MONTEREY

A short history of Monterey

Prior to settlement by European-American colonists, the area of Monterey was inhabited by Mahicans, the local Native American tribe. Monterey was first settled by colonists in 1739 as a part of Housatonic Township Number One. The township had two villages, one along Hop Brook to the north (modern Tyringham) and one on the Konkapot River in the south (modern Monterey). The township was officially incorporated as Tyringham in 1767. In the earliest days of 1776, General Henry Knox passed through with cannons from Fort Ticonderoga in New York to aid in ending the Siege of Boston. Today, the path he took is known as the Henry Knox Trail.

The long distance between the two villages led to the division of the township in 1847. The new township, previously the village called Green Woods or South Tyringham, was voted by residents to be named Monterey to commemorate the Battle of Monterey that took place a year earlier in the Mexican–American War. Palo Alto and Buena Vista were also considered, but thought to be "too foreign sounding". The town was mostly known for its sawmills, but today it is a rural community, known more for its recreational areas in the state forests and along Lake Garfield.

Adapted (trimmed) from the Wikipedia article Monterey, Massachusetts, revision 1379147703 by its contributors, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.