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Photo: Dmadeo, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
The Hoosac Tunnel is a 4.75-mile-long (7.64 km) railroad tunnel through the Hoosac Mountains. Built 1851-1875 to link Massachusetts to Albany, NY, it cost 195 workers their lives. At the Visitor's Museum exhibits depict the effect of the tunnel. Children and adults can experiment with a vintage floor scale that was used for weighing loads up to half a ton. A 30-minute documentary provides a concise, yet detailed, history of the Hoosac Tunnel. The facilities are also used for concerts, lectures, freight yard walking tours and gallery for temporary exhibits. Allow approximately one hour to view the exhibits. Universally accessible.
Western Gateway Heritage State Park was a history-focused Massachusetts state park in the city of North Adams managed by the Department of Conservation and Recreation. Exhibits at the park, which was located in a former railyard, told the story of the creation of the Hoosac Tunnel. The freight yard was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972 as the Freight Yard Historic District.
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This 48 acre park features a natural arch of bedrock marble that was carved by glacial meltwater. A quarter-mile walkway runs above and through the 60 ft gorge which the bridge spans and there is a half-mile wooded trail. Interpreters are available in summer to explain the geologic processes. Picnic tables and grills (carry out your trash), restrooms, pets OK on leash. No swimming, rock climbing or alcohol. Parking $5 (MA resident) or $10 (non-MA resident).