Tyringham Cobble is a open space reservation located in

Tyringham, Massachusetts Tyringham is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 427 at the 2020 census. History Founded as Housatonic Township Number 1, th ...

on 411 m (1,348 ft) Cobble Hill in

The Berkshires The Berkshires () are highlands located in western Massachusetts and northwestern Connecticut in the United States. Generally, "Berkshires" may refer to the range of hills in Massachusetts that lie between the Housatonic and Connecticut River ...

. It is managed by

The Trustees of Reservations ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...

, a non-profit conservation organization, and is notable for its scenic views over the rural landscape of Tyringham Valley from rocky ledges and open fields. The reservation consists of the hill and surrounding agricultural and pasture land. In 2008, part of the 2,175 mile (3,500 km)

Appalachian Trail The Appalachian Trail, also called the A.T., is a hiking trail in the Eastern United States, extending almost between Springer Mountain in Georgia and Mount Katahdin in Maine, and passing through 14 states.Gailey, Chris (2006)"Appalachian Tra ...

was routed over the summit ledges.

History

''Cobble'' is derived from the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

word ''kobel'' or ''koble'', usually applied to small, rocky, rounded and exposed hills. Cobble Hill belongs to the largest

pre-Cambrian The Precambrian ( ; or pre-Cambrian, sometimes abbreviated pC, or Cryptozoic) is the earliest part of Earth's history, set before the current Phanerozoic Eon. The Precambrian is so named because it preceded the Cambrian, the first period of the ...

geologic territory in Massachusetts. Studies of the hill by geologist Daniel Clark in 1895 showed that rock strata on the bottom of the hill was younger than strata on the top, leading him to conclude, incorrectly, that the hill had "broken off a nearby mountain and flipped over during a great geological cataclysm 500 million years ago." The actual mechanism was thrust-faulting, an orogenic process by which the collision of

tectonic plates Plate tectonics (, ) is the scientific theory that the Earth's lithosphere comprises a number of large tectonic plates, which have been slowly moving since 3–4 billion years ago. The model builds on the concept of , an idea developed durin ...

results in the shoving up and over of older rock layers atop younger layers. Specimens from Clark's research are now part of the stone work above the fireplace of the Tyringham Public Library and the

Berkshire Museum The Berkshire Museum is a museum of art, natural history, and ancient civilization that is located in Pittsfield in Berkshire County, Massachusetts. History In 1903, local paper magnate Zenas Crane founded the Berkshire Museum. Inspired by suc ...

Pittsfield, Massachusetts Pittsfield is the most populous city and the county seat of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the principal city of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Berkshire County. Pittsfi ...

. In the early 19th century Cobble Hill was largely cleared of forests to make room for agriculture and pasture by Shaker settlers. The property remained in agricultural use after the Shakers had departed, until the 1930s when Olivia Cutting James and a group of friends purchased parcels on the hill and surrounding pastures to protect it from development, partly in response to a proposed

ski area A ski area is the terrain and supporting infrastructure where skiing and other snow sports take place. Such sports include alpine and cross-country skiing, snow boarding, tubing, sledding, etc. Ski areas may stand alone or be part of a ski resort. ...

. James' group called themselves "The Cobblers," and they created an informal association of tenants in common. James left the property to The Trustees of Reservations in 1961; other members of her group donated their holdings in 1963.

Recreation

A trailhead parking lot is located on Jerusalem Road in Tyringham center. The trail system consists of a summit loop trail and the

, which passes over the summit from northwest to southeast. Prior to 2008, the Appalachian Trail had passed through the west side of the reservation without ascending the summit. A natural

sandstone Sandstone is a Clastic rock#Sedimentary clastic rocks, clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of grain size, sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate mineral, silicate grains, Cementation (geology), cemented together by another mineral. Sand ...

monolith resembling a

rabbit Rabbits are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also includes the hares), which is in the order Lagomorpha (which also includes pikas). They are familiar throughout the world as a small herbivore, a prey animal, a domesticated ...

is located on the south side of Cobble Hill. Open

hay Hay is grass, legumes, or other herbaceous plants that have been cut and dried to be stored for use as animal fodder, either for large grazing animals raised as livestock, such as cattle, horses, goats, and sheep, or for smaller domesticate ...

fields ascend the east foot of the hill. The reservation is open to hiking, picnicking, and cross country skiing.

References

External links

Tyringham Cobble
The Trustees of Reservations
Trail map
{{Protected areas of Massachusetts The Trustees of Reservations Protected areas of Berkshire County, Massachusetts Open space reserves of Massachusetts Mountains on the Appalachian Trail Landforms of Berkshire County, Massachusetts Hills of Massachusetts Protected areas established in 1963 1963 establishments in Massachusetts Tyringham, Massachusetts