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Pittsfield, Massachusetts

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Pittsfield, Massachusetts
Pittsfield City Hall
Pittsfield City Hall
Official seal of Pittsfield, Massachusetts
Seal
Nickname(s): Shire City, Shitsfield
Location in Berkshire County in Massachusetts
Location in Berkshire County in Massachusetts
Coordinates: 42°27′00″N 73°14′45″W / 42.45, -73.24583
Country United States
State Massachusetts
County Berkshire
Settled 1752
Incorporated 1761
Government
 - Type Mayor-council city
 - Mayor James M. Ruberto
Area
 - Total 42.3 sq mi (109.6 km²)
 - Land 40.7 sq mi (105.5 km²)
 - Water 1.6 sq mi (4.1 km²)
Elevation 1,039 ft (317 m)
Population (2000)
 - Total 45,793
 - Density 1,124.3/sq mi (434.1/km²)
Time zone Eastern (UTC-5)
 - Summer (DST) Eastern (UTC-4)
ZIP code 01201
Area code(s) 413
FIPS code 25-53960
GNIS feature ID 0607643
Website: www.pittsfield-ma.org

Pittsfield is the largest city in 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 (01202 and 01203 are Zip Codes for Pittsfield P.O. Boxes). The population was 45,793 at the 2000 census and remains relatively stable. It is the county seat of Berkshire County[1], and it continues to be one of the population centers of Western Massachusetts, although the population has declined in recent decades.

In 2006, Forbes ranked Pittsfield as #61 in its list of Best Small Places for Business.[2] In 2005, Farmers Insurance ranked Pittsfield 20th in the United States as Most Secure Place To Live (Small Towns fewer than 150,000 residents).[citation needed]

Contents

[edit] History

Pittsfield was first settled in 1752 and was officially incorporated in 1761. Royal Governor, Sir Francis Bernard named Pittsfield after British nobleman and politician William Pitt.

A group of young men came and began to clear the land in 1743, but threats of Indian raids associated with the conflict of the French and Indian War soon forced them to leave, and the land remained unoccupied by whites for several more years. Finally in 1752, settlers, many from Westfield, Massachusetts, arrived and a village began to grow, which was incorporated as Pontoosuck Plantation in 1753. By 1761 there were 200 residents and the plantation became the Township of Pittsfield.

By the end of the revolutionary war, Pittsfield had expanded to nearly 2,000 residents. While primarily 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 would dominate the community’s employment opportunities for almost a century.

The town was a bustling metropolis by the late 19th century. In 1891, the City of Pittsfield was incorporated, and William Stanley, who had recently relocated his Electric Manufacturing Company to Pittsfield from Great Barrington, produced the first electric transformer. Stanley’s enterprise was the forerunner of the internationally known corporate giant, General Electric. Thanks to the success of GE, Pittsfield’s population in 1930 had grown to more than 50,000. While GE Advanced Materials (now owned by SABIC-Innovative Plastics) continues to be one of the City’s largest employers, a workforce that once topped 13,000 was reduced to less than 700 with the demise and/or relocation of the transformer and aerospace portions of the General Electric empire.

[edit] 1902 Presidential Visit

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 engineer, 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.

[edit] Baseball in Pittsfield

In 2004, historian John Thorn discovered a reference to a 1791 by-law prohibiting anyone from playing "baseball" within 80 yards (73 m) of the new meeting house in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. A librarian found the actual by-law 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 city has "reprinted" the by-Law with auxiliary documents.[3]

The so-called Broken Window By-Law is the earliest known reference to "baseball" in North America. A finding that baseball was invented in 1839 by Abner Doubleday in Cooperstown provided the rationale for baseball centennial celebrations in 1939, including the opening of a National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in that city. But few historians ever believed it and even the Hall's vice president, Jeff Idelson, has stated that "Baseball wasn't really born anywhere."

Professional baseball was played in Pittsfield's Wahconah Park from 1919 through 2003. 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.

Since 2005, Wahconah Park has been the home stadium of the Pittsfield Dukes, a summer collegiate amateur team of the New England Collegiate Baseball League owned by Dan Duquette, former Boston Red Sox general manager. The Dukes have attracted consistently larger crowds to Wahconah Park each summer.

Ulysses Frank Grant, born August 1, 1865 in Pittsfield, MA (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. He is widely considered to have been the greatest African-American player of the 19th century.

Arienti, Stephen 'Nails McGee,' born July 4, 1880, died December 24, 1945. A Major League Baseball player. He made his major league debut for the Brooklyn Superbas on May 15, 1900, and hit a home run in his first at bat. Nails McGee was known for his temper, and developed a reputation as being one of baseball's first hot heads. This resulted in his being hit with several bean balls, ultimately leading to a career ending concussion. Arienti died in his hometown of Pittsfield Mass, in 1945, and is buried in St. Joseph's cemetery.

Ferry, Alfred Joseph 'Cy', born September 27, 1878 , died September 27, 1938. A Major League Baseball Player. He made his major league debut on May 12, 1904, and played his final game on August 4, 1905. Ferry played for the Detroit Tigers in 1904, and the Cleveland Naps in 1905. He died in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, in 1938, as is buried there.

Ferry, John Francis 'Jack', born April 7, 1887 in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. A Major League Baseball Player. He made his major league debut on September 4, 1910, and played his final game on June 7, 1913. Ferry played for the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1910 to 1913. He died in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, August 29, 1954.

Mark Belanger, Golden Glove shortstop for the Baltimore Orioles, Turk Wendell, relief pitcher for the New York Mets, and Tom Grieve, Outfielder for the Texas Rangers were all from Pittsfield.

[edit] Environmental issues


The year 1999 was a milestone for Pittsfield, when negotiations between EPA, the state, General Electric and the City resulted in a landmark settlement – valued at over $250 million – to clean up Pittsfield and the Housatonic River. The settlement was memorialized in a Consent Decree that was entered in federal court the following year, making it a binding legal agreement.[citation needed] In the years since the settlement was reached, the EPA, state agencies, the City and GE have undertaken one of the largest and most complex cleanups in the country, while meeting the underlying objectives of the settlement: remediation, revitalization, and restoration. Examples of success are in plain view, most notably along the ancient Housatonic River as it winds through Pittsfield.[citation needed] Clean up work is complete on the first previously PCB-laden ½ mile of the Housatonic River, adjacent to the GE facility.[citation needed] Exceptional progress has been made on the 1 ½ Mile Reach between Lyman Street and Fred Garner Park.[citation needed] The EPA has overcome significant engineering hurdles, allowing this $90 million portion of the EPA clean up to be ahead of schedule and likely completed in late 2006.[citation needed] GE has also removed contaminated soil and restored 27 residential properties abutting the river. To date, more than 115,000 cubic yards (88,000 m3) of PCB-contaminated sediment, bank, and floodplain soil have been removed from the river and from people's yards.[citation needed]

[edit] Geography

Berry Pond

Pittsfield is located at 42°27′8″N, 73°15′6″W (42.452184, -73.251530).[4]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 42.3 square miles (109.6 km²), of which, 40.7 square miles (105.5 km²) of it is land and 1.6 square miles (4.1 km²) of it (3.76%) is 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 located 48 miles (77 km) northwest of Springfield and 135 miles (217 km) west of Boston.

Most of the population occupies roughly one quarter of the city's land. Pittsfield lies at the fork of the east and west branches of the Housatonic River, which heads southward from the city towards Long Island Sound. The eastern branch leads down from the hills, while the western branch is fed from Onota Lake and Pontoosuc Lake (which is on the Lanesborough town line). Like much of western Berkshire County, the city lies between the Berkshire Hills to the east, and the Taconic Range to the west. To the west of the city also lies Pittsfield State Forest, a 65-acre (260,000 m2) park with hiking and cross-country skiing trails, camping, picnic areas, and a swimming beach. Sections of the Housatonic Valley Wildlife Management Area also dot the banks of the river.

Pittsfield is located at the crossroads of U.S. Route 7 and U.S. Route 20 which join together in the city. Route 8 passes through the northeast corner of town, with a portion of it combined with Route 9, the central east-west road through the western part of the state, whose western terminus is in the city at Route 7. Route 41 also begins in the southwest corner of town, heading south from Route 20. The nearest interstate, Interstate 90 (the Massachusetts Turnpike) is located 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 (BRTA), 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.

The FBO located at Pittsfield Municipal Airport offers access to the region via private and chartered aircraft ranging from single engine piston to multi-engine jet. They also offer scenic rides and flight training. The nearest airport with national service is Albany International Airport.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census[5] 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 people per square mile (434.1/km²), making it the most densely populated community in county and 92nd overall in the Commonwealth. There were 21,366 housing units at an average density of 524.6/sq mi (202.5/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 92.58% White, 3.66% African American, 0.14% Native American, 1.16% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.77% from other races, and 1.64% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.04% of the population.

There were 19,704 households out 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 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 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.

[edit] Population trends

A historic Pittsfield home
1900 21,766
1910 32,121
1920 42,751
1930 49,677
1940 49,684
1950 53,348
1960 57,879
1970 57,020
1980 51,974
1990 48,622
2000 45,793
2002 45,023 (estimate)
2010 42,199 (estimate)
2020 39,115 (estimate)

Sources: Massachusetts Institute for Social and Economic Research and U.S. Census Bureau, Population Division

[edit] Government

Pittsfield employs the mayor-council form of government. Their current mayor is James M. Ruberto, who was elected in 2003. The city is fully functioning, with all the major public services, including Berkshire Medical Center 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 as such has many state facilities for the county.

On the state level, Pittsfield has three representatives to the Massachusetts House of Representatives: the Second Berkshire, which serves most of central Berkshire County as well as portions of Hampshire County and Franklin County; the Third Berkshire, which covers most of the city proper; and the Fourth Berkshire, which covers southern Berkshire County as well as Chester, Blandford and Tolland in Hampden County. In the Massachusetts Senate, the city is represented by the Berkshire, Hampshire and Franklin district, which includes all of Berkshire County and western Hampshire and Franklin Counties.[6] The city is patrolled by the Fourth (Cheshire) Station of Barracks "B" of the Massachusetts State Police.[7]

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 John Olver of Amherst since June 1991. Massachusetts is represented in the United States Senate by senior Senator Ted Kennedy and junior Senator John Kerry.

[edit] Education

Pittsfield operates a public school system which currently has over 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), and two high schools (Pittsfield High School and Taconic High School). The high schools both offer internal vocational programs. Students also come to the high schools from neighboring Richmond. Additionally, there are two parochial schools (Saint Mark's for elementary and middle school students, and St. Joseph Central High School for high school students) and one private school, Miss Hall's School, as well as an alternative school.

Pittsfield is the home to the main campus of Berkshire Community College. The nearest state colleges are Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts in North Adams and Westfield State College, and the nearest state university is the University of Massachusetts Amherst. The nearest private colleges are Williams College in Williamstown and Bard College at Simon's Rock in Great Barrington.

[edit] Points of interest

Wahconah Park

[edit] Culture

Pittsfield is the geographic and commercial hub of the culturally-rich Berkshires -- home countless world-renowned institutions like Tanglewood, the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra.

Downtown Pittsfield is home to The Berkshire Museum, Barrington Stage Company, Berkshire Athenaeum, Wahconah Park and Hebert Arboretum. In recent years, the city has undergone a transformation downtown with significant investment in the downtown, including new restaurants, condominium and other residential developments and cultural attractions. 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 and has been described as the "one of the finest acoustical theaters in the world."

Barrington Stage Company, the Tony Award-winning producer of "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 renowned head of its Musical Theatre Lab, William Finn, told the Boston Globe that he is determined to make Pittsfield the "epicenter of the musical theater universe."

The Berkshire Museum, the oldest and most diverse museum in the Berkshires, recently underwent a multi-million dollar renovation that incorporated a state-of-the-art air control system that will allow it to attract world-class exhibits, which will make the institution an even greater draw.

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

Several small multi-generational farms can still be found in Pittsfield, though suburban sprawl and land development have recently claimed some of this land.

[edit] Recreation

Pittsfield has several country clubs, including the Pontoosuc Lake Country Club. Pittsfield is also home to the Berkshire Rowing and Sculling Society, located on Onota Lake.

Pittsfield is home to Canoe Meadows Wildlife Sanctuary, 264 acres (1.1 km²) 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.

The Berkshire Bike Path Council is presently working with the City of Pittsfield and local residents to extend the Ashuwillticook Rail Trail, a popular 10.8 mile (17.6 km) paved trail located just North of Pittsfield through Pittsfield to Great Barrington, south of Pittsfield and Lenox.

[edit] Media

[edit] Newspaper

  • The Berkshire Eagle, the main daily newspaper for the Pittsfield area
  • The Pittsfield Gazette, a weekly newspaper devoted to local news, viewpoints, investigative journalism, and city politics

[edit] Television

Pittsfield is located in the Albany television market and is the community of license for two stations in that market, My Network TV affiliate WNYA, and a low power TV station, W28DA, which rebroadcasts WNYT on channel 13 from a location on South Mountain in the city. Springfield stations also serve the market with three (WWLP-NBC, WSHM-LP-CBS, WGBY-PBS) on cable. WGGB 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 (ABC).

Cable television subscribers of TimeWarner Cable in the City of Pittsfield receive Public, Education and Government access channels (PEG Access), provided by Pittsfield Community Television (PCTV), on channels 16, 17 and 18:

  • Access Pittsfield, channel 16, Public Access
  • Pittsfield ETV, channel 17, Education Access
  • Citylink, channel 18, Government Access

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 at www.pittsfieldtv.org.

[edit] Radio

Pittsfield is home to (or obtains strong signals from) the following radio stations:

Signals from Albany, New York and Springfield, Massachusetts also reach Pittsfield as well as some signals from Hartford, Connecticut and even Boston depending on location.

One of Pittsfield's oldest radio stations, WBEC-FM 105.5 was sold and relocated to Mount Tom in Holyoke, Massachusetts, where it became a Springfield, Massachusetts radio station (Technically licensed to Easthampton). It relays of WEEI. The move changed over two decades of programming on the Pittsfield dial which moved WBEC-FM as a TOP40 station on 105.5 down to 95.9, WUPE (as oldies) up to 100.1 in North Adams, replacing the Beautiful/EZ format on 100.1 known as WMNB. Recently WBEC 95.9 changed from a HOT AC to an Adult Contemporary format, which was on 95.9 prior to the changes, as "Lite 95.9 WUPE", a mostly satellite driven format.

[edit] Business

Pittsfield is home to several businesses, including:

  • SABIC-Innovative Plastics (formerly known as General Electric (Plastics/Advanced Materials Division))
  • KB Toys - World Headquarters
  • Chemex Corporation
  • General Systems
  • Laurin Publishing, publisher of an international photonics-industry directory, as well as several related periodicals.
  • Thaddeus Clapp House, a historic bed and breakfast inn.
  • General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems
  • Interprint Incorporated
  • New England Acupuncture and Herb Clinic
  • WorkshopLive, an online music education company specializing in guitar, bass, and keyboard lessons.
  • The Moscow Ballet, national touring dance company and producer of the Great Russian Nutcracker.

[edit] Notable residents

[edit] Sister cities

Pittsfield has four sister cities, as designated by Sister Cities International:

[edit] References

  1. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
  2. ^ Pittsfield MA, Best Small Places For Business 2006 - Forbes.com
  3. ^ City Of Pittsfield: Baseball
  4. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990". United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
  5. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
  6. ^ Senators and Representatives by City and Town
  7. ^ Station B-4, SP Cheshire
  8. ^ a b (1967) Who Was Who in America, Historical Volume, 1607-1896. Marquis Who's Who. 
  9. ^ NASA Technical Reports Server
  10. ^ spaceflight.nasa.gov/history/shuttle-mir/people/oral-histories/kitmacher.pdf
  11. ^ www.apogeespacebooks.com/Author_Bios/gary_kitmacher.html
  12. ^ "Herman Melville's Arrowhead". The Berkshire Historical Society. Retrieved on 2006-07-06.

[edit] External links

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