West Stockbridge, MA
The Town of West Stockbridge is in the western part of Berkshire County, a hilly town with peaks ranging from 500 to 900 feet above sea level. Its principal stream is the Williams River and the valley of the Williams is considered a very beautiful part of the community. The town was owned by the Stockbridge Indians whose leader, the sachem Konkapot, in 1724 sold a huge territory including West Stockbridge and a half dozen more communities to European settlers.
The first colonist was Joseph Bryant from Canaan, Connecticut, who settled his homestead in 1766. There were 40 families in town by 1774 when West Stockbridge was incorporated. The Congregational Church was organized in 1789 and its first building was the first church structure in the town.
West Stockbridge men served the French wars in Canada and one of them escaped capture by the Indians only by hiding in a hollow log. The Indian scouts trailing him decided the log was empty when they saw a spider web covering the mouth of the log, and Nathaniel Wilson got away to return home and raise 21 children. David Bradley served in the Revolutionary War for 17 years and came home safe and sound to father 10 children in West Stockbridge. George W. Kniffen, who was born in Rye, New York, also had an interesting life. Having moved to Massachusetts, he was elected to the legislature from Richmond in 1837 and 1848, and after moving again, he was elected to the legislature from West Stockbridge in 1857.
Unlike many of the towns in Colonial days, West Stockbridge did not rely solely on agriculture as the foundation for its economy. Its fortune was under rather than on the surface and a number of quarries began operation very early in the town's history to excavate the fine marble and iron ore that were found in a couple of locations. Much of the marble used to build the State House in Boston, the old City Hall in New York and Girard College in Philadelphia, came from the West Stockbridge quarries. In 1826, the first of the iron mines was opened in the town and eventually thousands of tons of ore were mined. Other industries in the 19th century included a paper mill making manila wrapping paper, machine shop grist mill, iron furnace and lime kilns. In modern times, most industry has vanished and the town hosts a summer resident and visitor population and a mainly residential character.
(Narrative compiled from historical materials) HYPERLINK "/dhcd/dhcd.htm"
- |
||||
$100,000 - $5,500,000 |
$513,950 |
$814,929 |
||
- |
Recent Real Estate News for West Stockbridge, MA
|
Top 10 Most Useful Websites for Homeowners
Here are what we've found to be the top 10 Most Useful Websites for Homeowners, new and old.
Read More
|
|
How to Decorate a Small Room
One of the common challenges of owning or selling a home is coming up with great designs for rooms that are really small. To make the best use of the room, the design must be both practical and beautiful. Here are some tips for decorating a small room.
Read More
|
|
Buying a Home with Bad Credit
When purchasing a home, your credit will play a very pivotal role in determining if you will qualify for a mortgage that will make buying a home possible. If you have bad credit, you can still buy a home by using mortgage loan programs specifically designed for those with less than favorable credit.
Read More
|
New Single Family Homes for Sale in West Stockbridge, MA
|
$100,000
Single Family
|
||||
|
||||
|
$795,000
Single Family
|
||||
|
||||
|
$449,500
Single Family
|
||||
|
||||
|
$139,000
Single Family
|
||||
|
||||
|
$159,000
Single Family
|
||||
|
||||
Follow us
West Stockbridge Search
Top Lawyers
Top Contractors
Top Inspectors
Top Mortgage Brokers
Neighborhoods
Real Estate Listings
Information from the Berkshire County Board of Realtors®, Inc. or its Multiple Listing Service. Information herein believed to be accurate, but not warranted. All right, title and interest in the exclusively listed property information represented on this website was created, maintained and copyrighted by the Berkshire County Board of Realtors®, and in copyrights therein, shall at all times remain vested in the Berkshire County Board of Realtors®. As a Participant of the Berkshire County Multiple Listing Service, this company was granted a lease to use this information in accordance with all rules and regulations of the Service This information is being provided for Consumers' personal, non-commercial use and may not be used for any purpose other than to identify prospective properties Consumers may be interested in purchasing.
Copyright 2011. All rights reserved.
