The Pioneer Valley is the colloquial name for the U.S. Commonwealth of Massachusetts's portion of the Connecticut River Valley. The Pioneer Valley is within three counties in Massachusetts that collectively feature much of New England's most fertile farmland. The term "Pioneer Valley" is approximately coterminous with Metropolitan Springfield, as Springfield, Massachusetts, is the region's urban center. Most of the cities and towns surrounding Springfield feature unspoiled forests, and Springfield itself, which has been nicknamed "The City in a Forest," features unspoiled nature in its city limits and over 12% parkland.
The Pioneer Valley is known for its scenery and as a vacation destination. The Holyoke Range, Mount Tom Range, and numerous rolling hills, bluffs, and meadows feature extravagant homes from the Gilded Age, many of which surround New England's longest and largest river, the Connecticut River, which flows through the region.
Read more about Pioneer Valley: Tourist Destination, Geology, Political Geography, History, Deerfield, Greenfield, Economy, Conservation
Famous quotes containing the words pioneer and/or valley:
“America is the civilization of people engaged in transforming themselves. In the past, the stars of the performance were the pioneer and the immigrant. Today, it is youth and the Black.”
—Harold Rosenberg (19061978)
“All the Valley quivered one extended motion, wind
undulating on mossy hills”
—Allen Ginsberg (b. 1926)