Berkshires towns homepages

Alford, MA has had a mill for its grist since 1763, when the town had about twenty fewer residents than it does today! During the first half of the 19th century, there were a dozen marble quarries in Alford, but when the railroads were laid elsewhere, they became unprofitable. Today, Alford is the quintessential bedroom community: no stores, no motels or hotels, and not a single gas station.

By ToddC4176 at en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, Link

“Old-fashioned, easygoing Alford …”

“Old-fashioned, easygoing Alford is not so far off the main traveled routes through Berkshire that it is a backwoods village, nor so close to have taken on the frills of a summer resort. The scattered houses, white church, and little school are built on a narrow shelf of land extending a quarter of a mile along the eastern side of the platter-shaped valley.

“To the south is Mt. Everett, one of the highest mountains in Berkshire, 2,624 feet above sea level. The western slopes of the valley are checkered with meadow and woodlots, mounting toward an unbroken line of trees against the sky.” (The Berkshire Hills, by Federal Writers’ Project, © 1939, Berkshire Hills Conference, Inc.)

Alford, MA facts:

• Town Hall: 5 Alford Center Rd.
• Phone: (413) 528-4536
• Population: 399
• Settled/Inc’d: 1740/1773
• Named for: Col. John Alford of Charlestown
• Elevation: 960′
• Alford.org

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The Berkshires town of Cheshire, Mass. boasts a 500 acre lake, spectacular views from Stafford Hill, and one of the most unusual monuments anywhere, which celebrates the 1,235 pound cheese presented to President Jefferson by Cheshire farmers. Cheshire is located within the valley of the Hoosic River, and is the site of a dammed reservoir on the river. To the west, parts of Mount Greylock State Reservation take up sections of town, and includes a section of the auto road.

To the southeast, North Mountain peaks just outside town limits before descending to the valley. The Appalachian Trail crosses through the center of town, heading from North Mountain to Mount Greylock. The southern foothils of the Hoosac Range make up much of the eastern side of town, and much of the land is dotted with sections of the Chalet and Stafford Hill Wildlife Management Areas. Several other brooks feed into the river along the way.

“The Great Cheese symbolized Cheshire’s satisfaction with the election of Thomas Jefferson to the Presidency in 1800. The idea of creating this monster among edibles was put forth by a baptist clergyman of Cheshire, Elder John Leland. A friend of Jefferson, he thought the town should send the new executive a testimonial of esteem.” (The Berkshire Hills, by Federal Writers’ Project, © 1939, Berkshire Hills Conference, Inc.)

The popular Ashuwillticook Rail Trail runs along the shore of Cheshire reservoir, and many Appalachian Trail through-hikers receive mail and provisions at the village post office.

Cheshire, MA facts:

• Town Hall: 80 Church St.
• Phone: (413)743-1690
• Population: 3,401
• Settled/Inc’d: 1766
• Named for: Cheshire, England
• Elevation: 945′

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The Berkshire county town of Clarksburg, located on the scenic and historic Mohawk Trail, combines all of the benefits of rural living with an excellent elementary school (K-8), sufficient land available for development, and direct access to the urban amenities of nearby North Adams, Mass. The town recently created three areas for industrial development and intends to aggressively promote them to relieve the present basically residential tax burden.

Captain Matthew Ketchum, Colonel William Bullock, and Nicholas Clark are credited with having originally settled the eventual township in 1769, and the latter ultimately became Clarksburg’s namesake. The town began as a mostly agrarian community, with mills springing up along the waterways in the nineteenth century. The major mills were one to make cashmere, and several mills supplied gunpowder during the Civil War. However, the industry was stopped by the town after one of the mills exploded in 1869. (from wikipedia.)

Clarksburg, MA facts:

• Town Hall: 111 River Rd.
• Phone: (413) 663-7940
• Population: 1,686
• Settled/Inc’d: Capt. Ketchum, N. Clark/1769
• Named for: Nicholas Clark’s family
• Elevation: 1,000′

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Situated just east of Pittsfield on Rt. 9, the Berkshire county town of Dalton, Mass. has great recreational and athletic resources, including Wahconah Falls State Park. In 1801, Zenas Crane, Henry Wiswall and John Willard set up a paper mill along the river which, by 1844, had begun producing bank note paper, which was purchased by banks all the way to Boston. The company, Crane & Co., still is the largest employer in town, making paper products, stationery, and, since 1873, has been the only supplier for the Federal Reserve Note, the United States’ paper money.

Dalton, MA facts:

• Town Hall: 462 Main St.
• Phone: (413) 684-6111
• Population: 6,892
• Settled/Inc’d: 1755/1784
• Named for: Tristam Dalton/MA-Speaker of House
• Elevation: 1199′

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Florida, Mass. is a small town in the Berkshires located along the Mohawk Trail high up in the foothills of the Green Mountain Range, is the site of one of the great engineering feats of the 19th century – the Hoosac Tunnel. The Florida section of the Deerfield River is very wide, from 25′ to 150′, and offers the best brown, rainbow, and brook trout fishing in the Berkshires.

“In 1805, when the town was incorporated, there was talk of the United States purchasing the territory of Florida from Spain. The new village among the mountains chose the name of the flat, tropical region of palms and pelicans. Perhaps an overdeveloped sense of humor on the part of the town fathers contributed to the extraordinary choice.” (The Berkshire Hills, by Federal Writers’ Project, © 1939, Berkshire Hills Conference, Inc.)

Florida, MA facts:

• Town Hall: 379 Mohawk Trail, Drury, MA 01343
• Phone: (413) 662-2448
• Population: 676
• Settled/Inc’d: 1783/1805
• Named for: Florida (see note below)
• Elevation: 2,180′
• Town website: townofflorida.org

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The town of Hancock in the Berkshires, was re-named for John Hancock in 1776, the year of its incorporation, from Plantation of Jericho, as it was called by the original settlers in 1762. Hancock Shaker Village was established there in 1790, becoming a thriving Shaker community before the movement’s mid-19th century demise. In 1960, the Hancock community was closed by the Shaker Central Ministry, and the next year Hancock Shaker Village, a non-profit museum was opened; it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1968.

Points of interest in Hancock include: Hancock Shaker Village, Jiminy Peak, the state’s largest ski area, time-share mecca Vacation Village At Berkshires, a barn museum, a campground, a nudist camp, and twenty-four known and catalogued cemeteries.

Hancock, MA facts and map:

• Phone: (413) 738-5225
• Population: 721
• Settled/Inc’d: 1767/1776
• Named for: John Hancock
• Elevation: 1020′

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