Edna Martin Wildlife Refuge

Burrs Pond at twilight

Location

379 Fall River Avenue, Seekonk, MA across the street from the Grist Mill.

Size

27 Acres

Trail Length

0.7 mile loop trail

Named after Edna Martin, who donated the property to the Land Trust in the late 1990s, the Martin Wildlife Refuge consists of 27 acres along Fall River and Arcade Avenues. An information board greets you at the parking lot on Fall River Ave, which accommodates about a dozen cars.

The main trail leads through a succession of forest, new forest, and fields winding by Burrs Pond. Fed by the Runnins River, Burrs Pond is a small meadow-stream pond in the center of the refuge that feeds into another small stream running south.

The Town of Seekonk owns an additional parking lot off Fall River Ave at the southern end of Burrs Pond, where you’ll find a dam, a trail along the east side of the pond, benches to take in the view of the water, and easy access to fishing.

Martin Wildlife Refuge is also a research site for science classes in Seekonk. Funded by our Educational Mini-Grant, local AP Biology students from Seekonk High School conduct studies on the water as a summer project and return to class in the fall to learn more from their teacher about this unique ecosystem.

The pond serves as a habitat for many species of plants, bugs, fish, mammals, and birds, an educational tool for the community’s youth, and a place to enjoy the natural environment.

dam at Runnins River

The dam at the southern end of Burrs Pond.

wooden sign at parking lot that reads Martin Wildlife Refuge
Burrs Pond in the fall