Community Profile: Berkshire County
Berkshire County is the westernmost county in Massachusetts, and runs along the New York border, stretching from Connecticut to Vermont. The unofficial hub of the county is Pittsfield, a city of nearly 44,000 people. Other major centers of business and tourism are Great Barrington, in Southern Berkshire County; North Adams, home to the Mass MoCA and the Mass. College of Liberal Arts; Williamstown, home to Williams College; Lenox, home to Tanglewood, the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra; and Stockbridge, home to the Norman Rockwell Museum.
Tourism has always been an economic mainstay, with several ski resorts, museums, theaters, and other draws, and it has become a popular base for artisans and, more recently, some technology-based companies and special-effects houses attracted by the quality of life. In all, there are 32 communities in the county, ranging in size from Pittsfield to tiny Mount Washington, with 135 people. Other communities include Adams, Alford, Becket, Cheshire, Clarksburg, Dalton, Egremont, Florida, Hancock, Hinsdale, Lanesboro, Lee, Monterey, New Ashford, New Marlboro, Otis, Peru, Richmond, Sandisfield, Savoy, Sheffield, Tyringham, Washington, West Stockbridge, and Windsor.
The countys business community is served by the Chamber of Commerce of the Berkshires (www.berkshirechamber.com), and the smaller Southern Berkshire Chamber of Commerce (www.southernberkshirechamber.com) and Lenox Chamber of Commerce (www.lenox.org).
