A 1790 reference states that Seth Smith saw a bear “on the Great Plain” while he was “hoeing corn”. This sighting aroused considerable local attention since, by that date, the bear population in Massachusetts was already approaching zero. After 1790 many deeds referred to the “Great Plain” section of West Springfield as “Bear Hole”.
Around 1870 people became more interested in sightseeing then they had previously been and “resorts” of all kinds began to spring up throughout the northeast. The Summit Houses on Mt. Tom and Mt. Holyoke are two local examples. West Springfield, not to be outdone by its neighbors, had its own resort, too.
Around 1890 West Springfield businessman M.L Tourtelotte and his partners built their “Bear Hole Family Resort” on Paucatuck Brook in a spectacular glen, which included a waterfall and the locally famous, “Massasoit Spring”, a source of “water of unusual purity”. In fact, water bottled at the spring was sold from a wagon, which featured paintings, on its sides, of a man wrestling with a bear. The slogan on the side of the wagon read, “I’ve got you and you’ve got me”.
Books and newspapers of the time described the resort in glowing terms. It included, they said, a caretaker’s house and sheds where people could stable their teams of horses or, a few years later, park their automobiles, while visiting the resort. They also referred to a pond for fishing and boating and a pavilion with a dance floor built over the brook, which featured a restaurant serving such items as soup, fish, clams, lobster, chicken, and steak. And, of course, there was always the pure water of nearby Massasoit Spring. But, best of all, the resort had “a cave in the rocky hillside with a real live bear restricted by a lattice of strong iron bars”.
As was true with most of the early resorts, the one at Bear Hole was short lived, lasting only from 1890 to 1906 when the town took over the property, by eminent domain, for use as a town water supply.
Today we just have Bear Hole Road and a handful of photographs to remind us of a golden era during which people dressed in their Sunday finest, hooked up their horses and wagons, and spent a quiet summer afternoon enjoying nature at one of the northeast’s most beautiful locations.
Although now a town reservoir passive recreation, such as walking and biking, is encouraged along the paths and trails located within the Bear Hole Watershed area.
The gate, opposite the parking area on Bear Hole Road, is always locked but an opening in the fence, to the left of the gate, is designed to allow people on foot or on bike to access the trails within the watershed. A half-mile down the road, beyond the gate, will be found what remains of the “Old Bear Hole Resort”.