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:
“Where the citizen uses a mere sliver or board, the pioneer uses the whole trunk of a tree.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“Ah! I have penetrated to those meadows on the morning of many a first spring day, jumping from hummock to hummock, from willow root to willow root, when the wild river valley and the woods were bathed in so pure and bright a light as would have waked the dead, if they had been slumbering in their graves, as some suppose. There needs no stronger proof of immortality. All things must live in such a light. O Death, where was thy sting? O Grave, where was thy victory, then?”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)