Pittsfield

History

The Mohicans, an Algonquian people, inhabited the area that would later come to comprise Pittsfield until the early 18th century, when the population was greatly reduced by war and disease brought by European Colonists. Many migrated westward or were subjugated to live on the fringes of their land.

In 1738, wealthy Bostonian Colonel Jacob Wendell bought 24,000 acres (97 km2) of land known, originally as "Pontoosuck," from a Mohican word meaning "a field or haven for winter deer," as a speculative investment. He planned to subdivide and resell to others who would settle there. He formed a partnership with Philip Livingston, a wealthy kinsman from Albany, New York, and Col. John Stoddard of Northampton, Massachusetts, who had claim to 1,000 acres (4.0 km2) here.

A group of young armed militia men came and began to clear the land in 1743, but the threat of Indian resistance around the time of King George's War soon forced them to leave, and the land remained unoccupied by Englishmen for several years.

Soon, many colonists arrived from Westfield, Massachusetts, and a village began to grow, which was incorporated as Pontoosuck Plantation in 1753 by Solomon Deming, Simeon Crofoot, Stephen Crofoot, Charles Goodrich, Jacob Ensign, Samuel Taylor, and Elias Woodward. Mrs. Deming was the first and the last of the original colonists, dying in March 1818 at the age of 92. Solomon Deming died in 1815 at the age of 96.

Pittsfield was incorporated in 1761. Royal Governor Sir Francis Bernard named Pittsfield after British nobleman and politician William Pitt. By 1761 there were 200 residents and the plantation became the Township of Pittsfield.

By the end of the Revolutionary War, Pittsfield grew to nearly 2,000 residents, including Colonel John Brown, who began accusing Benedict Arnold of being a traitor in 1776, several years before Arnold defected to the British. Brown wrote in his winter 1776–77 handbill, "Money is this man's God, and to get enough of it he would sacrifice his country."

Pittsfield was primarily turned into an agricultural area because of the many brooks that flowed into the Housatonic River; the landscape was dotted with mills that produced lumber, grist, paper, and textiles. With the introduction of Merino sheep from Spain in 1807, the area became the center of woolen manufacturing in the United States, an industry that dominated the community's economy for almost a century.

1902 presidential incident

On September 3, 1902, at 10:15 am, during a two-week tour through New England campaigning for Republican congressmen, the barouche transporting President Theodore Roosevelt from downtown Pittsfield to the Pittsfield Country Club collided head-on with a trolley. Roosevelt, Massachusetts Governor Winthrop Murray Crane, secretary to the president George Bruce Cortelyou, and bodyguard William Craig were thrown into the street. Craig was killed; he was the first Secret Service agent killed while on a presidential protection detail. Roosevelt, whose face and left shin were badly bruised, nearly came to blows with the trolley motorman, Euclid Madden. Madden was later charged with manslaughter to which he pleaded guilty. He was sentenced to six months in jail and a heavy fine.

Baseball in Pittsfield

In 2004, historian John Thorn discovered a reference to a 1791 bylaw prohibiting anyone from playing "baseball" within 80 yards (73 m) of the new meeting house in Pittsfield. A reference librarian, AnnMarie Harris, found the actual bylaw in the Berkshire Athenaeum library and its age was verified by researchers at the Williamstown Art Conservation Center. If authentic and if actually referring to a recognizable version of the modern game, the 1791 document would be, as of 2004, the earliest known reference to the game in America. (See Origins of baseball.) The document is available on the Pittsfield Library's web site.

A finding that baseball was invented in 1839 by Abner Doubleday in Cooperstown, New York, provided the rationale for baseball centennial celebrations in 1939 including the opening of a National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in that city. Few historians ever believed it and even the Hall's vice president, Jeff Idelson, has stated that "Baseball wasn't really born anywhere."

In 1859, the first intercollegiate baseball game was played in Pittsfield. Amherst defeated Williams College, 73–32.

Ulysses Frank Grant, born August 1, 1865, in Pittsfield (died May 27, 1937), was an African American baseball player in the 19th century who played in the International League and for various independent teams.

Professional baseball was played in Pittsfield's Wahconah Park from 1894 through 2003. Teams included the early Pittsfield Colts and Pittsfield Hillies, the Pittsfield Electrics of the 1940s, the Pittsfield Red Sox from 1965 to 1969 with such A-league players and future major leaguers as George Scott, Carlton Fisk, and Reggie Smith, the Pittsfield Senators (later Rangers) of the 1970s, and the 1985–1988 AA Pittsfield Cubs featuring future stars Mark Grace and Rafael Palmeiro. From 1989 to 2001, the Pittsfield Mets and Pittsfield Astros (2001 only) represented the city in the New York–Penn League. The Astros have since moved to Troy, New York, and are now known as the Tri-City ValleyCats.

In 2005, Wahconah Park became the home stadium of the Pittsfield Dukes, a summer collegiate baseball franchise of the New England Collegiate Baseball League owned by Dan Duquette, former Boston Red Sox general manager. The Dukes had played the 2004 season in Hinsdale, Massachusetts, as the Berkshire Dukes. In 2009, the franchise changed its name to the Pittsfield American Defenders. The American Defenders' name refers to both the United States military and a line of baseball gloves produced by Nocona Athletic Goods Company. Duquette's ownership group also owned the American Defenders of New Hampshire, members of the independent Can-Am League.

Geography

Pittsfield is at 42°27′N 73°15′W (42.4522, −73.2515).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has an area of 42.5 square miles (110.0 km2), of which 2.0 square miles (5.2 km2), or 4.70%, are covered by water. Pittsfield is bordered by Lanesborough to the north, Dalton to the east, Washington to the southeast, Lenox to the south, Richmond to the southwest, and Hancock to the west. Pittsfield is 48 miles (77 km) northwest of Springfield, 99 miles (159 km) west of Worcester, 135 miles (217 km) west of Boston, and 39 miles (63 km) east of Albany, New York.

Most of the population occupies roughly one-quarter of the city's land. Pittsfield lies at the confluence of the east and west branches of the Housatonic River, which flows south from the city towards its mouth at Long Island Sound, some 149 miles (240 km) distant. The eastern branch leads down from the hills, and the western branch is fed from Onota Lake and Pontoosuc Lake, which lies partly in Lanesborough. Like much of western Berkshire County, the city lies between the Berkshire Hills to the east and the Taconic Range to the west. Sections of the Housatonic Valley Wildlife Management Area dot the banks of the river. The western portion of the city contains Pittsfield State Forest, an 11,000-acre (4,500 ha) facility with hiking and cross-country skiing trails, camping, picnic areas, and a beach for swimming.

Pittsfield is at the crossroads of U.S. Route 7 and U.S. Route 20, which intersect in the city. Massachusetts Route 8 passes through the northeastern corner of town, with a portion of it combined with Route 9, the central east-west road through the western part of the state, which terminates in the city at Route 20. Route 41 begins in the southwestern corner of town, heading south from Route 20. The nearest interstate highway, Interstate 90 (the Massachusetts Turnpike) is about 10 miles (16 km) south, in Lee.

Long-distance ground transportation in Pittsfield is based at the Joseph Scelsi Intermodal Transportation Center, which serves as the station for Amtrak trains and Peter Pan buses. The Berkshire Regional Transit Authority, the transit provider for Pittsfield and vicinity, is based at the Intermodal Center and also uses it as a hub for most of its lines. Rail freight transportation is provided by CSX Transportation and the Housatonic Railroad.

Climate

Pittsfield has a humid continental climate (Dfb). Winters are harsh because of the city's high elevation, at 1,039 ft (317 m), with an average annual snowfall of 73.0 inches (1,850 mm) and temperatures dipping to 0 °F (−18 °C) or colder 13 times per year. Summers, however, are typically warm and pleasant, with temperatures reaching 90 °F (32 °C) just six times per year. The record high and record low are 101 °F (38 °C) and −26 °F (−32 °C), recorded on July 23, 1926, and February 15, 1943, respectively. Over the course of a year, 173 days have measurable precipitation.

Housatonic River

Flowing through a historically rural area, the Housatonic River attracted increased industrialization in the late 19th century. William Stanley Jr., founded the Stanley Electric Manufacturing Company in 1890 at Pittsfield. The company manufactured small transformers, electrical motors and appliances. In 1903, GE acquired Stanley Electric and subsequently operated three major manufacturing operations in Pittsfield: transformer, ordnance, and plastics.

During the mid-20th century, the Housatonic River and its floodplain were contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and other hazardous substances released from the General Electric Company (GE) facility in Pittsfield. The contaminated area, known as the General Electric/Housatonic River Site, includes the GE manufacturing facility; the Housatonic River, its riverbanks and floodplains from Pittsfield to Long Island Sound, and former river oxbows that have since been filled in; Allendale School; Silver Lake; and other contaminated areas.

The highest concentrations of PCBs in the Housatonic River are found from the site of the GE plant in Pittsfield to Woods Pond in Lenox, Massachusetts, where they were measured up to 140 mg/kg (140 ppm). About 50% of PCBs, estimated to be about 11,000 pounds, in the river are retained in the sediment behind Woods Pond dams. Birds and fish that live in and around the river contain significant levels of PCBs.

Starting in 1991, legal proceedings by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) established the General Electric/Housatonic River Site. Initial cleanup work began in 1996 when EPA issued a unilateral order requiring GE to remove highly contaminated sediments and bank soils. EPA added the site to its Superfund list in September 1997.

The year 1999 was a milestone for Pittsfield, when negotiations between EPA, the state, General Electric, and the city resulted in a settlement agreement, valued at over $250 million, to clean up Pittsfield and the Housatonic River. The settlement was memorialized in a consent decree entered in federal court the following year, making it a binding legal agreement. Between 2005 and 2018 GE completed remediation and restoration of the 10 manufacturing plant areas within the city, and continues to conduct inspection, monitoring and maintenance activities.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Pittsfield had a population of 43,927. The median age was 44.2 years. 19.3% of residents were under the age of 18 and 21.2% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 94.4 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 92.5 males age 18 and over.

96.2% of residents lived in urban areas, while 3.8% lived in rural areas.

There were 19,716 households in Pittsfield, of which 23.8% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 34.2% were married-couple households, 22.7% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 33.7% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 37.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 21,738 housing units, of which 9.3% were vacant. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.5% and the rental vacancy rate was 7.1%.

2017 estimates

The racial makeup of the city in 2017 was 87.4% white (84.4% non-Hispanic white), 4.7% black, 0.4% Native American, 2.0% Asian (0.6% Chinese, 0.5% Indian, 0.3% Pakistani, 0.2% Filipino, 0.2% Korean, 0.1% Vietnamese), 0.02% Pacific Islander, 2.0% from other races, and 3.5% from two or more races. Hispanics and Latinos of any race were 6.0% of the population (1.9% Puerto Rican, 0.9% Mexican, 0.6% Ecuadorian, 0.5% Dominican, 0.4% Spanish, 0.3% Peruvian, 0.3% Honduran, 0.2% Colombian, 0.2% Salvadoran, 0.1% Cuban). The ten largest ancestry groups in the city were Irish (22.5%), Italian (17.5%), French (11.7%), German (9.9%), English (8.6%), Polish (6.7%), American (4.1%), French-Canadian (3.7%), Scottish (1.7%), and Russian (1.5%). Immigrants accounted for 7.3% of the population. The ten most common countries of origin for immigrants in the city were, Ecuador, China, Mexico, the Dominican Republic, India, El Salvador, Canada, Ghana, and Brazil.

2010 census

In 2010, there were 19,704 households, of which 27.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.9% were married couples living together, 13.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.0% were non-families. 34.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size was 2.89.

In 2010 in the city, the population was spread out, with 23.2% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 28.3% from 25 to 44, 23.0% from 45 to 64, and 18.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.2 males.

The median income for a household in the city in 2010 was $35,655, and the median income for a family was $46,228. Males had a median income of $35,538 versus $26,341 for females. The per capita income for the city was $20,549. About 8.9% of families and 11.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.7% of those under age 18 and 7.1% of those age 65 or over.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 45,793 people, 19,704 households, and 11,822 families residing in the city. Pittsfield is the largest city by population in Berkshire County, and ranks 27th out of the 351 cities and towns in Massachusetts. The population density was 1,124.3 inhabitants per square mile (434.1/km2), making it the most densely populated community in Berkshire county and 92nd overall in the Commonwealth. There were 21,366 housing units at an average density of 524.6 per square mile (202.5/km2).

Government

Pittsfield employs the mayor-council form of government. The mayor is currently Peter Marchetti, who was elected to a four-year term in January 2024. The city is fully functioning, with all the major public services, including Berkshire Medical Center, the only hospital in the northern part of the county, and the region's only VA medical clinic. The city's library, the Berkshire Athenaeum, is one of the largest in western Massachusetts and is connected to the regional library system. Pittsfield is also the county seat of Berkshire County, and thus has many state facilities for the county. In 2011, the City of Pittsfield received 129 designs of prospective official flags from residents in honor of the 250th anniversary of Pittsfield's incorporation as a town, with the winning design submitted by Shaun Harris.

On the state level, Pittsfield has a single elected representative to the Massachusetts House of Representatives: the Second Berkshire District, which covers the entire city proper and is represented by Tricia Farley-Bouvier. In the Massachusetts Senate, the city is represented by Paul Mark of the Berkshire, Hampden, Franklin and Hampshire district. Tara Jacobs (D-North Adams) represents Pittsfield as part of the Eighth Massachusetts Governor's Council district. The city is patrolled by the Fourth (Cheshire) Station of Barracks "B" of the Massachusetts State Police.

On the national level, Pittsfield is represented in the United States House of Representatives as part of Massachusetts's 1st congressional district, and has been represented by Richard Neal (D) of Springfield since 2013. Massachusetts is represented in the United States Senate by senior Senator Elizabeth Warren (D) and junior Senator Ed Markey (D).

Education

Pittsfield operates a public school system, which has more than 6,000 students. There are eight elementary schools (Allendale, Robert T. Capeless, Crosby, Egremont, Morningside, Silvio O. Conte, Stearns and Williams), two middle schools (Theodore Herberg and John T. Reid), two high schools (Pittsfield High School and Taconic High School), and one private school (Miss Hall's School). The high schools both offer internal vocational programs. Students also come to the high schools from neighboring Richmond. There were two parochial schools open for many decades, but both recently closed (Saint Mark's for elementary and middle school students, and St. Joseph Central High School for high school students).

Pittsfield is the home to the main campus of Berkshire Community College and Mildred Elley's Pittsfield campus. The nearest state college is the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts in North Adams, and the nearest state university is Westfield State University. The nearest private college is Williams College in Williamstown. In addition, the Berkshire Music School, a non-profit music school, offers private and group lessons in multiple instruments.

Points of interest

Culture

Pittsfield is the geographic and commercial hub of the Berkshires—a historic area that includes Tanglewood, the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and author Edith Wharton's estate The Mount. Many buildings in Pittsfield are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Downtown Pittsfield is home to the gilded-age Colonial Theatre, the Berkshire Museum, the Beacon Cinema (multi-plex), the Barrington Stage Company, Berkshire Athenaeum, Wahconah Park, and Hebert Arboretum. In recent years, the city has undergone a transformation with significant investment in the historic downtown, including a variety of new restaurants (French, Asian, Latin American, etc.), condominium and other residential developments, and cultural attractions.

The Colonial Theatre, dating from 1903, was named by Hillary Clinton as a National Historic Treasure in 1998. The community invested more than $22 million to refurbish the 100-year-old Colonial Theatre, one of the only theaters of its kind from the Vaudeville age. The venue has been described as "one of the finest acoustical theaters in the world."

Barrington Stage Company, the Tony Award-winning producer of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee invested millions into its newly renovated stage in downtown Pittsfield, along with the development of other stages within the downtown for smaller performances. Barrington Stage's head of its Musical Theatre Lab, William Finn, told the Boston Globe that he was determined to make Pittsfield the "epicenter of the musical theater universe."

Many of the Berkshires' oldest homes, dating to the mid-18th century, can be found in Pittsfield, as well as many historic neighborhoods dating from the late 19th century and early 20th century.

Zion Lutheran Church of PIttsfield is the oldest Lutheran church in New England.

Several small multigenerational farms can still be found in Pittsfield, but suburban sprawl and land development have recently claimed some of the land.

Additional cultural attractions include:

Recreation

Pittsfield has several country clubs, including the Pontoosuc Lake Country Club. Pittsfield is home to two major lakes, Onota and Pontoosuc, both used for swimming, boating, and fishing. The Berkshire Rowing and Sculling Society is on Onota Lake.

Pittsfield is home to Canoe Meadows Wildlife Sanctuary, 264 acres (107 ha) of woods, fields, and wetlands maintained by the Massachusetts Audubon Society. Bousquet Ski Area and Summer Resort entertains visitors and residents year-round with skiing, water slides, go-karts, and other fun activities.

Pittsfield State Forest, an 11,000-acre (4,500 ha) park, provides residents and tourists with hiking and cross-country skiing trails, camping, picnic areas, and a swimming beach. The highest body of water in Massachusetts, Berry Pond, is at the top of the Pittsfield State Forest just outside the city limits in the town of Hancock.

The Berkshire Bike Path Council is working with the City of Pittsfield and local residents to extend the Ashuwillticook Rail Trail, a 10.8-mile (17.4 km) paved trail just north of Pittsfield. The extension would pass through Pittsfield and lead south to Lenox and Great Barrington.

Transportation

Downtown Pittsfield serves as the crossroads of two US Highways: US 7 & US 20.

Pittsfield is served by Amtrak's Lake Shore Limited from Chicago to Boston, and seasonal Berkshire Flyer from New York City to Pittsfield, at the Joseph Scelsi Intermodal Transportation Center.

Local transit is provided by the Berkshire Regional Transit Authority.

Media

Newspapers

The Berkshire Eagle, the main daily newspaper for the Pittsfield area

Hill Country Observer, a monthly newspaper covering an eight-county region of western Massachusetts, southern Vermont and eastern New York

Television

Pittsfield is in the Albany television market and is the community of license for two stations in that market, MyNetworkTV affiliate WNYA, and a low power TV station, W28DA, which rebroadcasts sister station and NBC affiliate WNYT on channel 13 from a location on South Mountain in the city. Springfield stations also serve the market with three stations (NBC affiliate WWLP, low-powered CBS affiliate WSHM-LD, and PBS member station WGBY-TV) on cable. WGGB-TV, Springfield's ABC affiliate, has never been carried on the cable system in Pittsfield, but is viewable over the air in some sections. Also carried on cable, but not necessarily serving Pittsfield, is Boston's WCVB (the ABC affiliate in that area).

Cable television subscribers of Charter Spectrum in Pittsfield receive public, educational, and government access (PEG) channels, provided by Pittsfield Community Television (PCTV), on channels 1301, 1302 and 1303:

Access Pittsfield, channel 1301, Public-access television

Pittsfield ETV, channel 1302, Education-access television

Citylink, channel 1303, Government-access television (GATV)

Pittsfield Community Television is a not-for-profit, 501 (c)(3) organization and a member of the Alliance for Community Media. Programming on PCTV is available 24 hours per day, year-long, and is available online.

Radio

Pittsfield is home to the following radio stations:

1110 kHz WUPE (Oldies, simulcast of WUPE-FM)

1340 kHz WBRK (Adult Standards)

1420 kHz WBEC (Talk)

89.7 MHz WTBR-FM (Rock)

95.9 MHz WBEC-FM (Top 40, Tower on Bosquet Mountain)

101.7 MHz WBRK-FM (AC)

104.3 MHz WRRS-LP (Radio Reading Service)

106.1 MHz W291CH (Simulcast of WFCR, Western Massachusetts NPR affiliate out of Amherst)

Signals from North Adams, Great Barrington, and Springfield, Massachusetts, as well as from Albany, New York, also reach Pittsfield. In some areas signals from cities well outside of Pittsfield, like Boston and Hartford, Connecticut, will be received, depending on the location.

Business

Pittsfield is home to several businesses, including:

SABIC-Innovative Plastics (formerly known as General Electric (Plastics/Advanced Materials Division) and now a subsidiary of the Riyadh-based Saudi Basic Industries Corporation)

General Dynamics Mission Systems (Pittsfield facility originally known as General Electric Ordnance)

Interprint Incorporated on the Pittsfield-Richmond line

The Moscow Ballet, national touring dance company and producer of the Great Russian Nutcracker

Pittsfield Generating Facility, natural gas fired generating station

The Berkshire Humane Society operates animal welfare services and pet adoption facilities in Pittsfield