List of counties in Massachusetts
Wikimedia list article
There are 14 counties in Massachusetts. Massachusetts has ended eight[1] of its fourteen county governments. This leaves five counties with county-level local government (Barnstable, Bristol, Dukes, Norfolk, Plymouth) and one, Nantucket County, with combined county/city government.[2] Counties are still generally recognized as geographic entities if not political ones.[3]
Eleven other historical counties have been in Massachusetts. Most ended when their lands were absorbed into the colony of New Hampshire or the state of Maine.
List of current counties
change| County |
FIPS code[4] | County seat[5] | Established[6] | Origin[7] | Meaning of name[8] | Population (2020)[9] |
Area[6] | Map |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barnstable County | 001 | Barnstable | 1685 | One of three original counties created in the Plymouth Colony | After its county seat of Barnstable, which is named after the English town of Barnstaple | 228,996 | 396 sq mi (1,026 km2) |
|
| Berkshire County | 003 | Pittsfield | 1761 | From part of Hampshire County. Government abolished in 2000.[3] | For the English county of Berkshire | 129,026 | 931 sq mi (2,411 km2) |
|
| Bristol County | 005 | Taunton | 1685 | One of three original counties created in the Plymouth Colony | For its original county seat of Bristol, Massachusetts, which is named for the English port city of Bristol – when the Town of Bristol joined Rhode Island, the name of the county was kept | 579,200 | 556 sq mi (1,440 km2) |
|
| Dukes County | 007 | Edgartown | 1695 | From Martha's Vineyard and the Elizabeth Islands, which had been part of Dukes County, New York until Massachusetts gained it in 1691 | Formerly a part of Dukes County, New York until 1691, the land at one time was the possession of the Duke of York | 20,600 | 104 sq mi (269 km2) |
|
| Essex County | 009 | Salem, Lawrence |
1643 | One of four original counties created in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Government abolished in 1999.[3] | For the English county of Essex | 809,829 | 498 sq mi (1,290 km2) |
|
| Franklin County | 011 | Greenfield | 1811 | From part of Hampshire County. Government abolished in 1997.[3] | For Benjamin Franklin (1706–1790), early American scientist, diplomat, and politician | 71,029 | 702 sq mi (1,818 km2) |
|
| Hampden County | 013 | Springfield | 1812 | From part of Hampshire County. Government abolished in 1998.[3] | John Hampden (1595—1643), the famous 17th century English parliamentarian | 465,825 | 618 sq mi (1,601 km2) |
|
| Hampshire County | 015 | Northampton | 1662 | From unorganized territory in the western part of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Government abolished 1999.[3] | For the English county of Hampshire | 162,308 | 529 sq mi (1,370 km2) |
|
| Middlesex County | 017 | Lowell, Cambridge |
1643 | One of four original counties created in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Government abolished in 1997.[3] | For the English county of Middlesex | 1,632,002 | 824 sq mi (2,134 km2) |
|
| Nantucket County | 019 | Nantucket | 1695 | From Nantucket Island which had been part of Dukes County, New York until Massachusetts gained it in 1691. | The Town of Nantucket, itself derived from a Wampanoag word meaning "place of peace" | 14,255 | 48 sq mi (124 km2) |
|
| Norfolk County | 021 | Dedham | 1793 | From part of Suffolk County. | For the English county of Norfolk | 725,981 | 400 sq mi (1,036 km2) |
|
| Plymouth County | 023 | Brockton, Plymouth |
1685 | One of three original counties created in the Plymouth Colony. | For its seat of Plymouth, which is named for the English port city of Plymouth | 530,819 | 661 sq mi (1,712 km2) |
|
| Suffolk County | 025 | Boston | 1643 | One of four original counties created in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Government abolished in 1999.[3] | For the English county of Suffolk | 797,936 | 58 sq mi (150 km2) |
|
| Worcester County | 027 | Worcester | 1731 | From parts of Hampshire County, Middlesex County and Suffolk County. Government abolished in 1998.[3] | For its county seat of Worcester, which is named in honor of the English city of Worcester and the English Civil War Battle of Worcester in 1651, a Parliamentarian victory | 862,111 | 1,513 sq mi (3,919 km2) |
|
Former counties
change| County |
Created [7] |
Abolished [7] |
Fate [7] |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cumberland County | 1760 | 1820 | Transferred to Maine |
| Devonshire County | 1674 | 1675 | Abolished |
| Hancock County | 1789 | 1820 | Transferred to Maine |
| Kennebec County | 1799 | 1820 | Transferred to Maine |
| Lincoln County | 1760 | 1820 | Transferred to Maine |
| Old Norfolk County | 1643 | 1679 | Abolished - most of its territory was absorbed into New Hampshire; one of four original counties created in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. |
| Oxford County | 1805 | 1820 | Transferred to Maine |
| Penobscot County | 1816 | 1820 | Transferred to Maine |
| Somerset County | 1809 | 1820 | Transferred to Maine |
| Washington County | 1789 | 1820 | Transferred to Maine |
| York County | 1652 | 1820 | Transferred to Maine - there were two periods when York County was ended, 1664 to 1668 and 1680 to 1691 |
References
change- ↑ "General Laws of Massachusetts, Chapter 34B. Abolition of County Government". Massachusetts General Court. Retrieved January 24, 2010.
- ↑ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on 8 June 2007. Retrieved 19 July 2007.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 "Historical Data Relating to the Incorporation of and Abolishment of Counties in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts". Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Retrieved 14 January 2007.
- ↑ "EPA County FIPS Code Listing". EPA.gov. Archived from the original on 2011-05-14. Retrieved 2008-02-23.
- ↑ "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Massachusetts". Archived from the original on 2021-01-27. Retrieved 2020-08-21.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 National Association of Counties. "NACo County Explorer". Retrieved 2015-10-25.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Brown, Richard and Tager, Jack (2000). Massachusetts: A Concise History. University of Massachusetts Press. ISBN 1-55849-249-6.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ↑ Beatty, Michael (2001). County Name Origins of the United States. McFarland Press. ISBN 0-7864-1025-6.
- ↑ "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Massachusetts". U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on 27 January 2021. Retrieved 5 April 2023.