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The Berkshires () are a highland geologic region located in the western parts of
Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...
and northwest
Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...
. The term "Berkshires" is normally used by locals in reference to the portion of the
Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the ...
-based
Green Mountains The Green Mountains are a mountain range in the U.S. state of Vermont. The range runs primarily south to north and extends approximately from the border with Massachusetts to the border with Quebec, Canada. The part of the same range that is i ...
that extend south into western Massachusetts; the portion extending further south into northwestern Connecticut is grouped with the Connecticut portion of the Taconic Mountains and referred to as either the Northwest Hills or Litchfield Hills. Also referred to as the Berkshire Highlands, Berkshire Hills, Berkshire Mountains, and Berkshire Plateau, the region enjoys a vibrant tourism industry based on music, arts, and recreation. Geologically, the mountains are a range of the
Appalachian Mountains The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, (french: Appalaches), are a system of mountains in eastern to northeastern North America. The Appalachians first formed roughly 480 million years ago during the Ordovician Period. The ...
. The Berkshires were named among the 12 Last Great Places by
The Nature Conservancy The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is a global environmental organization headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. it works via affiliates or branches in 79 countries and territories, as well as across every state in the US. Founded in 1951, The Natu ...
.


Definition

The term "The Berkshires" has overlapping but non-identical political, cultural, and geographic definitions.


Political

Politically,
Berkshire County, Massachusetts Berkshire County (pronounced ) is a county on the western edge of the U.S. state of Massachusetts. As of the 2020 census, the population was 129,026. Its largest city and traditional county seat is Pittsfield. The county was founded ...
, was formed as a governmental unit in 1761. It includes the western extremity of the state, with its western boundary bordering New York and its eastern boundary roughly paralleling the watershed divide separating the Connecticut River watershed from the Housatonic River and Hoosic River watersheds. However, like most other counties in Massachusetts, the active governmental role of Berkshire County has been abolished, so has no legal or governmental function.


Cultural

Culturally, the term "Berkshires" includes all of the highland region in western Massachusetts west of the Connecticut River and lower Westfield River. The cultural region also includes the Taconic Mountains bordering New York, which are geologically distinct from the Berkshires orogeny. Southwest Vermont and the Taconic region of New York are occasionally grouped with the Berkshires cultural region. Sir Francis Bernard, the royal
governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
(in office 1760–1769), named the area "Berkshire" to honor his home county in England.


Geographic

Geologically and physically, the Berkshires are the southern continuation of the
Green Mountains The Green Mountains are a mountain range in the U.S. state of Vermont. The range runs primarily south to north and extends approximately from the border with Massachusetts to the border with Quebec, Canada. The part of the same range that is i ...
of
Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the ...
, distinct from them only by their lower average elevation and by virtue of what side of the border they fall on. In physical geography, the Berkshires extend from the Housatonic River and Hoosic River valleys in western Massachusetts, to the Connecticut River valley in north-central Massachusetts, and to the foot of the lower Westfield River valley in south-central Massachusetts. In Connecticut, where they are referred to as the Litchfield Hills, they extend east from the upper Housatonic River valley in the northwest part of the state. Geologically, the Berkshires are bordered on the west by the Taconic Mountains, the south by the Hudson Highlands, and to the east, they are bordered by the Metacomet Ridge. They are on the average lower and less prominent than the Green Mountains of Vermont, and form a broad, dissected plateau punctuated by hills and peaks and cut by river valleys. The Berkshires topography gradually diminishes in profile and elevation from west to east and from north to south, except where rivers have cut deep gorges and sharp bluff faces into the Berkshire plateau.


Formation

The Berkshires and related Green Mountains formed over half a billion years ago when
Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
collided with North America, pushing up the
Appalachian Mountains The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, (french: Appalaches), are a system of mountains in eastern to northeastern North America. The Appalachians first formed roughly 480 million years ago during the Ordovician Period. The ...
and forming the
bedrock In geology, bedrock is solid rock that lies under loose material ( regolith) within the crust of Earth or another terrestrial planet. Definition Bedrock is the solid rock that underlies looser surface material. An exposed portion of be ...
of the Berkshires. Erosion over hundreds of millions of years wore these mountains down to the hills that we see today.


Elevation

The average regional elevation of the Berkshires ranges from about . One of the high points is Spruce Mountain, at . The highest point in the Berkshires physiographic region is Crum Hill, , in the town of Monroe.


Rivers

The Housatonic River, Hoosic River, Westfield River, and Deerfield River watersheds drain the Berkshire region in Massachusetts; in Connecticut the main river drainages are the Farmington River, the Naugatuck River, the Shepaug River, and the Housatonic River.


Counties

The Berkshire hills runs through: *
Berkshire County, Massachusetts Berkshire County (pronounced ) is a county on the western edge of the U.S. state of Massachusetts. As of the 2020 census, the population was 129,026. Its largest city and traditional county seat is Pittsfield. The county was founded ...
(towns east of the Housatonic River) * Hartford County, Connecticut (Hartland, Granby) *
Franklin County, Massachusetts Franklin County is a nongovernmental county located in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Massachusetts. As of the 2020 census, the population was 71,029, which makes it the least-populous county on the Massachusetts mainland, and the ...
(Leyden, Colrain, Shelburne, Conway, Charlemont, Heath, Buckland, Hawley, Ashfield, Rowe, Monroe) * Hampden County, Massachusetts (Tolland, Chester, Granville, Blandford, Russell, Montgomery) *
Hampshire County, Massachusetts Hampshire County is a historical and judicial county located in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. Following the dissolution of the county government in 1999, county affairs were managed by the Hampshire Council of Governments, which itself ce ...
(Chesterfield, Goshen, Williamsburg, Westhampton, Huntington, Worthington, Cummington, Middlefield, Plainfield) * Litchfield County, Connecticut (towns east of the Housatonic River)


Municipalities

The largest municipalities associated with the Berkshires cultural region include Pittsfield, North Adams, Great Barrington, Williamstown, Stockbridge,
Lee Lee may refer to: Name Given name * Lee (given name), a given name in English Surname * Chinese surnames romanized as Li or Lee: ** Li (surname 李) or Lee (Hanzi ), a common Chinese surname ** Li (surname 利) or Lee (Hanzi ), a Chinese ...
, and Lenox, Massachusetts.


History

During the
American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolu ...
a Continental Army force under Henry Knox brought captured cannons from Fort Ticonderoga by ox-drawn sleds south along the west bank of the
Hudson River The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between Ne ...
from the fort to Albany, where he then crossed the Hudson. Knox and his men continued east through the Berkshires and finally arrived in
Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the capital city, state capital and List of municipalities in Massachusetts, most populous city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financ ...
. This feat, known as the " Noble train of artillery", was accomplished in the dead of winter, 1775–1776. The Berkshires is also home to Hancock Shaker Village, which is the oldest continuously working farm in the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts. Hancock Shaker Village is a landmark destination of 750 acres, 20 historic Shaker buildings, and over 22,000 Shaker artifacts. On the National Historic Register, it is one of the most comprehensively interpreted Shaker sites in the world.


Ecology

The Berkshires lie within the New England/Acadian forests
ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) or ecozone (ecological zone) is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a bioregion, which in turn is smaller than a biogeographic realm. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas o ...
. Similarly, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in Massachusetts (Griffith et al. 1994) has defined six ecoregions within this area: Taconic Mountains, Western New England Marble Valleys, Lower Berkshire Hills, Berkshire Highlands, Vermont Piedmont, and Berkshire Transition. Each region is distinct from the others, providing a unique habitat assemblage. Much of the Hoosic and Housatonic River valleys have underlying bedrock
limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms wh ...
and
marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite. Marble is typically not foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the term ''marble'' refers to metamorpho ...
which contribute to calcareous wetlands unique in Massachusetts. The alkaline pH waters support a diversity of plants and animals intolerant of more acidic waters, some of which are state-listed rare or endangered. Combined with the rich mesic forests ranging from the northern hardwood to the
taiga Taiga (; rus, тайга́, p=tɐjˈɡa; relates to Mongolic and Turkic languages), generally referred to in North America as a boreal forest or snow forest, is a biome characterized by coniferous forests consisting mostly of pines, spruces ...
or sub-alpine, the Berkshires have a valuable, biologically diverse ecosystem. The classic study of the vegetation of the Berkshire Highlands was Egler's 1940 monograph, covering the flora of an area stretching roughly from Pittsfield, Massachusetts, in the west to Hatfield, Massachusetts, in the east, and from Goshen, Connecticut, in the south to the
Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the ...
border in the north. Today, efforts are being made by many organizations to preserve and manage this region for biological diversity and sustainable human development.


Tourism

The Berkshires have numerous trails, including part of the
Appalachian Trail The Appalachian Trail (also called the A.T.), is a hiking trail in the Eastern United States, extending almost between Springer Mountain in Georgia and Mount Katahdin in Maine, and passing through 14 states.Gailey, Chris (2006)"Appalachian ...
, large tracts of wilderness and parks Berkshire Botanical Garden and Hebert Arboretum The area includes
Bash Bish Falls Bash Bish Falls, a waterfall in Bash Bish Falls State Park in the Taconic Mountains of southwestern Massachusetts (Berkshire County), is the highest waterfall in the state. The falls are made up of a series of cascades, nearly in total. The fin ...
, the tallest waterfall in Massachusetts. The Berkshire region is noted as a center for the visual and performing arts, many institutions which are associated with Williams College. The art museums include the Norman Rockwell Museum, the Clark Art Institute, the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (Mass MoCA), Berkshire Museum, Hancock Shaker Village, and the Williams College Museum of Art (WCMA). Performing-arts institutions in the Berkshires include Tanglewood Music Center and Boston University Tanglewood Institute in
Lenox Lenox may refer to: Places in the United States * Lenox, Alabama * Lenox, Georgia * Lenox, Iowa ** Lenox College, former college in Hopkinton, Iowa * Lenox, Kentucky * Lenox, Massachusetts, a New England town ** Lenox (CDP), Massachusetts, the m ...
, the summer home of the
Boston Symphony Orchestra The Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the second-oldest of the five major American symphony orchestras commonly referred to as the " Big Five". Founded by Henry Lee Higginson in 1 ...
; the Bang on a Can Summer Festival for contemporary music in North Adams; Shakespeare & Company in Lenox; summer stock theatre festivals such as the Williamstown Theatre Festival in Williamstown, Barrington Stage Company in Pittsfield, the Berkshire Theatre Festival in Stockbridge, and Berkshire Playwrights Lab in Great Barrington; and America's first and longest-running dance festival, Jacob's Pillow, in the town of Becket.


See also

* BerkShares * Famous Berkshire Cottages: ** Naumkeag ** Edith Wharton's The Mount ** Ventfort Hall Mansion and Gilded Age Museum * Litchfield Hills * Taconic Mountains * Williams College * Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts *
Geography of Massachusetts Massachusetts is the 7th smallest state in the United States with an area of . It is bordered to the north by New Hampshire and Vermont, to the west by New York, to the south by Connecticut and Rhode Island, and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean ...
* List of mountains in Massachusetts *
Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Be ...
, England * Berkshire County


References


External links


Berkshire Visitors Bureau


{{DEFAULTSORT:Berkshires, The Subranges of the Appalachian Mountains Mountain ranges of Connecticut Mountain ranges of Massachusetts Landforms of Litchfield County, Connecticut Landforms of Berkshire County, Massachusetts Regions of Connecticut Regions of Massachusetts Tourist attractions in Litchfield County, Connecticut Tourist attractions in Berkshire County, Massachusetts