Hampden County, Massachusetts
The Hampden County is a county located in the state of Massachusetts in the United States. The administrative headquarters ( County Seat) is Springfield. After the abolition of county government, 1998, the County exists only as a historical geographic region and serves some administrative purposes. Hampden County is in Massachusetts with the lowest per - capita income.
Government
As a small majority of counties in Massachusetts, Hampden County now has no county government more. All previous tasks of the county were taken over by state authorities in 1998. The sheriff and some other regional officials with specific duties are still elected locally to perform tasks within the county. The communities now have greater autonomy and can conclude regional treaties in order to offer services together. See also: League of Women Voters page on the County's
Geography
The county has an area of 1642 square kilometers, of which 41 square kilometers are water surface. It is bordered clockwise to the following counties: Hampshire County, Worcester County, Tolland County ( Connecticut ), Hartford County ( Connecticut ), Litchfield County ( Connecticut ) and Berkshire County.
History
Hampden County was formed in 1812 from parts of Hampshire County.
Demography
According to the census of 2000, there were at Hampden County 461 228 inhabitants in 175 288 households and 115 690 families. The population was made up of 79.10 percent White, 8.10 percent African American, 1.30 percent Asian, and 0.26 percent Native American. 15.17 percent of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. The per capita income was 19,541 dollars; 11.4 percent of families and 14.7 percent of the population lived below the poverty line.
Cities and Towns
- Agawam
- Blandford
- Brimfield
- Chester
- Chicopee
- East Longmeadow
- Granville
- Hampden
- Holland
- Holyoke
- Longmeadow
- Ludlow
- Monson
- Montgomery
- Palmer
- Russell
- Southwick
- Springfield
- Tolland
- Wales
- West Springfield
- Westfield
- Wilbraham