History of the Hoosac Tunnel:

During the early 1800’s there was no direct route that connected  Boston’s railroad to upstate New York.  The completion of such a route was being sought in order to increase the transport of goods from businesses back and forth from these areas.

In 1825 a route was proposed by a man named who Laomi Baldwin surveyed the land for the proposed canal route but it was shot down.  It was determined they would have to bore a hole through the mountain and that would be far too costly a venture.

Alvah Crocker, a paper mill manufacturer from Fitchburg, MA opened his Fitchburg Railroad in 1845 which traveled from Boston to Greenfield.  In order to connect the railroad to New York, there would need to be a way through the Deerfield River Valley and somehow pierce through the Hoosac Mountain that stood in the way.

Tragedy…