[5] The Mohicans, an Algonquian people, inhabited Pittsfield and the surrounding area until the early 18th century, when the population was greatly reduced by war and disease brought by white invaders.

[6] In 1738, a wealthy Bostonian named Col. Jacob Wendell bought 24,000 acres (97 km2) of land known originally as "Pontoosuck", from a Mohican word meaning "a field or haven for winter deer", as a speculative investment.

He formed a partnership with Philip Livingston, a wealthy kinsman from Albany, New York, and Col. John Stoddard of Northampton, who had claim to 1,000 acres (4.0 km2) here.

"[9] Pittsfield was primarily turned into an agricultural area because of the many brooks that flowed into the Housatonic River; the landscape was dotted with mills that produced lumber, grist, paper, and textiles.

With the introduction of Merino sheep from Spain in 1807, the area became the center of woolen manufacturing in the United States, an industry that would dominate the community's economy for almost a century.

While GE Advanced Materials (now owned by SABIC-Innovative Plastics, a subsidiary of the Riyadh-based Saudi Basic Industries Corporation) continues to be one of the city's largest employers, a workforce that once topped 13,000 was reduced to less than 700 with the demise and/or relocation of General Electric's transformer and aerospace portions.

Roosevelt, Massachusetts Governor Winthrop Murray Crane, secretary to the president George Bruce Cortelyou, and bodyguard William Craig were thrown into the street.

A reference librarian, AnnMarie Harris, found the actual by-law in the Berkshire Athenaeum library and its age was verified by researchers at the Williamstown Art Conservation Center.

[15] Ulysses Frank Grant, born August 1, 1865, in Pittsfield (died May 27, 1937), was an African American baseball player in the 19th century who played in the International League and for various independent teams.

The American Defenders' name refers to both the United States military and a line of baseball gloves produced by Nocona Athletic Goods Company.

Mark Belanger, eight-time Gold Glove winning shortstop for the Baltimore Orioles, Turk Wendell, relief pitcher for the New York Mets, and Tom Grieve, outfielder for the Texas Rangers, were all from Pittsfield.

1 overall seed in the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) Division III bracket in 2022 and beat city-rival Pittsfield High three times.

[17] Pittsfield is bordered by Lanesborough to the north, Dalton to the east, Washington to the southeast, Lenox to the south, Richmond to the southwest, and Hancock to the west.

Pittsfield lies at the confluence of the east and west branches of the Housatonic River, which flows south from the city towards its mouth at Long Island Sound, some 149 miles (240 km) distant.

The western portion of the city contains Pittsfield State Forest, an 11,000-acre (4,500 ha) facility with hiking and cross-country skiing trails, camping, picnic areas, and a beach for swimming.

The fixed-base operator at Pittsfield Municipal Airport offers access to the region via private and chartered aircraft ranging from single-engined piston to multiple-engined jet planes.

Winters are harsh due the city's high elevation at 1,039 ft (317 m), with an average annual snowfall of 73.0 inches (1,850 mm) and temperatures dipping to 0 °F (−18 °C) or colder 13 times per year.

[23] During the mid-20th century, the Housatonic River and its floodplain were contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and other hazardous substances released from the General Electric Company (GE) facility in Pittsfield.

[24] The highest concentrations of PCBs in the Housatonic River are found from the site of the GE plant in Pittsfield to Woods Pond in Lenox, Massachusetts, where they have been measured up to 140 mg/kg (140 ppm).

Initial cleanup work began in 1996 when EPA issued a unilateral order to GE that required the removal of highly contaminated sediments and bank soils.

[27] Between 2005 and 2018 GE completed remediation and restoration of the 10 manufacturing plant areas within the city, and continues to conduct inspection, monitoring and maintenance activities.

In 2021 two of the citizen groups that were parties to the settlement filed an appeal of the permit, criticizing the design of a planned landfill to be located in Berkshire County.

Hispanics and Latinos of any race were 6.0% of the population (1.9% Puerto Rican, 0.9% Mexican, 0.6% Ecuadorian, 0.5% Dominican, 0.4% Spanish, 0.3% Peruvian, 0.3% Honduran, 0.2% Colombian, 0.2% Salvadoran, 0.1% Cuban).

The ten largest ancestry groups in the city were Irish (22.5%), Italian (17.5%), French (11.7%), German (9.9%), English (8.6%), Polish (6.7%), American (4.1%), French-Canadian (3.7%), Scottish (1.7%), and Russian (1.5%).

The ten most common countries of origin for immigrants in the city were, Ecuador, China, Mexico, the Dominican Republic, India, El Salvador, Canada, Ghana, and Brazil.

Pittsfield is the geographic and commercial hub of the Berkshires—a historic area that includes Tanglewood, the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and author Edith Wharton's estate The Mount.

In recent years, the city has undergone a transformation with significant investment in the historic downtown, including a variety of new restaurants (French, Asian, Latin American, etc.

Pittsfield is home to Canoe Meadows Wildlife Sanctuary, 264 acres (107 ha) of woods, fields, and wetlands maintained by the Massachusetts Audubon Society.

Pittsfield State Forest, an 11,000-acre (4,500 ha) park, provides residents and tourists with hiking and cross-country skiing trails, camping, picnic areas, and a swimming beach.

The highest body of water in Massachusetts, Berry Pond, is at the top of the Pittsfield State Forest just outside the city limits in the town of Hancock.