Hinsdale, MA history, information, demographics

The Town of Hinsdale is a small, quiet hilltown, nestled in the Berkshires of western Massachusetts. Its population of over 1,900 increases tremendously in the summer months due to the influx of people from more urban areas coming to enjoy the peaceful, wooded hills, lakes and fresh air. Settled in the 1760s, Hinsdale was incorporated in 1804. Its early history saw farms and saw mills as the primary sources of occupation. In the late 1800s, textile mills flourished, and the community found itself able to install a reservoir and public water an sewer systems.

mills and railroads ...

In the early 1900s, the mills departed, and the railroad became the main industry. By the mid-1900s, this industry departed, as well. The Town is now primarily a bedroom community to the city of Pittsfield, and is finding it difficult to maintain the infrastructure which was established in a much more affluent time.

The Town encompasses approximately 21.7 square miles. It is home to two lakes, Lake Ashmere and Plunkett Lake, which provide recreational opportunities to residents and five summer camps for children, and to a section of Muddy Pond, the headwaters of the East Branch of the Housatonic River. Hinsdale also is home, along with neighboring communities of Peru, Washington and Dalton, to the 14,500 acre Hinsdale Flats Watershed Resource Area, designated on January 31, 1992 as an Area of Critical Environmental Concern. The Appalachian Trail, a national scenic trail, passes through Hinsdale, and encompasses 440 acres. There are over 1500 acres of state-owned open space within the Town's borders, as well.

Hinsdale, MA facts:

• Town Hall: 95 Maple St.
• Phone: (413) 655-2245
• Population: 1,872
• Settled/Inc'd: 1763/1804
• Named for: Rev. Theodore Hinsdale
• Elevation: 1,431'
• Demographic data: state.ma.us/cc/hinsdale.html

Hinsdale offers an extensive recreation program for its youth, and a community center and activities for its senior citizens. It is a beautiful, rural community, in which its residents take great pride.

Western Massachusetts, bordered by Windsor on the north, Peru on the east, Washington on the south, and Dalton on the west. Hinsdale is 10 miles east of Pittsfield and 126 miles west of Boston.

Hinsdale, primarily a bedroom community to the city of Pittsfield, contains two lakes, five summer camps and a section of Muddy Pond, the headwaters of the East Branch of the Housatonic River. The 14,500 acre Hinsdale Flats Watershed is a federally designated Area of Critical Environmental Concern.

The Appalachian Trail passes through Hinsdale, which has more than 1500 acres of state-owned open space within its borders.

"I was raised in Hinsdale in the 50's and the 60's. I've got a lot of good memories about Hinsdale. I lived above the drug store when Benard Collins was the Pharmacist. I would love some old and new photos. Thank you, Joseph Rock (djrock4@attbi.com)."

Using the map:

You may zoom with the controls on the left, change the map style with the buttons on the upper right, and click and drag the map to pan. Click the marker to open an "info-window" containing a form that allows you to get printable directions to and from any location.