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 1,345 at the 2000 census. Egremont consists of two villages, North Egremont and South Egremont.

History

Egremont was first settled by Dutch settlers from New York in 1722. English settlers arrived in 1725-6, and the town was officially incorporated by Massachusetts in 1761. It is unclear whether the town is named for the English town or for the first Earl of Egremont, whose title was created shortly after the settlement of the town. Egremont has spent much of its time as an agricultural town, with only a small milling area around South Egremont.

Around New Year's Day, 1776, General Henry Knox passed through the town with cannons from Fort Ticonderoga, which he was bringing to help end the Siege of Boston. Today, the path is known as the Knox Trail, and a historical marker is located in the village of North Egremont.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 19.0 square miles (49.1 km²), of which, 18.8 square miles (48.8 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.3 km²) of it (0.63%) is water. Egremont lies along the western border of Berkshire County and Massachusetts, with Columbia County, New York to the west. The town is bordered by Alford to the north, Great Barrington to the east, Sheffield to the southeast, Mount Washington to the southwest, and Copake and Hillsdale, New York to the west. Egremont is 23 miles south-southwest of Pittsfield, 50 miles west of Springfield, and 140 miles west of Boston.

Egremont is situated in a valley east of the Taconic Range. To the southwest, Mount Whitlock divides the town from Mount Washington, and to the west, Mount Fray and several other mountains divide the town from New York proper. Mount Fray is also the site of the Catamount Ski Area, which extends into Hillsdale. Mount Whitlock and its neighbor, the Jug End, make up the Jug End State Reservation and Wildlife Management Area. The Appalachian Trail extends through the reservation, before turning east at the Jug End towards Great Barrington. The town lies along the Green River, a tributary of the Housatonic River. Sveral brooks also flow through the town, with one being dammed to form the Mill Pond in South Egremont.

In South Egremont, Route 23 and Route 41 meet just northeast of the Mill Pond, traveling together into Great Barrington. The western end of Route 23 is at the state border within town, where it becomes New York State Route 23. Route 71, which carries part of the Knox Trail, also passes through the town, from Alford to the north to Great Barrington to the east. The highway does not meet the other two, however, until well into Great Barrington. The nearest interstate, Interstate 90 (the Massachusetts Turnpike), is located north of town, with the nearest exit, the "turn-around" Exit 1, being 12 miles to the north. There is no rail, bus or air service in town, with the nearest for all three being in Great Barrington. The nearest national air service can be found at Bradley International Airport in Windsor Locks, Connecticut.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 1,345 people, 609 households, and 408 families residing in the town. By population, Egremont ranks twentieth out of the 32 cities and towns in Berkshire County, and 315th out of the 351 cities and towns in Massachusetts. The population density was 71.4 people per square mile (27.6/km²), which ranks 16th in the county and 301st in the Commonwealth. There were 866 housing units at an average density of 46.0/sq mi (17.7/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.36% White, 0.07% African American, 0.07% Native American, 0.30% Asian, 0.30% from other races, and 0.89% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.04% of the population.

There were 609 households out of which 22.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.0% were married couples living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.0% were non-families. 27.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.21 and the average family size was 2.67.

In the town the population was spread out with 18.3% under the age of 18, 4.7% from 18 to 24, 22.5% from 25 to 44, 34.6% from 45 to 64, and 20.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 47 years. For every 100 females there were 92.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.8 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $50,000, and the median income for a family was $60,104. Males had a median income of $40,885 versus $31,875 for females. The per capita income for the town was $41,702. About 4.3% of families and 5.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.6% of those under age 18 and 8.2% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Egremont employs the open town meeting form of government, and is led by a board of selectmen and an administrative assistant. Egremont has its own police, fire and public works departments, and its post office also serves neighboring Mount Washington. The town's library, located in South Egremont, is connected to the regional library networks.

On the state level, Egremont 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, Egremont 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.

Education

Egremont is one of five towns that operate the Southern Berkshire Regional School District (neighboring Mount Washington also sends students to the district's schools). Students in Egremont and Mount Washington attend the Egremont School for kindergarten and first grades, with second through sixth grades attending the Undermountain Elementary School in Sheffield, and Mount Everett Regional School in Sheffield for grades 7-12. There are private schools in Great Barrington and other nearby towns.

The nearest community college is the South County Center of Berkshire Community College in Great Barrington. The nearest state college is Westfield State College, and the nearest state university is the University of Massachusetts Amherst. The nearest private college is Bard College at Simon's Rock in Great Barrington.

References