Sandy Beach: A North Pond Landmark During the mid-1800s through the early 1900s, much of the development around Congamond Lake — then known as Southwick Ponds — centered on picnic groves along Middle Pond. The eastern shore boasted Hatheway’s Log Cabin Grove, the western shore offered the first-class Railroad Pavilion Hotel , and the south end drew crowds to the Lake House and Saunders Grove. By contrast, North Pond — particularly its northern shoreline — remained undeveloped. Formerly King's Sandy Beach (Courtesy of Richard Cowles Photography) In 1914, on the sandy northeastern shore of North Pond, a small lakeside cottage appeared. Its owners named it "Sandy Beach" — a private retreat set against one of the lake’s most inviting stretches of shoreline. The cottage’s name was inspired by the gentle curve of light-colored sand meeting the clear water, a feature rare enough on Congamond to become a landmark for boaters who often picnicked there. Two years later, in 1916, N...

  - A forgotten 1909 lakeside murder—and the hat that cracked the case.   A Grim Discovery at Congamond Lak e On the still morning of August 30, 1909, the peaceful surface of Congamond Lake in Southwick, Massachusetts, gave way to a dark secret—one that would unravel over the weeks to come. While going about his morning routine, a man named White, employed by the Berkshire Ice Company, spotted something disturbing—a man’s head and shoulders floating in the lake. Alarmed, he called over Maloney, an employee of the nearby Lake House , an old hotel on Congamond Lake known more for its bootleg liquor than its lodging, along with another bystander. Together, the men towed the body to shore. The deceased man appeared to be about 5 feet 10 inches tall and roughly 190 pounds. Though dressed in a dark brown suit, a mixed-fabric shirt, and size 7 shoes, his weathered appearance and empty pockets suggested he may have been a tramp. His body was still limp—he hadn’t been in the lake lon...