River, and scenic views of Boston and rural New England from rocky hilltops. The park is managed by the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation.HistoryNative AmericansArchaeological evidence shows that hunting, camping, and fishing took place along the Saugus River as far back as the Paleo-Indians and continuing through the Archaic and Woodland periods.Colonial periodIn 1666, John Gifford, the second general agent of the Saugus Iron Works, who had left the company over a dispute with its creditors, purchased 260 acres along the Saugus River from Thomas Breedon of Boston for £260. He established his own iron works on the site, which closed in 1675 due to the economic downturn caused by King Philip's War. Gifford's site later housed a sawmill (1703–1740), wire-manufacturing operation (1814–1828), a snuff-grinding mill (1837–1871), and a second sawmill (1871–1902).