West Hill Farm

If you are looking for a measure of peace and tranquility ‘West Hill Farm’ is the property for you.

The colonial house is situated on 17 serene acres on a hill in the Berkshires town of Middlefield. The two-story, 3 bedroom, post & beam, center chimney house, with fieldstone fireplaces in several rooms and exposed hand-hewn cedar beams, is in terrific condition. We have a home inspection, conducted by an inspector experienced in vintage houses, for your review.

The property was first given to Col. William Prescott (1726-1795) as a land grant. The house appeared sometime later, exact date unknown, but a chiseled granite block in the kitchen fireplace reads ‘1807’.

If the dining room table that sits next to the picture window facing the back field in this beautiful house could speak it might tell us about the songbirds and wild turkeys that come to the field, and the deer munching on apples from the ancient apple tree at the bottom of the hill. It might tell us how quiet is here. Try as you might, you cannot hear a decibel of traffic noise from the property. If one car a day comes by the house…that is a traffic jam.

The table might also speak of the great parties hosted in this house, which has been owned by Nancy Burnham, a former New York City ad executive. Her family says Nancy’s parties were attended by her Middlefield friends, and by prominent New York, Boston and Hollywood screenwriters and authors including Craig James, author of “Fatal Attraction”, the novel. The Friday night writing sessions around the table were said to be a scream. The point is that while the next owner (maybe you) will enjoy a great measure of peace in this house, its close enough to New York and Boston to be accessible to friends and family. And there’s always the trout stream at the back of the property if you’d rather just relieve the stress.

This home is also very near the cultural attractions and business centers that adorn the Berkshire Hills. The Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival and Campus are just a few miles away in the next door town of Becket. Tanglewood, summer home of The Boston Symphony Orchestra and summer concerts with artists such as James Taylor, is just 22 miles away, the Norman Rockwell Museum in the town of Stockbridge is only 25 miles out, and Pittsfield with its theaters, museums and shopping is just 18 miles away.

Come to one of the previews and the auction, take a look at the land and fields, the house and the contents, enjoy the Berkshire fall foliage and just take a deep breath and relax. We’ll have some sweet cider and crisp apples for you.