SANDISFIELD, MA – The official date of Sandisfield’s 250th
birthday is March 6, 2012. To
celebrate, the town’s 250th birthday committee is hosting an open
house at the historic New Boston Inn (The oldest continuously run inn in
Berkshire County). The public is
welcome between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m.
to enjoy cake, coffee and a reading of the Proclamation issued by Governor Patrick’s office to mark the
occasion.
Sandisfield was still a “howling
wilderness” in 1694, but that was precisely the reason this land became one of
four Housatonic Townships shaped by Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1735. Boston
powers saw settlement as the best way to improve the roads, diminish Indian
attacks, and improve commerce with Albany. Farming families filtered in sufficiently
by the 1750s that the town was incorporated on March 6, 1762. Township No. 3
became Sandisfield, in honor of Samuel Sandys, Lord Sandys, who in 1761 was made
first Lord of Trades and the Plantations. (See photo below)
The Town of Sandisfield will host a three-day celebration
July 27-29 featuring an opening ceremony, country fair, classic car show,
colonial encampment, children’s games, demonstrations, a cookout and
dance. The town’s historical
society produced a commemorative cookbook called “Sandisfield Eats,” featuring 270
recipes, old photos, memoirs and other historical material.
Another commemorative project in the works is the
publication of a 500-page history book authored by Sandisfield resident, Ron
Bernard, with editorial contributions from many residents and local historian,
Bernard Drew.
For more information about the town-wide celebration visit www.sandisfield.info.
