Mount Greylock State Reservation

Mount Greylock State Reservation is public recreation and nature preservation area on and around Mount Greylock, the highest point in the state of Massachusetts. The park covers some 12,000 acres (4,900 ha) in the towns of Lanesborough, North Adams, Adams, Cheshire, Williamstown and New Ashford, Massachusetts. It was created in 1898 as Massachusetts' first public land for the purpose of forest preservation.[3]

Mount Greylock State Reservation
Winter view of the War Memorial at the summit of Mount Greylock
Location in Massachusetts
LocationAdams, Cheshire,
Lanesborough, New Ashford,
North Adams, Williamstown, Berkshire, Massachusetts, United States
Coordinates42°37′00″N 73°11′13″W[1]
Area12,455 acres (50.40 km2)[2]
Elevation3,081 ft (939 m)[1]
Established1898
OperatorMassachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation
WebsiteMount Greylock State Reservation

History

Mount Greylock State Reservation was created in 1898 when the state legislature passed Chapter 543 of the Acts of 1898, which appropriated $25,000 for land purchases and created the Greylock Reservation Commission as overseer.[4][5]

The 93-foot-tall (28 m) Veterans War Memorial Tower that crowns the summit of the mountain was built 1931-32 and dedicated on June 30, 1933.[4][6]

Workers with the Civilian Conservation Corps were active in the reservation during the 1930s. Their efforts, undertaken from 1933 to 1939, included construction of the Bascom Lodge, the Thunderbolt Ski Trail,[7] Thunderbolt Shelter, and improved road access to the summit.[8]

A two-year Historic Parkway Rehabilitation Project undertaken during 2008 and 2009 restored the reservation's road system, offering numerous scenic viewing opportunities along the state-designated Scenic Byway.[4]

Activities and amenities

Roads to the summit of Mount Greylock are open seasonally, weather permitting. At the summit, Bascom Lodge offers overnight accommodations and meals during non-winter months. The reservation's 70 miles (110 km) of trails for hiking, mountain biking, back-country skiing, snowshoeing and snowmobiling include an 11.5-mile (18.5 km) section of the Appalachian National Scenic Trail and the historic Thunderbolt Ski Trail. Primitive camping is available for backpackers at either the Mount Greylock Campground or remote trailside backpacker shelters, all of which are only accessible by foot. Hunting is permitted in season.[9]

References
  1. "Mount Greylock State Reservation". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey.
  2. "2012 Acreage Listing" (PDF). Department of Conservation and Recreation. April 2012. Retrieved January 19, 2014.
  3. "Mount Greylock State Reservation". MassParks. Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs. Retrieved February 22, 2014.
  4. "Massachusetts' First State Park". MassParks. Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs. Retrieved July 20, 2013.
  5. Details of the mountain's transition from private to public ownership can be found at the History section of the main Mount Greylock article.
  6. Details of the monument's construction can be found at the main Mount Greylock article.
  7. "A History". The Thuderbolt Ski Runners. Archived from the original on February 8, 2015. Retrieved March 29, 2017.
  8. "The Civilian Conservation Corps: A Statewide Survey of Civilian Conservation Corps Resources". Prepared by Shary Page Berg (Beth McKinney, ed.) for the Massachusetts Office of Historic Resources. January 1999. pp. 100–101. Retrieved March 29, 2017.
  9. "Recreation". MassParks. Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs. Retrieved March 29, 2017.
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