Bash Bish
A Bit of History and a Legend
By Hiram Todd

As early as 1692 the white men settled in what is now called the Town of Mount Washington in Berkshire County.  These pioneers took over from the Indians of the tribe of Black Thunder who carried west with them their legends of the Taghconics; "The Spirit of Bash Bish Falls" being one of the best of them.  It tells the story of White Swan - the beautiful young wife of Whirling Wind, the son of Chief Black Thunder.  They lived happily together for several years but, as they had no children, the mighty chief ordered Whirling Wind to take to his tepee another squaw - one who would bear him a son.  Although White Swan respected the tribal law, she began to pine and brood by the falls.  One moonlight night she heard her mother calling from behind the mist of the cataract and with a joyous cry she leapt from the high cliff into her mother's waiting arms.  So ever after, when the moon is full, the spirit of White Swan appears behind the mist of the troubled waters of the Bash Bish.