1897 Map of Sheffield

About this map

Great Barrington and the Housatonic River corridor anchor this late 19th-century survey of the tri-state border region. The landscape is defined by the heavy infrastructure of the New York, New Haven & Hartford railroad, which connects industrial hubs like Van Deusenville and Sheffield through the valley. To the west, the steep rise of Mount Washington and Brace Mountain marks the rugged boundary with New York, where landmarks like Bashbish Falls and the Union Church overlook the valley floor. Small hamlets such as Ashley Falls and Sodom appear alongside family-named terrain like Wilcox and Toms Mountain, showing a well-established agricultural and small-town network. The survey also traces the winding Konkapot River and numerous ponds like Lake Buel, illustrating how water power and topography dictated the settlement patterns of Berkshire County before the modern era.