Pittsfield, Massachusetts

Pittsfield is a city located in Berkshire County, Massachusetts. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 45,793. It is the county seat of Berkshire County{{GR|6}} and one of the population centers of Western Massachusetts. It is home to the new Hebert Arboretum.

History

Pittsfield was first settled in 1752 and was officially incorporated in 1761. It was named after British nobleman and politician William Pitt.

Related Topics:
1752 - 1761 - Nobleman - Politician - William Pitt

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Hancock Shaker Village

"Hands to work, hearts to God."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In 1790, the Shakers established Hancock Shaker Village in West Pittsfield. The Shakers were a religious order which believed in pacifism, celibacy and communal living. Worship could take the form of singing and ecstatic dance, which is why they were called the "Shaking Quakers," or "Shakers." The utopian sect is renowned today for its plain architecture and furniture.

Related Topics:
1790 - Shakers - Religious - Pacifism - Celibacy - Communal - Worship - Singing - Dance - Utopian - Sect - Architecture - Furniture

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

After reaching peak membership in the 1840s, with 19 "societies" scattered from Maine to Kentucky, and west to Indiana, the Shaker movement gradually dwindled. Today, only one village remains in the control of the last Shakers, located at Sabbathday Lake Shaker Village http://www.shaker.lib.me.us/. Hancock Shaker Village, now operated as a museum http://www.hancockshakervillage.org/, is famous for its "Round Stone Barn" built in 1826.

Related Topics:
1840s - Maine - Kentucky - Indiana - 1826

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

• Shaker Historic Trail, National Park Service: http://www.cr.nps.gov/nr/travel/shaker/han.htm

Historic events

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.

Related Topics:
September 3 - 1902 - New England - Republican - Congressmen - Barouche - President - Theodore Roosevelt - Pittsfield Country Club - Trolley - Massachusetts Governor - Winthrop Murray Crane - George Bruce Cortelyou - Bodyguard - William Craig - Secret Service - Euclid Madden - Manslaughter - Guilty

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Baseball in Pittsfield

Professional baseball has been played in Pittsfield's Wahconah Park since 1918. As of 2005, Wahconah Park was the home stadium for the NECBL Pittsfield Dukes, a summer amateur team.

Related Topics:
Baseball - Wahconah Park - 1918 - 2005 - NECBL

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In 2004, historian John Thorn discovered a reference to a 1791 by-law prohibiting anyone from playing "baseball" within 80 yards of Pittsfield's new meetinghouse. 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.

Related Topics:
2004 - John Thorn - 1791

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The tradition that baseball was invented in 1839 by Abner Doubleday in Cooperstown has long been acknowledged as, at best, a partial truth. Jeff Idelson of the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown stated, "Baseball wasn't really born anywhere." 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 and in Idelson's words, "would be incredibly monumental."

Related Topics:
Baseball - 1839 - Abner Doubleday - Cooperstown - 1791 - 2004

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Other references

The white terra-cotta Pittsfield Building in downtown Chicago, Illinois is named after this location. It is a reference to the famous Chicagoan Marshall Field, who was born in Massachusetts and has a direct connection to Pittsfield.

Related Topics:
Chicago, Illinois - Marshall Field

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~