Pioneer Valley

The Pioneer Valley is the colloquial name for the U.S. Commonwealth of Massachusetts's portion of the Connecticut River Valley. The Pioneer Valley region is within three counties in Massachusetts that collectively feature much of New England's most fertile farmland. The lower "Pioneer Valley" is approximately coterminous with Metropolitan Springfield, as Springfield, Massachusetts, is the region's urban center, and the seat of Hampden County. The upper Pioneer Valley region is centered around the small cities of Northampton and Greenfield which are the county seats of Hampshire and Franklin counties.

Many of the cities and towns include areas of unspoiled forests, and Springfield itself, which in the early 1900s was nicknamed "The City in a Forest," features unspoiled nature within 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.