Hoosac Tunnel, Looking out from West Portal, Mass

From the collections of PVMA • Digital image © Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Assoc. • Image use information

About this item

Railroads had linked Boston, Massachusetts, with Troy, New York, since 1842. This railway network, however, did not extend to the more isolated towns of northern Massachusetts. Many of these towns, such as Fitchburg, Athol, Orange, and Greenfield, were developing industrial centers. Alvah Crocker was the president of a railroad line that connected Fitchburg to Greenfield. He dreamed of extending the railroad to Troy, New York, located on the Hudson River. It was an important hub for transporting freight between western New York and New York City. Troy was the eastern terminal of the Erie Canal, a waterway that allowed people and goods to move in and out of the rapidly developing West. Building the Greenfield-Troy Railroad involved boring a 4.75-mile tunnel under Hoosac Mountain, in Western Massachusetts. This postcard features a view of the tunnel, an engineering marvel that cost many millions of dollars and took the lives of about 195 workers.

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Details

Item typePhotograph
Postcard
Datecirca 1908
PlaceNorth Adams, Massachusetts
TopicCommerce, Business, Trade, Consumerism
Transportation, Travel, Tourism
Science, Technology
EraProgressive Era, World War I, 1900–1928
MaterialPaper
Process/FormatPhotography
Catalog #1997.08.01.0001
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Hoosac Tunnel, Looking out from West Portal, Mass. Photograph. ca. 1908. Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association, American Centuries. https://americancenturies.org/collection/1997-08-01-0001/. Accessed on December 8, 2024.

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