Haverhill Sets April 2026 Dedication for First Nations Park Honoring Indigenous History

Haverhill is planning a formal spring 2026 dedication for its First Nations Park to coincide with the return of the short-nosed sturgeon. Located on land previously occupied by Skateland and a gas station, the park will be formally dedicated at a public ceremony on Saturday, April 18, 2026.

According to a WHAV public media report, the park commemorates where the Abenaki and early English settlers fished. A new sign marking the location of First Nations Park was installed on Wednesday, Nov. 19, near the Sgt. Joseph M. Comeau Bridge over the Merrimack River. 

Haverhill Poet Laureate Daniel Speers designed the marker, which the Haverhill Highway Department installed.

Speers explained to WHAV that the area between the Comeau Bridge and the Pfc. Ralph T. Basiliere Bridge is a National Wildlife Area. The river near the park remains productive for striped bass, smallmouth bass, and American shad, especially at high tide.

“We have invited our Abenaki friends to do a sage cleansing and rededication of the land,” Speers told WHAV. “We are also inviting state and local officials. We've timed the dedication to match when the sturgeon will be returning.”

According to WHAV, the park at the corner of South Elm Street and Railroad Avenue covers approximately 60,000 square feet. The park includes a children's play structure, an outdoor performance area, and shaded picnic tables. It was developed by the Procopio Companies and deeded to the city as part of the Beck apartment complex project.