North Adams, Massachusetts
| North Adams, Massachusetts | ||
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The north side of Main Street in 2012
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| Motto: "We Hold the Western Gateway" | ||
 Location in Berkshire County and the state of Massachusetts. |
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 North Adams, Massachusetts
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| Coordinates: 42°42′N 73°7′W / 42.700°N 73.117°WCoordinates: 42°42′N 73°7′W / 42.700°N 73.117°W | ||
| Country | United States | |
| State | Massachusetts | |
| County | Berkshire | |
| Settled | 1745 | |
| Incorporated | 1878 | |
| Government | ||
| • Type | Mayor-council city | |
| • Mayor | Richard Alcombright (D) | |
| Area | ||
| • Total | 20.6 sq mi (53.4 km2) | |
| • Land | 20.3 sq mi (52.7 km2) | |
| • Water | 0.3 sq mi (0.7 km2) | |
| Elevation | 707 ft (215 m) | |
| Population (2010) | ||
| • Total | 13,708 | |
| • Density | 674/sq mi (260.2/km2) | |
| Time zone | Eastern (UTC-5) | |
| • Summer (DST) | Eastern (UTC-4) | |
| ZIP code | 01247 | |
| Area code(s) | 413 | |
| FIPS code | 25-46225 | |
| GNIS feature ID | 0607610 | |
| Website | www |
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North Adams is a city in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. Its population was 13,708 as of the 2010 census, making it the least populous city in the state. Best known as the home of the largest contemporary art museum in the United States, the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, North Adams has in recent years become a center for tourism, culture and recreation.
North Adams was first settled in 1745 during King George's War. During the war, Canadian and Native American forces laid siege to Fort Massachusetts (The Chimney made of stone remains located at the rear of the former Price Chopper Supermarket, which is behind the former Friendly's Restaurant). 30 prisoners were taken to Quebec; half died in captivity.
The town was incorporated separately from Adams in 1878. The city is named in honor of Samuel Adams, a leader in the American Revolution, signer of the Declaration of Independence, and governor of Massachusetts.
For much of its history, North Adams was a mill town. Manufacturing began in the city before the Revolutionary War, largely because the confluence of the Hoosic River's two branches provided water power for small-scale industry. By the late 1700s and early 1800s, businesses included wholesale shoe manufacturers; a brick yard; a saw mill; cabinet-makers; hat manufacturers; machine shops for the construction of mill machines; marble works; wagon and sleigh-makers; and an ironworks, which provided the pig iron for armor plates on the Civil War ship, the Monitor. The use of Chinese strikebreakers, from California to break the North Adams strike of shoe workers was a step in the movement of Chinese from the West coast to the East coast, resulting in East coast Chinatowns in the United States. North Adams was also the headquarters for building the Hoosac Tunnel.
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