Adams

named after signers of the Declaration of Independence. One is Hancock. Name the other.

Hint: it was named in 1778 for Sam, whom most of us know as the “brewer-patriot,” not his cousin John, the future president, though they both signed the Declaration. If you were slow to answer, maybe you’ve been overlooking Adams all along. The town may not have as high a profile as some of its fellows in Berkshire County, including its trendy sibling to the north, but its time to shine is at hand. Long past its heyday as a center of textile and paper manufacturing, Adams is turning to recreation as a way to promote economic development. Consider Greylock Glen Resort, 1,063 acres of well-watered, town-owned former timberland and farmland looking east across the Hoosac Valley. An environmentally sustainable Outdoor Center is in the works, thanks to a $6.5 million grant from the state. Limited private development may follow. The Center will include a café, a shop for outdoor gear, and spaces for educational presentations. In the meantime, the Glen’s well-maintained trails have become a destination for walkers, hikers, cross-country skiers, and mountain bikers. The network of trails is not too taxing for the average visitor, though if you decide to go for the summit (two and a half miles up the mountain), expect moderate to strenuous stretches. The Glen is open year-round to all comers and there is no fee for use. Few towns anywhere can boast such an outstanding and accessible recreational resource.

The summit of Mount Greylock lies within town limits, and the mountain features in two annual festivals. The first, Thunderfest, celebrates the legacy of one of the most dramatic and storied of the eastern ski runs. In 1934, the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) cut a trail from the Greylock ridge straight down toward the town, the aptly named Thunderbolt Trail. You went up with skins on your skis—and shot down. Cut to the present: it’s still happening! Snow cover providing, the Thunderbolt Ski Runners host randonée races in the North East Rando Series on February 26. Race or no race, a fun family festival takes place at the Adams Visitor Center, complete with the Berkshire Scenic Railway’s Snow Train.

The 12.7-mile, recently resurfaced, Ashuwillticook Rail Trail originates in Adams and passes through some surprisingly wild country on the way to its southern terminus at the Berkshire Mall. Strollers, runners, cyclists, roller-bladers, and cross-country skiers amicably share the ten-foot-wide former railbed. For those who want to ride real rails, the Berkshire Scenic Railway will take you to North Adams and back on weekends July-October. Adams was first settled by Quakers and Baptists in the 1760s and 70s. The building the Quakers constructed for worship in 1784 still stands on a hill on the west side of town. The Quakers opposed slavery, war, and alcohol; women had a voice in Quaker society and received an education. In 1820 Downtown Adams celebrates Susan B. Anthony.

Susan B. Anthony was born into a mixed Quaker-Baptist family in Adams. One hundred years later, thanks in no small part to her efforts, American women won the right to vote. The Susan B. Anthony Birthplace Museum on East Road tells the story of her life of social activism in five well-appointed rooms. Culture is finding a foothold in Adams, too. The old Adams Theater downtown is in new and promising hands. Galleries and cafés have popped up, and creative artists have been moving into the area. The impressive Adams Free Library, which also serves as headquarters for the Adams Historical Society, remains a cultural resource; President McKinley laid the cornerstone in 1897.

Adams may not be a food mecca (except for Shire Donuts on Summer Street—expect lines on weekends), but you can get a good meal at a reasonable price. Lee’s Dynasty features Asian fare, Chee’s has Chinese, and Haflinger Haus offers Austrian cuisine in case your day on the mountain has put you in a Sound-of-Music mood. Bounti-Fare, a longtime local favorite, offers a full dinner menu on the Adams/North Adams line; the Wednesday night open-mics and monthly jazz nights are a special draw. The Daily Grind on Park Street serves breakfast, lunch, and (Wednesday-Friday) dinner.

It isn’t easy to turn a former mill town into a magnet for 21st-century sustainable development. ProAdams, a civic group founded in 2011, has been working with the town for the past ten years toward that end. Signs of success are everywhere.