Bristol County, Massachusetts

Bristol County
County
The Old Bristol County Courthouse in Taunton
Seal
Location within the U.S. state of Massachusetts
Massachusetts's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 41°45′N 71°05′W / 41.75°N 71.09°W / 41.75; -71.09
Country	United States
State	Massachusetts
Founded	June 2, 1685 (from Plymouth Colony)
Named for	Bristol, Rhode Island
Seat	Taunton
Largest city	New Bedford
Area
• Total	691 sq mi (1,790 km2)
• Land	553 sq mi (1,430 km2)
• Water	138 sq mi (360 km2)  20%
Population  (2020)
• Total	579,200
• Density	1,047.2/sq mi (404.3/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional districts	4th, 8th, 9th
Website	countyofbristol.net

Bristol County is a county in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. As of the 2020 census, the population was 579,200.^[1] The shire town is Taunton.^[2] 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–Warwick, RI–MA Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Boston–Worcester–Providence, MA–RI–NH–CT Combined Statistical Area. The county is adjacent to the state of Rhode Island. It is geographically adjacent to the Massachusetts counties of Plymouth, Norfolk, and Dukes (via water), and the Rhode Island counties of Bristol, Newport, and Providence.