Hampshire County, Massachusetts

See also: Hampshire (disambiguation)

Hampshire County
County
Old Hampshire County Courthouse
Seal
Location within the U.S. state of Massachusetts
Massachusetts's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 42°20′N72°40′W / 42.34°N 72.66°W / 42.34; -72.66
Country	United States
State	Massachusetts
Founded	1662
Named for	Hampshire, England
Seat	Northampton
Largest town	Amherst
Area
• Total	545 sq mi (1,410 km2)
• Land	527 sq mi (1,360 km2)
• Water	18 sq mi (50 km2)  3.3%
Population  (2020)
• Total	162,308
• Density	308.0/sq mi (118.9/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional districts	1st, 2nd

Hampshire County is a historical and judicial county located in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. As of the 2020 census, the population was 162,308. ^[1] Its most populous municipality is Amherst (due to seasonal student population; the largest year-round is Northampton), its largest town in terms of landmass is Belchertown, and its traditional county seat is Northampton. ^[2] The county is named after the county Hampshire, in England. ^[3] Hampshire County is part of the Springfield, MA Metropolitan Statistical Area. Together with Hampden County, Hampshire County municipalities belong to the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission. ^[4]

History

Hampshire County was constituted in 1662 from previously unorganized territory comprising the entire western part of Massachusetts Bay Colony. It included the original towns of Springfield, Northampton, and Hadley. The original Hampshire County also included territory that is now in modern-day Hampden County, Franklin County, and Berkshire County, as well as small parts of modern-day Worcester County. By 1683, three new towns (Westfield (now Southwick), Suffield, and Enfield) had been incorporated south of Springfield. These towns were partly or wholly in the modern state of Connecticut at the time of their incorporation. They resulted in a border dispute between the Connecticut Colony and Massachusetts Bay Colony.

In 1731, Worcester County was created, which included the original town of Brookfield (incorporated in 1718 as part of Hampshire County). More territory was lost to Worcester County in 1742 when the town of Western (now Warren) was created and added to Worcester County. Further territorial losses occurred in 1749 when the towns of Enfield, Somers (split off from Enfield in 1734), and Suffield unilaterally joined Connecticut Colony. In 1761, Berkshire County was partitioned from Hampshire County. In 1811, Franklin County was split off from the northern part of Hampshire, and in the following year, Hampden County was split off from its southern part.

Following the dissolution of the county government in 1999, county affairs were managed by the Hampshire Council of Governments. The council itself ceased operations in 2019, due to what an appraisal of the council termed a "fundamentally flawed, unsustainable operational model"; it had no inherent source of income and lacked a regional planning function. ^[5]

Politics

United States presidential election results for Hampshire County, Massachusetts ^[6]

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2024	23,256	27.45%	58,617	69.19%	2,847	3.36%
2020	22,281	25.36%	63,362	72.12%	2,211	2.52%
2016	21,790	25.88%	55,367	65.76%	7,036	8.36%
2012	21,480	26.32%	57,359	70.27%	2,782	3.41%
2008	20,618	25.91%	56,869	71.47%	2,083	2.62%
2004	21,315	28.64%	51,680	69.44%	1,427	1.92%
2000	19,202	27.98%	38,543	56.16%	10,881	15.86%
1996	14,787	22.64%	41,844	64.07%	8,678	13.29%
1992	15,694	22.40%	37,879	54.06%	16,498	23.54%
1988	24,331	37.48%	39,834	61.36%	750	1.16%
1984	28,111	43.96%	35,597	55.67%	234	0.37%
1980	21,117	34.99%	27,611	45.75%	11,627	19.26%
1976	22,219	36.99%	34,947	58.17%	2,909	4.84%
1972	24,529	45.72%	28,572	53.25%	553	1.03%
1968	16,270	35.83%	26,666	58.72%	2,476	5.45%
1964	11,385	26.09%	32,058	73.45%	202	0.46%
1960	19,346	42.90%	25,667	56.92%	83	0.18%
1956	26,361	61.93%	16,119	37.87%	84	0.20%
1952	24,141	58.19%	17,247	41.57%	98	0.24%
1948	17,331	48.37%	18,012	50.27%	490	1.37%
1944	14,907	45.62%	17,676	54.09%	97	0.30%
1940	15,651	46.42%	17,823	52.86%	241	0.71%
1936	14,012	45.34%	15,412	49.87%	1,482	4.80%
1932	13,241	49.28%	12,332	45.90%	1,296	4.82%
1928	14,101	52.13%	12,695	46.93%	255	0.94%
1924	13,918	66.23%	5,037	23.97%	2,059	9.80%
1920	13,174	70.10%	5,305	28.23%	314	1.67%
1916	5,748	56.15%	4,202	41.05%	286	2.79%
1912	4,512	46.84%	3,088	32.06%	2,032	21.10%
1908	5,362	60.97%	2,612	29.70%	821	9.33%
1904	5,892	68.25%	2,292	26.55%	449	5.20%
1900	5,550	66.71%	2,392	28.75%	377	4.53%
1896	6,434	76.39%	1,608	19.09%	381	4.52%
1892	4,887	54.61%	3,678	41.10%	384	4.29%
1888	4,731	55.93%	3,403	40.23%	325	3.84%
1884	4,013	53.99%	2,730	36.73%	690	9.28%
1880	5,025	69.91%	2,042	28.41%	121	1.68%
1876	5,020	66.68%	2,507	33.30%	2	0.03%
1872	4,707	74.83%	1,583	25.17%	0	0.00%
1868	5,268	86.56%	818	13.44%	0	0.00%

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 545 square miles (1,410 km²), of which 527 square miles (1,360 km²) is land and 18 square miles (47 km²) (3.3%) is water. ^[7]

Hampshire County is the middle section of the Pioneer Valley and the northern tip of the Hartford–Springfield Knowledge Corridor.

Adjacent counties

Hampshire County is the only county in Massachusetts surrounded in all directions by other counties of Massachusetts: all other counties in the state are adjacent to at least one other state or the open ocean.

• Franklin County (north)
• Worcester County (east)
• Hampden County (south)
• Berkshire County (west)

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1790	59,656		—
1800	72,432		21.4%
1810	76,275		5.3%
1820	26,487		−65.3%
1830	30,254		14.2%
1840	30,897		2.1%
1850	35,732		15.6%
1860	37,823		5.9%
1870	44,388		17.4%
1880	47,232		6.4%
1890	51,859		9.8%
1900	58,820		13.4%
1910	63,327		7.7%
1920	69,599		9.9%
1930	72,801		4.6%
1940	72,461		−0.5%
1950	87,594		20.9%
1960	103,229		17.8%
1970	123,981		20.1%
1980	138,813		12.0%
1990	146,568		5.6%
2000	152,251		3.9%
2010	158,080		3.8%
2020	162,308		2.7%
2023 (est.)	162,502	[8]	0.1%
U.S. Decennial Census [9] 1790–1960 [10] 1900–1990 [11] 1990–2000 [12] 2010–2018 [13]

2000 census

At the 2000 census there were 152,251 people, 55,991 households, and 33,818 families living in the county. The population density was 288 inhabitants per square mile (111/km²). There were 58,644 housing units at an average density of 111 per square mile (43/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 91.10% White, 1.96% Black or African American, 0.19% Native American, 3.40% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 1.50% from other races, and 1.80% from two or more races. 3.42% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 14.7% were of Irish, 12.8% Polish, 9.6% English, 9.5% French, 8.5% French Canadian, 6.9% Italian and 6.4% German ancestry, 88.8% spoke English, 3.4% Spanish, 1.7% French and 1.4% Polish as their first language. ^[14] Of the 55,991 households 28.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.40% were married couples living together, 9.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.60% were non-families. 28.60% of households were one person and 10.20% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.96.

The age distribution was 19.60% under the age of 18, 19.30% from 18 to 24, 26.80% from 25 to 44, 22.20% from 45 to 64, and 12.00% 65 or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.90 males.

The median household income was $46,098 and the median family income was $57,480. Males had a median income of $39,327 versus $30,362 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,685. About 5.10% of families and 9.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.20% of those under age 18 and 6.70% of those age 65 or over.

2010 census

At the 2010 census, there were 158,080 people, 58,702 households, and 34,480 families living in the county. ^[15] The population density was 299.8 inhabitants per square mile (115.8/km²). There were 62,603 housing units at an average density of 118.7 per square mile (45.8/km²). ^[16] The racial makeup of the county was 88.7% white, 4.5% Asian, 2.5% black or African American, 0.2% American Indian, 1.5% from other races, and 2.5% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 4.7% of the population. ^[15] The largest ancestry groups were: ^[17]

• 22.2% Irish
• 14.4% French
• 14.3% Polish
• 14.2% English
• 10.8% German
• 9.1% Italian
• 7.1% French Canadian
• 3.2% Scottish
• 2.6% American
• 2.3% Puerto Rican
• 2.3% Scotch-Irish
• 2.1% Russian
• 1.7% Chinese
• 1.5% Swedish
• 1.4% Portuguese
• 1.0% Lithuanian
• 1.0% Dutch

Of the 58,702 households, 26.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.8% were married couples living together, 10.3% had a female householder with no husband present, 41.3% were non-families, and 29.7% of households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.89. The median age was 36.6 years. ^[15]

The median household income was $59,505 and the median family income was $80,891. Males had a median income of $52,686 versus $43,219 for females. The per capita income for the county was $28,367. About 6.2% of families and 11.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.8% of those under age 18 and 7.8% of those age 65 or over. ^[18]

Demographic breakdown by town

Income

See also: List of Massachusetts locations by per capita 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. ^{[19] [20] [21]}

Rank	Town		Per capita income	Median household income	Median family income	Population	Number of households
1	Pelham	Town	$50,367	$83,667	$97,875	1,290	556
2	Williamsburg	Town	$35,500	$62,851	$86,136	2,543	1,158
	Hatfield	CDP	$35,150	$62,212	$93,750	1,390	665
	Massachusetts	State	$35,051	$65,981	$83,371	6,512,227	2,522,409
3	Westhampton	Town	$34,337	$82,759	$88,500	1,590	632
	Granby	CDP	$33,819	$77,292	$87,132	1,415	598
4	Hatfield	Town	$33,452	$53,485	$80,833	3,272	1,560
5	Worthington	Town	$33,360	$64,063	$75,417	1,181	532
6	Northampton	City	$33,175	$54,413	$77,998	28,621	11,853
7	Belchertown	Town	$32,898	$75,502	$94,232	14,479	5,605
8	Goshen	Town	$32,734	$77,917	$76,667	1,121	443
9	Southampton	Town	$32,548	$76,396	$85,521	5,758	2,261
10	Chesterfield	Town	$31,730	$59,063	$69,766	1,043	469
11	Hadley	Town	$31,727	$75,313	$86,106	5,209	2,048
12	Granby	Town	$31,409	$70,362	$82,684	6,232	2,619
13	Middlefield	Town	$31,110	$58,958	$78,281	431	190
14	Easthampton	City	$30,894	$53,185	$78,166	16,051	7,458
15	Huntington	Town	$29,245	$55,917	$73,438	2,219	933
16	Cummington	Town	$29,225	$58,750	$67,143	1,046	430
	Hampshire County	County	$29,113	$60,331	$82,999	157,630	58,921
17	South Hadley	Town	$29,067	$62,532	$80,794	17,493	6,787
	United States	Country	$27,915	$52,762	$64,293	306,603,772	114,761,359
18	Plainfield	Town	$27,758	$61,719	$66,250	589	247
	Belchertown	CDP	$27,133	$47,863	$79,135	2,557	1,160
19	Ware	Town	$26,910	$50,712	$66,287	9,851	4,369
	South Amherst	CDP	$23,823	$61,250	$95,625	4,760	1,435
	Ware	CDP	$22,088	$37,040	$51,193	6,003	2,771
	Huntington	CDP	$21,374	$40,486	$54,375	937	423
20	Amherst	Town	$21,049	$52,281	$100,304	37,611	8,771
	North Amherst	CDP	$17,167	$33,093	$84,083	7,114	1,953
	Amherst Center	CDP	$14,017	$44,604	$99,087	19,347	2,715

Education

Hampshire County is home to what are known as the "Five Colleges", which include the University of Massachusetts flagship campus and four well-known private colleges:

• Amherst College, Amherst
• Hampshire College, Amherst
• Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley
• Smith College, Northampton
• University of Massachusetts Amherst

The Five College Consortium provides course cross-registration between the schools and funds free bus service, provided by Pioneer Valley Transit Authority, between the campuses.

Communities

Cities

• Easthampton
• Northampton (historic county seat)
• Amherst

Towns

• Belchertown
• Chesterfield
• Cummington
• Goshen
• Granby
• Hadley
• Hatfield
• Huntington
• Middlefield
• Pelham
• Plainfield
• South Hadley
• Southampton
• Ware
• Westhampton
• Williamsburg
• Worthington

Census-designated places

• Amherst Center
• Belchertown
• Granby
• Hatfield
• Huntington
• North Amherst
• South Amherst
• Ware

Other unincorporated communities

• Cushman
• Florence
• Haydenville
• Leeds
• Mount Tom
• Ringville
• South Hadley Falls

Former towns

The following towns were disincorporated for the creation of the Quabbin Reservoir.

• Dana
• Enfield
• Greenwich
• Prescott

See also

• Massachusetts portal

• List of Massachusetts locations by per capita income
• List of counties in Massachusetts
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Hampshire County, Massachusetts
• Registry of Deeds (Massachusetts)
• Tofu Curtain
• USS Hampshire County (LST-819)

References

1. "Census - Geography Profile: Hampshire County, Massachusetts". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved November 14, 2021.
2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
3. Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Govt. Print. Off. pp.  148.
4. Kinney, Jim (April 17, 2019). "Hampshire Council of Governments plans to cease operations; hopes to sell historic Northampton courthouse". The Republican. masslive. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
5. Russell, Jim (April 17, 2019). "Hampshire Council of Governments shutdown a 'sad but necessary event,' former councilor says". The Republican. Springfield, Mass.
6. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved March 20, 2018.
7. "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Archived from the original on September 14, 2014. Retrieved September 16, 2014.
8. "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
9. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 16, 2014.
10. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved September 16, 2014.
11. "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 16, 2014.
12. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 16, 2014.
13. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 7, 2011. Retrieved August 26, 2013.
14. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved January 31, 2008.
15. "DP-1 Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
16. "Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density: 2010 – County". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
17. "DP02 SELECTED SOCIAL CHARACTERISTICS IN THE UNITED STATES – 2006–2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
18. "DP03 SELECTED ECONOMIC CHARACTERISTICS – 2006–2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
19. "SELECTED ECONOMIC CHARACTERISTICS 2007–2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 12, 2020. Retrieved January 26, 2013.
20. "ACS DEMOGRAPHIC AND HOUSING ESTIMATES 2007–2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 12, 2020. Retrieved January 26, 2013.
21. "HOUSEHOLDS AND FAMILIES 2007–2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 12, 2020. Retrieved January 26, 2013.

External links

• Hampshire County Sheriff's Office
• Hampshire Council of Governments at the Wayback Machine (archived May 29, 2019)
• US Census Bureau map of cities, towns, Native American reservations, and census-designated places
• Wall & Gray (1871). Hampshire and Hampden Counties map.,