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HomeLife In the BerkshiresGARY LEVEILLE: Sixth...

GARY LEVEILLE: Sixth Annual Satirical Holiday House Tour

The Southern Berkshire Hysterical Society again brings you a free tour of some unusual homes in our area, no ticket required.

It’s that most wonderful time of year when local nonprofits normally offer holiday house tours as fund-raisers. But with the “never-ending” COVID virus threat still canceling many of these gala events, the Southern Berkshire Hysterical Society bravely brings you an all-new, online, free frolic of some unusual homes and habitations in our area. Although the stories are a stretch of the imagination, each site is truly located in the Southern Berkshires.

General Tom Thumb’s short-term rental. Photo: Gary Leveille

General Tom Thumb’s Short-term Rental Home: Located near the Lee/Tyringham town line, this mini-house was custom built circa 1869 for legendary dwarf General Tom Thumb. At that time, Mr. Thumb had achieved worldwide fame and considerable wealth as an entertainer for circus pioneer P.T. Barnum. Residing in Bridgeport, Connecticut, General Thumb sought the solitude of the Berkshires as a respite from his hectic life. He had the cottage built within a buttonwood tree stump by Shaker craftsmen, thus giving rise to the expression “cute as a button.”

Mr. Thumb himself. Photo provided

Thumb’s busy schedule, however, prevented him from regularly visiting his beloved home, so he offered the place as a short-term rental to other dwarfs, creating what some historians believe was the first short-term rental offering in the United States. Anxious to promote diversity within the town, officials granted a permit to encourage other short people to visit. The home was recently placed on the National Register of Tiny Historic Places.

Tarpinski’s Tarp-testing Laboratory shows off its longest-lasting product. Photo: Gary Leveille

Tarpinski’s Tarp-testing Laboratory: Until new technologies were developed during World War II, most tarps were made of canvas. In 1943, Great Barrington resident and inventor Tom Tarpinski first developed the lightweight polyethylene mesh tarps widely used today. The company’s testing laboratory is still located in town. According to current CEO (and son of the founder) Tope Tarpinski, the high-tech tarp on their laboratory roof lasted longer than any other. “It’s worn out now,” Tarpinski explained, “but I am afraid of heights, and because of COVID, we can’t find an employee willing to climb up there to replace it. Before the pandemic hit, potential employees were dying to come here.”

The infamous Sandisfield Ski Jump. Photo: Gary Leveille

Sandisfield Ski Jump: One of the southern Berkshires’ first winter attractions was a precipitous wooden ski jump located in Sandisfield. Aptly known as “Suicide Hill,” the gigantic jump was constructed in the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps. Long-distance jumping exhibitions and competitions were held here until World War II, when financial difficulties shut down the slippery slope. Enterprising Sandisfield resident Sammy Slushski eventually chopped off the curved end of the ski jump and turned it into the undulated building shown here. Today the bent-roofed structure is used by a local entrepreneur to make parabolic-curve snowplows.

Margaret “Magpie” Hubble’s house during tax season. Photo: Gary Leveille

Collapsible House: Over the past 100 years, Sheffield has been home to numerous frugal residents. Queen of the spendthrifts was a tight-fisted inventor named Margaret “Magpie” Hubble. Frustrated with the ever-increasing property taxes in town, Hubble embarked upon a campaign to minimize her taxes. Utilizing her considerable skills as an inventor — she held numerous patents for low-cost retractable telescopes — Hubble created a collapsible house in which to live.

Margaret Hubble’s house the rest of the year. Photo: Gary Leveille

Every five years, when the local Board of Assessors visited her home to reevaluate its value, Hubble pressed a button, turned a few cranks, and dropped the roof. After the assessors left, she simply cranked the ceiling back into place. It was a clever ruse that worked well until a nosy assessor discovered the truth. Ms. Hubble was then snowed under with back taxes, and the roof finally collapsed for real after a heavy hail storm.

This camper attended Woodstock and won’t stop talking about it. Photo: Gary Leveille

Woodstock Music Festival Camper: For several days in August 1969, this modest camper was home to a hoard of hippies attending the legendary Woodstock Music Festival. It is the only known camp trailer from Woodstock that still survives, and is kept at a top-secret location in Great Barrington. The owner (who asked that his identity not be revealed) explained that the camper still has its original bedding, folding chairs, mini campstove, beer cooler, and porta-potty. “We got there early and camped out for a week in it,” he said. “I really wanted to hear Gene Pitney sing “Heartbreaker” and “Town Without Pity.” But Pitney got stuck in traffic on the [New York] Thruway, and never made it. At least we got to see Arlo [Guthrie].”

Free car. You remove. Located at the Historic Tollhouse. Photo: Gary Leveille

Historic Tollhouse: Back in the mid-1800s, the towns of Colebrook, Connecticut and Sandisfield, Massachusetts worked collaboratively to collect tolls from teamsters driving wagons and carriages between the towns. A narrow tollbooth was built on the state line. These tolls ceased when automobiles arrived on the scene. Cars continued to pass through the structure, however, until 1983, when a near-sighted car thief crashed a stolen vehicle inside the narrow passageway. The car was abandoned, and remains jammed in the same spot to this day. Neither town is willing to claim ownership because of high insurance costs.

To explore previous house tours, click for the first, second, third, fourth, and fifth.

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