Bidwell Outside The House Hike Monterey
April 26, 2025 @ 10:00 am - 2:00 pm
Join Rob Hoogs from Monterey Historical for a 3.5 mile hike of the Bidwell House Trails and it’s history!
Bidwell Outside the House Hike
April 26th at 10:00 am (approximately 3.5 to 4 hours)
Parking: 100 Art School Road, Monterey, MA 01245
Hike Rating: Easy to Moderate 3.5 Mile Loop with very little elevation
Directions: From Mass Pike in Lee: Take exit 10 (former exit 2) off I-90 (Mass Pike) signed US-20, Lee, Pittsfield, and the Berkshires.
Go left off the exit ramp (use middle lane at end of ramp) onto US-20 E, then a quick right onto MA-102 W.
At the light across from Big Y, turn left onto Tyringham Road (turns into Main Road in the town of Tyringham).
Go 5.6 miles, then right onto Monterey Road for 2.2 miles.
Turn right onto Art School Road. Travel this country lane for 1 mile (turns to dirt halfway up), following the white signs for the Bidwell House Museum, ending at the Museum.
Park in the lower field (handicap parking available at top of driveway).
From Great Barrington: Take MA-23 East, and continue for about 7.5 miles.
In Monterey Village, turn left after the church onto Tyringham Road for 1.5 miles, past Lake Garfield and up the hill.
Turn left onto Art School Road. Travel this country lane for 1 mile (turns to dirt halfway up), following the white signs for the Bidwell House Museum, ending at the Museum.
Park in the lower field
NOTE: Registration opens generally 30 days before event.
Join local historian Rob Hoogs on a hike through 18th and 19th century history following the 1760’s colonial
Royal Hemlock Road and visit several cellar holes and a charcoal hearth. We will also follow the beautiful
Loom Brook and cross the Boston-Albany Post Road all while listening to the history of the land we are
traveling. The Bidwell House was built circa 1760 for the first minister of Township No. 1, the Reverend Adonijah
Bidwell (1716-1784). He arrived in 1750 to be the first minister of this frontier region, which eventually
became the towns of Monterey and Tyringham. The location of the house was the first town center of what
was originally known as Housatonic Township No. 1. The Bidwell House was the parsonage, and the first
meeting house, located at the crossroads of the Great Trail (the Boston-Albany Post Road) and Royal
Hemlock Road, was a short walk from the house. Rev. Bidwell farmed the property from 1750 to 1784. His
eldest son, Adonijah Bidwell Jr., developed the farm into a large and prosperous dairy farm,
expanding the landholdings and building a compound of barns and out-buildings.
His tenure was 1784-1836. The grandson, John Devotion Bidwell (1792-1867),
continued to farm and also added a tanning yard.
Please Note: Event does NOT include a tour of inside the house.
Bidwell April 2025 pdf flyer
Please Register per car load on https://westernmasshilltownhikers.ticketleap.com Maps and bottled water provided. Well behaved dogs allowed. Event is volunteer lead. Suggested donation is $15. More details are on www.hilltownhikers.com . Please email westernmasshilltownhikers@aol.com or call/text 413-302-0312 if you have any questions. As always be prepared for rocks, mud and roots, bring trekking poles!
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