Bristol County, Massachusetts

Bristol County is a located in the Commonwealth of,  adjacent to the state of. As of 2005, the population was estimated at 546,331. The county level of government is currently of diminishing importance in Massachusetts, with most governmental functions being performed at the state or local level. See. Despite multiple seats being displayed on some maps, the formal is ;  and  are not county seats, but there are some courthouses and other county-operated facilities in those two places.

The county offices are located in the Taunton Superior Courthouse at: 9 Court Street Taunton, MA 02780-3223 Phone: (508) 824-9681

Elected County Officials

 * Maria Lopes  - County Chairwoman
 * Arthur Machado  - Commissioner
 * Christopher Saunders  - Commissioner
 * C. Samuel Sutter  - District Attorney
 * - Sheriff
 * Kevin Finnerty  - County Treasurer
 * Barry Amaral  - Register of Deeds
 * Bernard McDonald - Register of Deeds
 * J. Mark Treadup - Register of Deeds
 * Marc Santos - Clerk of Courts

History
The land that is now Bristol County was part of the, which pre-dates the.

Part of the county was detached to form as part of a long-running border dispute.

Geography
According to the, the county has a total area of 1,790 (691 ). 1,440 km² (556 sq mi) of it is land and 350 km² (135 sq mi) of it (19.56%) is water. The highest point in Bristol County is Sunrise Hill (Watery Hill) at 390 feet above sea level located in World War I Memorial Park in.

Adjacent Counties

 * (north)
 * (northeast)
 * (southwest)
 * (west)
 * (northwest)

Demographics
As of the of 2000, there were 534,678 people, 205,411 households, and 140,706 families residing in the county. The was 371/km² (962/sq mi). There were 216,918 housing units at an average density of 151/km² (390/sq mi). The racial makeup of the county was 90.98%, 2.03% or , 0.24% , 1.26% , 0.03% , 3.12% from , and 2.34% from two or more races. 3.60% of the population were or  of any race. 29.7% were of, 13.0% , 8.9% , 8.2% , 6.8% and 6.4%  ancestry according to. 79.1% spoke, 13.9% , 2.9% and 1.6%  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 ancestry (the other being the contiguous  ).

There were 205,411 households out of which 33.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.60% were living together, 13.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.50% were non-families. 26.50% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 3.08.

In the county the population was spread out with 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% who were 65 years of age 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 income for a household in the county was $43,496, and the median income for a family was $53,733. Males had a median income of $39,361 versus $27,516 for females. The for the county was $20,978. About 7.80% of families and 10.00% of the population were below the, including 13.00% of those under age 18 and 12.00% of those age 65 or over.

Cities, towns, and villages*
*  Villages are census division, but have no separate corporate existence from the towns they are in.
 *  (a village of Achusnet)
 *  (a village of Attleboro)
 *  (a village of Dartmouth)
 *  (a village of Dartmouth)
 * '' (a village of Dartmouth)
 *  (a village of Dighton)
 *  (a village of Freetown)
 *  (a village of Freetown)
 *  (a village of Mansfield)
 *  (a village of North Attleborough)
 *  (a village of Norton)
 *  (a village of Raynham)
 *  (a village of Seekonk)
 *  (a village of Somerset)
 *  (a village of Swansea)
 *  (a section of Taunton)
 *  (a village of Westport)
 *  (a village of Mansfield)
 *  (a village of North Attleborough)
 *  (a village of Norton)
 *  (a village of Raynham)
 *  (a village of Seekonk)
 *  (a village of Somerset)
 *  (a village of Swansea)
 *  (a section of Taunton)
 *  (a village of Westport)
 *  (a village of Seekonk)
 *  (a village of Somerset)
 *  (a village of Swansea)
 *  (a section of Taunton)
 *  (a village of Westport)
 *  (a village of Swansea)
 *  (a section of Taunton)
 *  (a village of Westport)
 *  (a section of Taunton)
 *  (a village of Westport)
 *  (a village of Westport)