The ''Berkshire Hills Express'' was a full-service passenger train of the

New York Central Railroad The New York Central Railroad was a railroad primarily operating in the Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The railroad primarily connected greater New York and Boston in the east with Chicago and St. Louis in the Midw ...

that went from

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

North Adams, Massachusetts North Adams is a city in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. Its population was 12,961 as of the 2020 census. Best known as the ...

, in the

Berkshires The Berkshires () are a highland geologic region located in the western parts of Massachusetts and northwest Connecticut. The term "Berkshires" is normally used by locals in reference to the portion of the Vermont-based Green Mountains that ex ...

. It served as a channel for tourist travel from downstate New York, through the

Taconic Mountains The Taconic Mountains or Taconic Range () are a range of the Appalachian Mountains, running along the eastern border of New York State and adjacent New England from northwest Connecticut to western Massachusetts, north to central western Vermont. ...

, to resorts and other attractions in the Berkshires and for students traveling to

Williams College Williams College is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts. It was established as a men's college in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim Williams, a col ...

, 11 miles west of North Adams. The train operated from 1919 to 1934. However, it continued in unnamed form for nearly two decades longer.

Route

The train, carrying the number, #916, departing mid-afternoon, went in express fashion on the New York Central's

Harlem Line The Metro-North Railroad Harlem Line, originally chartered as the New York and Harlem Railroad, is an commuter rail line running north from New York City to Wassaic, in eastern Dutchess County. The lower from Grand Central Terminal to Southea ...

, bypassing most stations between 125th Street Station and

Chatham, New York Chatham is a town in Columbia County, New York, United States. The population was 4,104 at the 2020 census, down from the 2010 census. The town has a village also called Chatham on its southern town line. The town is at the northern border of ...

. From Chatham, the train headed east on the territory of the

Boston and Albany Railroad The Boston and Albany Railroad was a railroad connecting Boston, Massachusetts to Albany, New York, later becoming part of the New York Central Railroad system, Conrail, and CSX Transportation. The line is currently used by CSX for freight. Pass ...

that the NYC had leased, to Pittsfield, and then headed north on the B&A's North Adams branch. The train took the name, ''New York Express'' and #911 on the southbound route to New York City. In addition to carrying coach cars it included a buffet car and parlor car as well. Following the NYC's dropping of the ''Berkshire Hills Express'' and ''New York Express'' in 1934, the train continued as #1516 north and #5417 south. By this time a morning train took the route as well in both directions.

Demise

In 1950, the through service to North Adams was trimmed to a shuttle from Chatham to North Adams, requiring a transfer at Chatham. Passenger service between Chatham and North Adams ended in 1953.Karr, Ronald Dale. 'Lost Railroads of New England,' Pepperell, MA: Branch Line Press, Third edition, 2010, p. 207

References

{{NYC named trains Named passenger trains of the United States Passenger trains of the New York Central Railroad Passenger rail transportation in Massachusetts Passenger rail transportation in New York (state)

Route

Demise

See also

References