Great Barrington, Massachusetts
Encyclopedia
Great Barrington is a town
in Berkshire County
, Massachusetts
, United States
. It is part of the Pittsfield
, Massachusetts
Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 7,104 at the 2010 census. Both a summer resort and home to Ski Butternut
, Great Barrington includes the villages of Van Deusenville and Housatonic
. It is also the birthplace of W. E. B. Du Bois.
Indians
called the area Mahaiwe, meaning "the place downstream." It lay on the New England
Path, which connected Fort Orange near Albany
, New York
with Springfield
and then Massachusetts Bay
. The village was first settled in 1726, and from 1742–1761 was the north parish
of Sheffield
. In 1761, it was officially incorporated as Great Barrington, named after the village of Great Barrington in Gloucestershire
, England
.
In the summer of 1774, 1,500 men shut down the Berkshire County Court in response to British oppression.
In the winter of 1776 Henry Knox
passed through Great Barrington while transporting the cannon
from Fort Ticonderoga
to the Siege of Boston
which established an agricultural interest in the area of Great Barrington.
With the arrival of the railroad, Great Barrington developed into a Gilded Age
resort community for those seeking relief from the heat and pollution of cities, although it is now considered a small city in itself. Wealthy families built grand homes called Berkshire Cottages here, as others would in Lenox
and Stockbridge
. Among the earliest estates was that built by New York City
banker, industrialist and art patron David Leavitt
, who built an elaborate 300 acres (1.2 km²) estate, and was soon followed by those of his sons nearby. Leavitt was instrumental in the development of the local Housatonic Railroad
, serving as its president.
Other later estates included Searles Castle
, commissioned in 1888 by the widow of Mark Hopkins
together with her second husband, Edward Francis Searles
, and Brookside, built for William Hall Walker. In 1895, Colonel William L. Brown, part owner of the New York Daily News
, presented Great Barrington with a statue of a newsboy, now a landmark on the western edge of town.
In March 1886, the water mill at Great Barrington was the site of an experiment that first used water to drive an alternating current
generator. A transformer was used to increase the voltage
and the current was transmitted over a mile away to the nearest town to power street lights.
The town was the site of an F4
tornado around 7:00 PM on Memorial Day
, May 29, 1995. The tornado killed three people and caused damage in the area.
Arlo Guthrie's
"Alice's Restaurant
," which runs for 18½ minutes, is based on true-life events that occurred in Great Barrington and the adjoining towns of Stockbridge
and Lee
., which is at the Old Trinity Church and was the home of Ray and Alice Brock at the time of the incidents related in the song, is at 4 Van Deusenville Road in Great Barrington.
Great Barrington offers the use of its own local currency
, called BerkShare
notes. There are about 844,000 BerkShare notes in circulation worth about $801,800 at the current exchange rate of one BerkShare to 95 U.S. cents, according to program organizers. The paper money is available in denominations of one, five, ten, twenty, and fifty.
Great Barrington today is a vibrant small town acting as the hub for "South County". The Town and its surrounds support not only a vibrant year round population but second home owners in the surrounding communities. GB as it is known is home to over 55 restaurants catering to a wide spectrum. The recently renovated Mahaiwe Theater has become a center for year round music and cultural events.
The Town celebrated its 250th anniversary with a large parade on July 10th, 2011. Other events celebrating the 250th anniversary were held throughout the year as well.
, the town has a total area of 45.7 square miles (118.4 km²), of which, 45.2 square miles (117.0 km²) of it is land and 0.5 square miles (1.3 km²) of it (1.12%) is water. Great Barrington is bordered by West Stockbridge
, Stockbridge
and Lee
to the north, Tyringham
to the northeast, Monterey
to the east, New Marlborough
to the southeast, Sheffield
to the south, Egremont
to the southwest, and Alford
to the northwest. The town is located 20 miles (32.2 km) south of Pittsfield
, 46 miles (74 km) west of Springfield
, and 135 miles (217.3 km) west of Boston.
Great Barrington is located within the valley of the Housatonic River
, and is also served by the Williams River, Green River and several brooks. To the east of the river, several mountains of the Berkshires rise, including East Mountain (site of Butternut Basin and a state forest), Beartown Mountain (and the majority of Beartown State Forest) and Monument Mountain. The Appalachian Trail
crosses through East Mountain State Forest in the southwest corner of town. The southwest corner of town is also the site of several country clubs and a fairgrounds.
U.S. Route 7
passes through the center of town, and was once part of New England Interstate Route 4 (also known as the New York-Berkshire-Burlington Way). Route 23 also passes from west to east through town, combining with Route 41 and Route 7 in the western part of town and Route 183 in the eastern part of town, which also follows part of the path of Route 7 northward from Route 23 before splitting towards the village of Housatonic. Great Barrington is located approximately twelve miles south of Exit 2 of Interstate 90
(also known as the Massachusetts Turnpike
), the nearest interstate highway.
Great Barrington is equidistant to New York City
and Boston
, although it is not the halfway point on the highways between those two cities.
, Massachusetts
As of the census
of 2000, there were 7,527 people, 3,008 households, and 1,825 families residing in the town. By population, the town ranks fifth out of the 32 cities and towns in Berkshire County, and 202nd out of 351 cities and towns in Massachusetts. The population density
was 166.6 people per square mile (64.3/km²), ranking it eighth in the county and 268th in the Commonwealth. There were 3,352 housing units at an average density of 74.2 per square mile (28.6/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 94.74% White, 2.09% Black or African American
, 0.16% Native American, 1.25% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.70% from other races
, and 1.04% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.07% of the population. 17% were of Irish
descent, 12% Italian
, 11% German
, 10% English
and 9% Polish
.
There were 3,008 households out of which 27.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.8% were married couples
living together, 11.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.3% were non-families. 32.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.28 and the average family size was 2.89.
In the town the population was spread out with 22.6% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 23.5% from 25 to 44, 26.2% from 45 to 64, and 18.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 87.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.8 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $45,490, and the median income for a family was $53,135. Males had a median income of $38,163 versus $29,474 for females. The per capita income
for the town was $22,655. About 3.4% of families and 7.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.6% of those under age 18 and 4.5% of those age 65 or over.
form of government, and is led by a board of selectmen
and a town manager. Great Barrington has its own public services, including police, fire and public works departments. The town has two libraries, with the main branch, Mason Library, located at 231 Main Street in Great Barrington, and a branch library, Ramsdell Library, located at 1087 Main Street in the village of Housatonic. Both are part of the regional library network. The town is also home to Southern Berkshire District Court, as well as Fairview Hospital, the largest hospital in the southern end of the county (Based on the number of beds).
On the state level, Great Barrington is represented in the Massachusetts House of Representatives
by the Fourth Berkshire district, which covers southern Berkshire County, as well as the westernmost towns in Hampden County. In the Massachusetts Senate
, the town is represented by the Berkshire, Hampshire and Franklin district, which includes all of Berkshire County and western Hampshire and Franklin Counties. The town is patrolled by the First (Lee) Station of Barracks "B" of the Massachusetts State Police
.
On the national level, Great Barrington is represented in the United States House of Representatives
as part of Massachusetts's 1st congressional district
, and has been represented by John Olver
of Amherst
since June 1991.
; proponents say that the currency gets residents to shop at local stores. Local areas may have their own currencies as long as they do not resemble the United States dollar
and are in paper only.
School, the Great Barrington Waldorf High School, and the John Dewey Academy
.
Great Barrington is home to Bard College at Simon's Rock, a private college, and the South County Center of the Berkshire Community College
. The nearest state university is Westfield State University.
Great Barrington also plays host to the American Institute for Economic Research
. AIER was founded in 1933 as non-profit scientific and educational organization. Originally located at MIT, it relocated to the southern shore of Great Barrington's Long Pond
in 1946.
and Greyhound Bus Lines have stops in Great Barrington for long-range bus transportation. The town lies along the Housatonic Railroad
line, which roughly follows Route 7 and the river through southern New England.
is located in Great Barrington, and features a full service FBO
for General Aviation
aircraft. The nearest international airports are Bradley International Airport
in Windsor Locks, CT, and Albany International Airport
in Albany, NY.
The town also gets newspaper delivery from The Berkshire Eagle
.
There used to be a second newspaper, The Berkshire Courier, which has since gone out of print but the masthead of the Berkshire Courier was incorporated by the Berkshire Record in 1995.
Great Barrington has a few local radio stations.
Great Barrington is in the Albany
, New York
television market with three Springfield TV stations appearing on the cable lineup,
WWLP
(NBC 22), WGBY (PBS 57), WSHM-LP
(CBS 67). The town is served by Time Warner
cable out of Lee.
New England town
The New England town is the basic unit of local government in each of the six New England states. Without a direct counterpart in most other U.S. states, New England towns are conceptually similar to civil townships in other states, but are incorporated, possessing powers like cities in other...
in Berkshire County
Berkshire County, Massachusetts
Berkshire County is a non-governmental county located on the western edge of the U.S. state of Massachusetts. As of the 2010 census, the population was 131,219. Its largest city and traditional county seat is Pittsfield...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is part of the Pittsfield
Pittsfield, Massachusetts
Pittsfield is the largest city and the county seat of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the principal city of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Berkshire County. Its area code is 413. Its ZIP code is 01201...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 7,104 at the 2010 census. Both a summer resort and home to Ski Butternut
Ski Butternut
Ski Butternut is a ski resort in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, located on Warner Mountain in The Berkshires.The ski area was first opened by the New Haven Railroad as Warner Mountain Ski Area in the 1936-37 ski season...
, Great Barrington includes the villages of Van Deusenville and Housatonic
Housatonic, Massachusetts
Housatonic is a village and census-designated place in the town of Great Barrington in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,335 at the 2000 census....
. It is also the birthplace of W. E. B. Du Bois.
History
The MahicanMahican
The Mahican are an Eastern Algonquian Native American tribe, originally settling in the Hudson River Valley . After 1680, many moved to Stockbridge, Massachusetts. During the early 1820s and 1830s, most of the Mahican descendants migrated westward to northeastern Wisconsin...
Indians
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
called the area Mahaiwe, meaning "the place downstream." It lay on the New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
Path, which connected Fort Orange near Albany
Albany, New York
Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
with Springfield
Springfield, Massachusetts
Springfield is the most populous city in Western New England, and the seat of Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers; the western Westfield River, the eastern Chicopee River, and the eastern...
and then Massachusetts Bay
Massachusetts Bay
The Massachusetts Bay, also called Mass Bay, is one of the largest bays of the Atlantic Ocean which forms the distinctive shape of the coastline of the U.S. state of Massachusetts. Its waters extend 65 miles into the Atlantic Ocean. Massachusetts Bay includes the Boston Harbor, Dorchester Bay,...
. The village was first settled in 1726, and from 1742–1761 was the north parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
of Sheffield
Sheffield, Massachusetts
Not to be confused with the city of Sheffield in the UK, or Sheffield, Vermont.Sheffield is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 3,257 at the 2010 census. Sheffield is home to...
. In 1761, it was officially incorporated as Great Barrington, named after the village of Great Barrington in Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean....
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
In the summer of 1774, 1,500 men shut down the Berkshire County Court in response to British oppression.
In the winter of 1776 Henry Knox
Henry Knox
Henry Knox was a military officer of the Continental Army and later the United States Army, and also served as the first United States Secretary of War....
passed through Great Barrington while transporting the cannon
Noble train of artillery
The noble train of artillery, also known as the Knox Expedition, was an expedition led by Continental Army Colonel Henry Knox to transport heavy weaponry that had been captured at Fort Ticonderoga to the Continental Army camps outside Boston, Massachusetts during the winter of 1775–1776.Knox went...
from Fort Ticonderoga
Fort Ticonderoga
Fort Ticonderoga, formerly Fort Carillon, is a large 18th-century fort built by the Canadians and the French at a narrows near the south end of Lake Champlain in upstate New York in the United States...
to the Siege of Boston
Siege of Boston
The Siege of Boston was the opening phase of the American Revolutionary War, in which New England militiamen—who later became part of the Continental Army—surrounded the town of Boston, Massachusetts, to prevent movement by the British Army garrisoned within...
which established an agricultural interest in the area of Great Barrington.
With the arrival of the railroad, Great Barrington developed into a Gilded Age
Gilded Age
In United States history, the Gilded Age refers to the era of rapid economic and population growth in the United States during the post–Civil War and post-Reconstruction eras of the late 19th century. The term "Gilded Age" was coined by Mark Twain and Charles Dudley Warner in their book The Gilded...
resort community for those seeking relief from the heat and pollution of cities, although it is now considered a small city in itself. Wealthy families built grand homes called Berkshire Cottages here, as others would in Lenox
Lenox, Massachusetts
Lenox is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. Set in Western Massachusetts, it is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 5,077 at the 2000 census. Where the town has a border with Stockbridge is the site of Tanglewood, summer...
and Stockbridge
Stockbridge, Massachusetts
Stockbridge is a town in Berkshire County in Western Massachusetts. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,947 at the 2010 census...
. Among the earliest estates was that built by New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
banker, industrialist and art patron David Leavitt
David Leavitt (banker)
David Leavitt was an early New York City banker and financier. As president of the American Exchange Bank of New York during the Financial Panic of 1837 he represented bondholders of the nascent Illinois and Michigan Canal, allowing completion of the historic canal linking the Midwest with the...
, who built an elaborate 300 acres (1.2 km²) estate, and was soon followed by those of his sons nearby. Leavitt was instrumental in the development of the local Housatonic Railroad
Housatonic Railroad
The Housatonic Railroad is a Class III railroad operating in southwestern New England. It was chartered in 1983 to operate a short section of ex-New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad in northwestern Connecticut, and has since expanded north and south, as well as west into New York State.The...
, serving as its president.
Other later estates included Searles Castle
Searles Castle (Massachusetts)
The Searles Castle is a romantically imagined castle-style house in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. Built in the 1880s, and in the French chateau-style, it has seven stories and includes a "dungeon" basement. There are 40 rooms containing over of floor space, as well as 36 fireplaces.It was...
, commissioned in 1888 by the widow of Mark Hopkins
Mark Hopkins
Mark Hopkins was one of four principal investors who formed the Central Pacific Railroad along with Leland Stanford, Charles Crocker, and Collis Huntington in 1861.-Early years:...
together with her second husband, Edward Francis Searles
Edward Francis Searles
Edward Francis Searles was an interior and architectural designer.-Biography:Searles was born on July 4, 1841, in Methuen, Massachusetts, USA to Jesse Gould Searles and Sarah Searles...
, and Brookside, built for William Hall Walker. In 1895, Colonel William L. Brown, part owner of the New York Daily News
New York Daily News
The Daily News of New York City is the fourth most widely circulated daily newspaper in the United States with a daily circulation of 605,677, as of November 1, 2011....
, presented Great Barrington with a statue of a newsboy, now a landmark on the western edge of town.
In March 1886, the water mill at Great Barrington was the site of an experiment that first used water to drive an alternating current
Alternating current
In alternating current the movement of electric charge periodically reverses direction. In direct current , the flow of electric charge is only in one direction....
generator. A transformer was used to increase the voltage
Voltage
Voltage, otherwise known as electrical potential difference or electric tension is the difference in electric potential between two points — or the difference in electric potential energy per unit charge between two points...
and the current was transmitted over a mile away to the nearest town to power street lights.
The town was the site of an F4
Fujita scale
The Fujita scale , or Fujita-Pearson scale, is a scale for rating tornado intensity, based primarily on the damage tornadoes inflict on human-built structures and vegetation...
tornado around 7:00 PM on Memorial Day
Memorial Day
Memorial Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the last Monday of May. Formerly known as Decoration Day, it originated after the American Civil War to commemorate the fallen Union soldiers of the Civil War...
, May 29, 1995. The tornado killed three people and caused damage in the area.
Arlo Guthrie's
Arlo Guthrie
Arlo Davy Guthrie is an American folk singer. Like his father, Woody Guthrie, Arlo often sings songs of protest against social injustice...
"Alice's Restaurant
Alice's Restaurant
"Alice's Restaurant Massacree" is a musical monologue by singer-songwriter Arlo Guthrie released on his 1967 album Alice's Restaurant. The song is one of Guthrie's most prominent works, based on a true incident in his life that began on Thanksgiving Day 1965, and which inspired a 1969 movie of the...
," which runs for 18½ minutes, is based on true-life events that occurred in Great Barrington and the adjoining towns of Stockbridge
Stockbridge, Massachusetts
Stockbridge is a town in Berkshire County in Western Massachusetts. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,947 at the 2010 census...
and Lee
Lee, Massachusetts
Lee is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts, metropolitan statistical area. The population was 5,943 which was determined in the 2010 census. Lee, which includes the villages of South and East Lee, is part of the Berkshires resort...
., which is at the Old Trinity Church and was the home of Ray and Alice Brock at the time of the incidents related in the song, is at 4 Van Deusenville Road in Great Barrington.
Great Barrington offers the use of its own local currency
Local currency
In economics, a local currency, in its common usage, is a currency not backed by a national government , and intended to trade only in a small area. As a tool of fiscal localism, local moneys can raise awareness of the state of the local economy, especially among those who may be unfamiliar or...
, called BerkShare
BerkShares
BerkShares is a local currency that circulates in The Berkshires region of Massachusetts. It was launched September 29, 2006 by BerkShares Inc., with research and development assistance from the New Economics Institute. The BerkShares website lists over 370 businesses in Berkshire County that...
notes. There are about 844,000 BerkShare notes in circulation worth about $801,800 at the current exchange rate of one BerkShare to 95 U.S. cents, according to program organizers. The paper money is available in denominations of one, five, ten, twenty, and fifty.
Great Barrington today is a vibrant small town acting as the hub for "South County". The Town and its surrounds support not only a vibrant year round population but second home owners in the surrounding communities. GB as it is known is home to over 55 restaurants catering to a wide spectrum. The recently renovated Mahaiwe Theater has become a center for year round music and cultural events.
The Town celebrated its 250th anniversary with a large parade on July 10th, 2011. Other events celebrating the 250th anniversary were held throughout the year as well.
Geography
According to the United States Census BureauUnited States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the town has a total area of 45.7 square miles (118.4 km²), of which, 45.2 square miles (117.0 km²) of it is land and 0.5 square miles (1.3 km²) of it (1.12%) is water. Great Barrington is bordered by West Stockbridge
West Stockbridge, Massachusetts
West Stockbridge is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,416 at the 2000 census.- History :...
, Stockbridge
Stockbridge, Massachusetts
Stockbridge is a town in Berkshire County in Western Massachusetts. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,947 at the 2010 census...
and Lee
Lee, Massachusetts
Lee is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts, metropolitan statistical area. The population was 5,943 which was determined in the 2010 census. Lee, which includes the villages of South and East Lee, is part of the Berkshires resort...
to the north, Tyringham
Tyringham, Massachusetts
Tyringham is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 327 at the 2010 census.- History :...
to the northeast, Monterey
Monterey, Massachusetts
Monterey is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 934 at the 2000 census.- History :...
to the east, New Marlborough
New Marlborough, Massachusetts
New Marlborough is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,494 at the 2000 census...
to the southeast, Sheffield
Sheffield, Massachusetts
Not to be confused with the city of Sheffield in the UK, or Sheffield, Vermont.Sheffield is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 3,257 at the 2010 census. Sheffield is home to...
to the south, Egremont
Egremont, Massachusetts
Egremont is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,225 at the 2010 census. Egremont consists of two villages, North Egremont and South Egremont....
to the southwest, and Alford
Alford, Massachusetts
Alford is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 494 at the 2010 census.- History :...
to the northwest. The town is located 20 miles (32.2 km) south of Pittsfield
Pittsfield, Massachusetts
Pittsfield is the largest city and the county seat of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the principal city of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Berkshire County. Its area code is 413. Its ZIP code is 01201...
, 46 miles (74 km) west of Springfield
Springfield, Massachusetts
Springfield is the most populous city in Western New England, and the seat of Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers; the western Westfield River, the eastern Chicopee River, and the eastern...
, and 135 miles (217.3 km) west of Boston.
Great Barrington is located within the valley of the Housatonic River
Housatonic River
The Housatonic River is a river, approximately long, in western Massachusetts and western Connecticut in the United States. It flows south to southeast, and drains about of southwestern New England into Long Island Sound...
, and is also served by the Williams River, Green River and several brooks. To the east of the river, several mountains of the Berkshires rise, including East Mountain (site of Butternut Basin and a state forest), Beartown Mountain (and the majority of Beartown State Forest) and Monument Mountain. The Appalachian Trail
Appalachian Trail
The Appalachian National Scenic Trail, generally known as the Appalachian Trail or simply the AT, is a marked hiking trail in the eastern United States extending between Springer Mountain in Georgia and Mount Katahdin in Maine. It is approximately long...
crosses through East Mountain State Forest in the southwest corner of town. The southwest corner of town is also the site of several country clubs and a fairgrounds.
U.S. Route 7
U.S. Route 7
U.S. Route 7 is a north–south United States highway in western New England that runs for from Norwalk, Connecticut, to Highgate, Vermont. The highway's southern terminus is at Interstate 95 in Norwalk, Connecticut...
passes through the center of town, and was once part of New England Interstate Route 4 (also known as the New York-Berkshire-Burlington Way). Route 23 also passes from west to east through town, combining with Route 41 and Route 7 in the western part of town and Route 183 in the eastern part of town, which also follows part of the path of Route 7 northward from Route 23 before splitting towards the village of Housatonic. Great Barrington is located approximately twelve miles south of Exit 2 of Interstate 90
Interstate 90
Interstate 90 is the longest Interstate Highway in the United States at . It is the northernmost coast-to-coast interstate, and parallels US 20 for the most part. Its western terminus is in Seattle, at Edgar Martinez Drive S. near Safeco Field and CenturyLink Field, and its eastern terminus is in...
(also known as the Massachusetts Turnpike
Massachusetts Turnpike
The Massachusetts Turnpike is the easternmost stretch of Interstate 90. The Turnpike begins at the western border of Massachusetts in West Stockbridge connecting with the Berkshire Connector portion of the New York State Thruway...
), the nearest interstate highway.
Great Barrington is equidistant to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, although it is not the halfway point on the highways between those two cities.
Demographics
See also: Great Barrington (CDP)Great Barrington (CDP), Massachusetts
Great Barrington is a census-designated place located in the town of Great Barrington in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 2,459 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Great Barrington is located at ....
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
As of the census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 7,527 people, 3,008 households, and 1,825 families residing in the town. By population, the town ranks fifth out of the 32 cities and towns in Berkshire County, and 202nd out of 351 cities and towns in Massachusetts. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 166.6 people per square mile (64.3/km²), ranking it eighth in the county and 268th in the Commonwealth. There were 3,352 housing units at an average density of 74.2 per square mile (28.6/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 94.74% White, 2.09% Black or African American
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, 0.16% Native American, 1.25% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.70% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 1.04% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.07% of the population. 17% were of Irish
Irish American
Irish Americans are citizens of the United States who can trace their ancestry to Ireland. A total of 36,278,332 Americans—estimated at 11.9% of the total population—reported Irish ancestry in the 2008 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau...
descent, 12% Italian
Italian American
An Italian American , is an American of Italian ancestry. The designation may also refer to someone possessing Italian and American dual citizenship...
, 11% German
German American
German Americans are citizens of the United States of German ancestry and comprise about 51 million people, or 17% of the U.S. population, the country's largest self-reported ancestral group...
, 10% English
English American
English Americans are citizens or residents of the United States whose ancestry originates wholly or partly in England....
and 9% Polish
Polish American
A Polish American , is a citizen of the United States of Polish descent. There are an estimated 10 million Polish Americans, representing about 3.2% of the population of the United States...
.
There were 3,008 households out of which 27.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.8% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 11.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.3% were non-families. 32.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.28 and the average family size was 2.89.
In the town the population was spread out with 22.6% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 23.5% from 25 to 44, 26.2% from 45 to 64, and 18.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 87.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.8 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $45,490, and the median income for a family was $53,135. Males had a median income of $38,163 versus $29,474 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the town was $22,655. About 3.4% of families and 7.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.6% of those under age 18 and 4.5% of those age 65 or over.
Government
Great Barrington employs the open town meetingOpen town meeting
An open town meeting is a form of town meeting in which all registered voters of a town may vote . This form of government is typical of smaller municipalities in the New England region of the United States....
form of government, and is led by a board of selectmen
Board of selectmen
The board of selectmen is commonly the executive arm of the government of New England towns in the United States. The board typically consists of three or five members, with or without staggered terms.-History:...
and a town manager. Great Barrington has its own public services, including police, fire and public works departments. The town has two libraries, with the main branch, Mason Library, located at 231 Main Street in Great Barrington, and a branch library, Ramsdell Library, located at 1087 Main Street in the village of Housatonic. Both are part of the regional library network. The town is also home to Southern Berkshire District Court, as well as Fairview Hospital, the largest hospital in the southern end of the county (Based on the number of beds).
On the state level, Great Barrington is represented in the Massachusetts House of Representatives
Massachusetts House of Representatives
The Massachusetts House of Representatives is the lower house of the Massachusetts General Court, the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. It is composed of 160 members elected from single-member electoral districts across the Commonwealth. Representatives serve two-year terms...
by the Fourth Berkshire district, which covers southern Berkshire County, as well as the westernmost towns in Hampden County. In the Massachusetts Senate
Massachusetts Senate
The Massachusetts Senate is the upper house of the Massachusetts General Court, the bicameral state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The Senate comprises 40 elected members from 40 single-member senatorial districts in the state...
, the town is represented by the Berkshire, Hampshire and Franklin district, which includes all of Berkshire County and western Hampshire and Franklin Counties. The town is patrolled by the First (Lee) Station of Barracks "B" of the Massachusetts State Police
Massachusetts State Police
The Massachusetts State Police is an agency of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts' Executive Office of Public Safety and Security responsible for criminal law enforcement and traffic vehicle regulation across the state...
.
On the national level, Great Barrington is represented in the United States House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
as part of Massachusetts's 1st congressional district
Massachusetts's 1st congressional district
Massachusetts's 1st congressional district is in western and central Massachusetts. The largest Massachusetts district in area, it covers about one-third of the state and is more rural than the rest. It has the state's highest point, Mount Greylock...
, and has been represented by John Olver
John Olver
John Walter Olver is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1991. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Early in his career, he was a chemistry professor and served in both chambers of the Massachusetts General Court....
of Amherst
Amherst, Massachusetts
Amherst is a town in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States in the Connecticut River valley. As of the 2010 census, the population was 37,819, making it the largest community in Hampshire County . The town is home to Amherst College, Hampshire College, and the University of Massachusetts...
since June 1991.
Local currency
The local currency of the region, including Great Barrington, is the BerkSharesBerkShares
BerkShares is a local currency that circulates in The Berkshires region of Massachusetts. It was launched September 29, 2006 by BerkShares Inc., with research and development assistance from the New Economics Institute. The BerkShares website lists over 370 businesses in Berkshire County that...
; proponents say that the currency gets residents to shop at local stores. Local areas may have their own currencies as long as they do not resemble the United States dollar
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
and are in paper only.
Education
Great Barrington is the central town of the Berkshire Hills Regional School District, which includes the towns of Stockbridge and West Stockbridge. All three school levels are located in Great Barrington. Muddy Brook Regional Elementary School offers pre-kindergarten through fourth grade classes and is located off of Route 7 in the northern part of town. Monument Valley Regional Middle School offers grades five through eight and Monument Mountain Regional High School serves the high school students of the district. The school's athletic teams are called the Spartans, and their colors are maroon and white. Students from Otis and Sandisfield also attend the school as part of a tuition agreement for high schools. The town also is home to several private schools, including the Rudolf SteinerRudolf Steiner
Rudolf Joseph Lorenz Steiner was an Austrian philosopher, social reformer, architect, and esotericist. He gained initial recognition as a literary critic and cultural philosopher...
School, the Great Barrington Waldorf High School, and the John Dewey Academy
John Dewey Academy
The John Dewey Academy is a therapeutic college preparatory boarding school in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, housed in Searles Castle.It is coeducational and enrolls about 25 high school students, ages 15 to 21, typically in grades 10 to postgraduate...
.
Great Barrington is home to Bard College at Simon's Rock, a private college, and the South County Center of the Berkshire Community College
Berkshire Community College
Berkshire Community College is a two-year community college in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It offers associate degrees as well as a transfer program for students to earn credits for transfer to other colleges...
. The nearest state university is Westfield State University.
Great Barrington also plays host to the American Institute for Economic Research
American Institute for Economic Research
American Institute for Economic Research , located in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, is one of the oldest economic research organizations in the United States. Founded in 1933, AIER is an independent 501 organization that, according to its website, represents no fund, concentration of wealth, or...
. AIER was founded in 1933 as non-profit scientific and educational organization. Originally located at MIT, it relocated to the southern shore of Great Barrington's Long Pond
Long Pond
-In Massachusetts:* Long Pond , a lake/reservoir/pond within the towns of Lakeville and Freetown* Long Pond , a lake and village in Plymouth*Long Pond...
in 1946.
Ground
Great Barrington is served by the Berkshire Regional Transit Authority, which offers bus transportation throughout Berkshire County. Peter Pan Bus LinesPeter Pan Bus Lines
Peter Pan Bus Lines is a long-distance bus carrier headquartered in Springfield, Massachusetts. It operates in the northeastern United States. Over four million passengers per year travel on Peter Pan's bus routes....
and Greyhound Bus Lines have stops in Great Barrington for long-range bus transportation. The town lies along the Housatonic Railroad
Housatonic Railroad
The Housatonic Railroad is a Class III railroad operating in southwestern New England. It was chartered in 1983 to operate a short section of ex-New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad in northwestern Connecticut, and has since expanded north and south, as well as west into New York State.The...
line, which roughly follows Route 7 and the river through southern New England.
Air
Walter J. Koladza AirportWalter J. Koladza Airport
Walter J. Koladza Airport, , also known as the Great Barrington Airport, is a privately owned airport in Great Barrington, Massachusetts open to the public. It has a single 2,579 ft runway. Walter J...
is located in Great Barrington, and features a full service FBO
FBO
FBO may refer to:* Faith-based organization, an organization with religious motivation.* Family business office, an organization that manages investments and trusts for a single wealthy family.* Film Booking Offices of America, a 1920s American film studio....
for General Aviation
General aviation
General aviation is one of the two categories of civil aviation. It refers to all flights other than military and scheduled airline and regular cargo flights, both private and commercial. General aviation flights range from gliders and powered parachutes to large, non-scheduled cargo jet flights...
aircraft. The nearest international airports are Bradley International Airport
Bradley International Airport
Bradley International Airport is a joint civil-military public airport located in Windsor Locks on the border with East Granby and Suffield, in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. It is owned by the State of Connecticut....
in Windsor Locks, CT, and Albany International Airport
Albany International Airport
Albany International Airport is a public use airport located six nautical miles northwest of the central business district of Albany, in Albany County, New York, United States. It is owned by the Albany County Airport Authority....
in Albany, NY.
Media
Great Barrington is served by a local weekly newspaper, The Berkshire Record, and a weekly shopper, The Shoppers Guide.The town also gets newspaper delivery from The Berkshire Eagle
The Berkshire Eagle
The Berkshire Eagle is a daily newspaper published in Pittsfield, Massachusetts and covering all of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, as well as four New York communities near Pittsfield...
.
There used to be a second newspaper, The Berkshire Courier, which has since gone out of print but the masthead of the Berkshire Courier was incorporated by the Berkshire Record in 1995.
Great Barrington has a few local radio stations.
- WSBS 860 kHz (Full Service)
- W231AK 94.1 MHz (//WSBS Full Service)
- WBCR-LPWBCR-LPWBCR-LP is a low power FM radio station with office and studio located in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, broadcasting on the 97.7 FM frequency...
97.7 MHz (Local Variety) - W254AU 98.7 MHz (//WFCRWFCR- WNNZ :WFCR provides a full-time NPR news/talk programming feed on WNNZ, 640 kHz, licensed to Westfield, Massachusetts, which was owned by Clear Channel Communications. WNNZ's grade B signal reaches into the Capital District of New York State....
NPRNPRNPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
Amherst) - WAMQ 105.1 MHz (//WAMCWAMCWAMC is a public radio network headquartered in Albany, New York. As of April, 2011, the network comprised 11 transmitters and 11 translators. The organization's legal name is "WAMC" and it is also known as "WAMC Public Radio" or "WAMC Northeast Public Radio Network."In addition, the station...
NPRNPRNPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
Albany)
Great Barrington is in the Albany
Albany, New York
Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
television market with three Springfield TV stations appearing on the cable lineup,
WWLP
WWLP
WWLP is the NBC-affiliated television station for the Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts that is licensed to Springfield. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 11 from a transmitter on Provin Mountain in the Feeding Hills section of Agawam. The station can also be seen...
(NBC 22), WGBY (PBS 57), WSHM-LP
WSHM-LP
WSHM-LD is the CBS-affiliated television station for the Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts. Licensed to Springfield, it broadcasts a low-powered high definition digital signal on UHF channel 21 from a transmitter shared with low-powered Retro Television Network affiliate WTXX-LP on Ridge...
(CBS 67). The town is served by Time Warner
Time Warner
Time Warner is one of the world's largest media companies, headquartered in the Time Warner Center in New York City. Formerly two separate companies, Warner Communications, Inc...
cable out of Lee.
Sites of interest
- Aston Magna Festival
- Bard College at Simon's Rock
- First Congregational Church of Great Barrington
- Great Barrington Historical Society & Museum
- Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center
Notable natives
- Phyllis BirkbyPhyllis BirkbyPhyllis Birkby was an American architect, feminist, filmmaker and educator.-Early life and education:Noel Phyllis Birkby was born in Nutley, New Jersey to Harold S. and Alice Green Birkby. As a child she began making drawings of cities and towns, proceeding to build miniature towns in her mother's...
, architect & feminist - John Schroeder, golfer
- W.E.B. Du BoisW.E.B. Du BoisWilliam Edward Burghardt Du Bois was an American sociologist, historian, civil rights activist, Pan-Africanist, author, and editor. Born in Massachusetts, Du Bois attended Harvard, where he was the first African American to earn a doctorate...
, Academic, scholar, activist, journalist, sociologist