The Connecticut River occupies a special place in the history of many of the towns along its banks, including Bellows Falls. For centuries, Native Americans fished for salmon among the steep rock outcroppings along the river. And in the 1800s, white settlers built a handsome boomtown on its banks.

Richard Ewald is the planning and development director for the Connecticut River Watershed Council. He's also the author of "Proud To Live Here" - a natural and cultural history of the Connecticut River Valley.

Ewald tells us about the history of Bellows Falls and the Connecticut River Valley in Vermont and New Hampshire.