Bristol County, Massachusetts


Bristol County is a county in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 579,200. The shire town is Taunton. Some governmental functions are performed by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, others by the county, and others by local towns and cities. The county is the sixth most populous county in Massachusetts. Bristol County is part of the Providence metropolitan area, which is also included in Greater Boston. The county is adjacent to the state of Rhode Island. It is geographically adjacent to the Massachusetts counties of Plymouth, Norfolk, and Dukes, and the Rhode Island counties of Bristol, Newport, and Providence.
WWW countyofbristol.net

History

Bristol County was created by the Plymouth Colony on June 2, 1685, and named after its "shire town", Bristol. The Plymouth Colony, along with the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the Maine Colony and several other small settlements were rechartered in 1691, by King William III, to become The Province of Massachusetts Bay.
The towns of Bristol, Barrington, and Warren were awarded to [Colony of Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations|Rhode Island and Providence County, Rhode Island|Providence Plantations|Rhode Island] in 1746 as part of the settlement of a long-running boundary dispute, forming Bristol County, Rhode Island. At the same time, Cumberland, Rhode Island was carved out of Attleborough, Massachusetts and annexed to Providence County, Rhode Island; Tiverton and Little Compton were transferred to Newport County, Rhode Island. East Freetown was officially purchased by Freetown, Massachusetts, from Tiverton in 1747, and so remained on the Massachusetts side.
After the departure of Bristol, Taunton was made the shire town of the county. A second county courthouse was constructed in 1828 in the growing town of New Bedford. In 1862, a part of Seekonk and the entirety of East Pawtucket were transferred to Providence County, Rhode Island. At the same time, land ceded from Rhode Island was added to Fall River and Westport. The growing Fall River became the site of the third county courthouse in 1877.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and is water. The highest point in Bristol County is Sunrise Hill at above sea level located in World War I Memorial Park in North Attleborough. It is also to note that Bristol, Plymouth and Taunton are all places in South West England. Their Massachusetts cousins were named after the originals as South West England was the focal point for sailing and discovery at the time of America's discovery. John Cabot set sail from Bristol and sailed down the Severn on which lies Newport in Wales.

Adjacent counties

To the south, Dukes County is opposite Buzzards Bay from Bristol County.

National protected area

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 579,200. Of the residents, 20.3% were under the age of 18 and 17.8% were 65 years of age or older; the median age was 41.5 years. For every 100 females there were 94.1 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 91.8 males. 89.6% of residents lived in urban areas and 10.4% lived in rural areas.
The racial makeup of the county was 78.7% White, 4.4% Black or African American, 0.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.4% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 5.3% from some other race, and 8.8% from two or more races. [Hispanic and Race (United States Census)|Latino Americans|Hispanic or Latino] residents of any race comprised 9.5% of the population.
There were 229,293 households in the county, of which 29.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 28.9% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 28.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 243,464 housing units, of which 5.8% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 61.0% were owner-occupied and 39.0% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.9% and the rental vacancy rate was 4.5%.
Race / Ethnicity Pop 2000Pop 2010% 2000% 2010
White alone 477,938469,344445,65889.38%85.60%76.94%
Black or African American alone 9,78815,73623,1231.83%2.87%3.99%
Native American or Alaska Native alone 1,0281,0899380.19%0.19%0.16%
Asian alone 6,67310,14013,6511.24%1.84%2.35%
Pacific Islander alone 1141191020.02%0.02%0.01%
Other race alone 9,0817,2068,7301.69%1.31%1.50%
Mixed race or Multiracial 10,81411,63132,2472.02%2.12%5.56%
Hispanic or Latino 19,24233,02054,7513.59%6.02%9.45%
Total534,678548,285579,200100.00%100.00%100.00%

2010 census

At the 2010 census, there were 548,285 people, 213,010 households, and 141,338 families in the county. The population density was. There were 230,535 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the county was 88.4% white, 3.3% black, 1.9% Asian, 0.4% American Indian, 3.4% from other races, and 2.6% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 6.0% of the population. The largest ancestry groups were:
  • 30.1% Portuguese
  • 19.2% Irish
  • 13.1% French
  • 12.5% English
  • 9.3% Italian
  • 5.7% French Canadian
  • 5.0% German
  • 4.5% Polish
  • 3.4% Puerto Rican
  • 3.3% Sub-Saharan African
  • 2.5% American
  • 2.0% Scottish
  • 1.4% Swedish
  • 1.3% Scotch-Irish
  • 1.0% Arab
Of the 213,010 households, 32.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.5% were married couples living together, 14.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 33.6% were non-families, and 27.4% of households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 3.06. The median age was 39.8 years.
The median household income was $54,955 and the median family income was $70,161. Males had a median income of $51,785 versus $39,714 for females. The per capita income for the county was $27,736. About 8.8% of families and 11.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.7% of those under age 18 and 10.4% of those age 65 or over.

2000 census

At the 2000 census there were 534,678 people, 205,411 households, and 140,706 families in the county. The population density was. There were 216,918 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the county was 90.98% White, 2.03% Black or African American, 0.24% Native American, 1.26% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 3.12% from other races, and 2.34% from two or more races. 3.60% was Hispanic or Latino of any race. 29.7% were of Portuguese, 13.0% Irish, 8.9% French, 8.2% English, 6.8% Italian and 6.4% French Canadian ancestry according to Census 2000. 79.1% spoke English, 13.9% Portuguese, 2.9% Spanish and 1.6% French as their first language. The United States Census Bureau reported Bristol County as being one of two counties in the United States with a plurality of people of Portuguese ancestry.
Of the 205,411 households 33.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.60% were married couples living together, 13.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.50% were non-families. Of all households 26.50% were one person and 11.00% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 3.08.
The age distribution was 24.60% under the age of 18, 8.50% from 18 to 24, 30.50% from 25 to 44, 22.20% from 45 to 64, and 14.10% 65 or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.50 males.
The median household income was $43,496 and the median family income was $53,733. Males had a median income of $39,361 versus $27,516 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,978. About 7.80% of families and 10.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.00% of those under age 18 and 12.00% of that age 65 or over.

Income breakdown by town

The ranking of unincorporated communities that are included on the list are reflective if the census designated locations and villages were included as cities or towns. Data is from the 2007–2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates.

Politics and government

Bristol County has voted for the presidential nominee of the Democratic Party in every election since 1960 and, with the exception of Dwight D. Eisenhower's victorious campaigns of 1952 and 1956, for the Democratic nominee since 1928, before which it was a Republican stronghold.
However, in 2024, Republican Donald Trump came the closest to winning the county since 1984, with Democrat Kamala Harris winning only 49.6% of the vote. It was also the closest any Massachusetts county came to flipping Republican since 1988, as all counties have been won by the Democratic candidate since 1992.

Twin town

The county is twinned with the municipality of Lagoa in the Azores.

Transportation

Transportation authorities providing public bus service include the Attleboro Taunton Regional Transit Authority; and the Southeastern Regional Transit Authority serving the Fall River and New Bedford areas.
Airports include the Mansfield Municipal Airport, Myricks Airport, New Bedford Municipal Airport and Taunton Municipal Airport; of these, the New Bedford airport is a commercial airport, with flights serving the Cape Cod, Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard area.
The Providence/Stoughton Line of the MBTA commuter rail has stops in Mansfield, Attleboro, and South Attleboro. The line provides connections to Providence and Boston, as well as intermediate stops. An extension has been completed that connects to T. F. Green Airport.
The Fall River/New Bedford Line also runs through Bristol County. With stops at East Taunton station, Freetown station, Fall River Depot, Church Street Station and New Bedford station.

Communities

Cities

Towns

Census-designated places

Other villages

Ghost town

Education

School districts include:
K–12:
Secondary:
  • Somerset-Berkley School District
Elementary:
Greater New Bedford Regional Vocational-Technical High School is also in the county.
University of Massachusetts Dartmouth and Stonehill College are in the county.