Hampden County, Massachusetts


Hampden County is a non-governmental county located in the Pioneer Valley of the U.S. state of Massachusetts, in the United States. As of the 2020 census, Hampden County's population was 465,825. Its traditional county seat is Springfield, the Connecticut River Valley's largest city, and economic and cultural capital; with an estimated population of 154,758, approximately one-third of Hampden County residents live in Springfield.
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History

Springfield had been Hampshire County's traditional shire town since its founding in 1636, then in 1794 Northampton was made Hampshire County's shire town. Springfield grew at a pace far quicker than Northampton, so was granted shire town-status over its own southerly jurisdiction. The southern division of Hampshire County was separated as Hampden County on August 1, 1812, by a prior act of the Massachusetts General Court on February 25, 1812, with Springfield named as the shire town. The agreement of settlement made between Hampden and Hampshire counties in November 1812 can be found in the Court of Sessions Record Book 1, pages 5–6 of the Hampden County Commissioners' Archives, housed in the Registry of Deeds. Hampden County was named for parliamentarian John Hampden, and is the youngest county by establishment date in the state.
To the north of Hampden County is modern-day Hampshire County; to the west is Berkshire County; to the east is Worcester County; to the south are Litchfield County, Hartford County, and Tolland County in Connecticut. Hampden County is part of the Springfield Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is the most urban county in Western Massachusetts. The Knowledge Corridor surrounding Springfield-Hartford is New England's second most populous urban area with 1.9 million people.

Law and government

As with most Massachusetts counties, Hampden County exists today only as a historical geographic region, and has no county government. All former county functions were assumed by state agencies in 1998. The sheriff and some other regional officials with specific duties are still elected locally to perform duties within the county borders, but there is no county council, county commission or other county governing body. Communities are now granted the right to form their own regional compacts for sharing services. Hampden County and Hampshire County together are part of the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and is water.

Adjacent counties

Communities

Cities

Towns

Census-designated places

Other unincorporated communities

City neighborhoods

The following are neighborhoods located in Springfield or West Springfield.
The following are neighborhoods located in Chicopee.
  • Aldenville
  • Burnett Road
  • Chicopee Center
  • Chicopee Falls
  • Fairview
  • Smith Highlands
  • Westover
  • Willimansett
The following are neighborhoods located in Holyoke.

National Parks

State parks

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 465,825. Of the residents, 21.1% were under the age of 18 and 18.2% were 65 years of age or older; the median age was 40.2 years. For every 100 females there were 93.1 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 90.0 males. 90.5% of residents lived in urban areas and 9.5% lived in rural areas.
The racial makeup of the county was 64.9% White, 8.9% Black or African American, 0.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.6% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 12.7% from some other race, and 10.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 26.0% of the population.
There were 185,030 households in the county, of which 28.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 33.2% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 30.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 197,033 housing units, of which 6.1% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 60.6% were owner-occupied and 39.4% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.1% and the rental vacancy rate was 5.1%.
Race / Ethnicity Pop 2000Pop 2010% 2000% 2010
White alone 339,625313,846278,46474.44%67.71%59.77%
Black or African American alone 34,03435,69235,9887.45%7.70%7.72%
Native American or Alaska Native alone 7697176590.16%0.15%0.14%
Asian alone 5,8358,93712,1101.27%1.92%2.59%
Pacific Islander alone 1431141690.03%0.02%0.03%
Other race alone 5055881,9450.11%0.12%0.41%
Mixed race or Multiracial 6,1206,82015,1711.34%1.47%3.25%
Hispanic or Latino 69,19796,776121,31915.16%20.87%26.04%
Total456,228463,490465,825100.00%100.00%100.00%

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 463,490 people, 179,927 households, and 115,961 families residing in the county. The population density was. There were 192,175 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the county was 76.5% white, 9.0% black or African American, 2.0% Asian, 0.4% American Indian, 0.1% Pacific islander, 9.2% from other races, and 2.9% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 20.9% of the population. The largest ancestry groups were:
Of the 179,927 households, 32.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.9% were married couples living together, 17.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 35.6% were non-families, and 29.2% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.09. The median age was 38.6 years.
The median income for a household in the county was $47,724 and the median income for a family was $61,061. Males had a median income of $50,207 versus $37,765 for females. The per capita income for the county was $24,718. About 13.2% of families and 17.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 26.5% of those under age 18 and 11.2% of those age 65 or over.

Demographic breakdown by town

Income

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.
RankTownPer capita
income		Median
household
income		Median
family
income		PopulationNumber of
households
1LongmeadowTown$50,203$100,092$111,80315,7725,605
2WilbrahamTown$39,372$88,839$107,87114,1455,393
3HampdenTown$38,396$79,773$103,1735,1341,960
4MontgomeryTown$36,575$78,125$90,313742291
5TollandTown$36,567$67,083$75,625434164
6BlandfordTown$36,412$78,875$82,6561,174462
MassachusettsState$35,051$65,981$83,3716,512,2272,522,409
7East LongmeadowTown$34,417$76,517$89,57015,5555,660
8SouthwickTown$33,753$74,721$86,9159,4253,657
9WalesTown$32,129$60,938$70,5361,914773
10GranvilleTown$32,050$71,667$85,6251,444554
11BrimfieldTown$31,671$78,380$86,6953,5821,385
12MonsonTown$31,274$70,485$86,3338,5313,318
Monson CenterCDP$29,938$50,242$51,6911,880846
13AgawamCity$29,914$65,339$76,25828,40811,506
14HollandTown$29,835$69,565$79,7792,595998
15West SpringfieldCity$27,946$54,251$63,95428,32011,571
United StatesCountry$27,915$52,762$64,293306,603,772114,761,359
16PalmerCity$27,694$50,864$58,14412,1615,006
17LudlowTown$27,644$60,694$73,04821,1317,876
18ChesterTown$27,630$56,711$69,0631,320528
19WestfieldCity$26,605$53,772$72,21041,02515,207
20RussellTown$25,600$60,398$72,7591,846681
Hampden CountyCounty$25,363$48,866$61,800462,752177,954
21ChicopeeCity$23,703$45,763$58,11855,20523,136
22HolyokeCity$20,370$33,915$42,03339,89716,012
23SpringfieldCity$18,483$35,603$41,454152,99256,211

Education

Colleges and universities

Public school districts

Other institutions

Although no county government exists in Hampden County, a number of private associations, mainly representing trades, remain identified with Hampden County. For example the Hampden Agricultural Society opened Hampden Park in Springfield in 1853. To maintain current training among municipal inspectors, in 2005 the nongovernmental Hampden County Plumbing & Gas Inspectors Association was formed. The Hampden County Bar Association provides support and resources to the legal community and those seeking such representation. In part a legacy of the Eastern States Exposition, the Hampden County Improvement League, and Hampden County Beekeepers Association, both provide agricultural education and outreach.
The Hampden County Radio Association, an affiliate of the ARRL, offers training in amateur radio and related technology.

Transportation

Public transportation

Hampden County is served by both bus and rail service, with intermodal connections at Springfield Union Station, and Holyoke station via the Holyoke Transportation Center. Additionally the region is served by the Westfield-Barnes Regional Airport, and Westover Metropolitan Airport. A bike share program, ValleyBike, connects Springfield, Chicopee, Holyoke and West Springfield to points north in Hampshire County.

Bus

Rail