Knox Trail 250: A Commemoration of One of the Greatest Military Logistical Feats in American History
By Peter Cameron
March 2026
On Saturday January 10, 2026, I attended the celebration of the 250th anniversary of Henry Knox’s “Noble Train of Artillery” in Great Barrington’s Mahaiwe Theater. This gathering celebrated the towns of Alford, Egremont, Great Barrington, Monterey, Sandisfield, Otis, Blandford and Russell that aided Henry Knox along his tortuous route in 1777. This event was part of the Knox Trail 250 celebration that has–and will be–following Knox’s route from Ft. Ticonderoga to Boston.
The day started very early at the Massachusetts-New York border with the commemorative passing of the Noble Train of Artillery into Massachusetts from New York. The recognition of the route and Knox’s endeavor of 1776-1777 started on December 10, 2025, at Fort Ticonderoga and followed Knox’s route through northern New York before entering Massachusetts.
A part of the reenactment of Knox's Noble Train of Artillery during the Jan 10th celebration in Great Barrington. Photos by Cathy Cameron.
The very festive celebration in Great Barrington started with a short procession of fife and drum corps dressed in 1777 period attire, representatives of the eight towns to be honored, politicians from the area, and two teams of draft horses that pulled sleds with Revolutionary era cannons lashed on them. From there, the celebration entered the Mahaiwe Theater where a program sponsored by the Massachusetts Department of Tourism took place. An interesting short film documenting Knox’s trials and tribulations during his trip in the winter of 1775-1776 was shown. This was followed by very informative remarks from the committee members who had worked on this year’s commemoration. It was evident that a lot of work went into the effort.
The ceremony concluded with a representative from each of the eight Berkshire towns on the Berkshire portion of the Knox Trail as they were presented with a plaque to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the event. The representatives of each town had interesting local history accounts of their efforts to identify and historically document the Knox Trail in their towns. Otis was represented by local historian Tom Ragusa who has mapped the trail from the Blandford line across Otis, through Sandisfield and into Monterey. He accepted the Otis plaque, and the plan is to present the plaque to the Town of Otis at a future selectmen meeting.
January 10th was not the end of the Knox Trail 250th celebration. Monterey had several days of discussions and reenactments over that same weekend as did Blandford. Over the next two months, the celebrations will move eastward following Knox’s route with reenactments along the way. Large events are planned in Springfield and Framingham, farther east. Knox Trail 250 will end in Boston at Dorchester Heights in March when, 250 years ago, the guns hauled by Knox were placed there. The threat of the guns caused the British to evacuate Boston, never to return. This day is known in Boston as Evacuation Day and is accompanied by a huge celebration. History come to life in the Berkshires.
