| Essex County, Massachusetts | |
Location in the state of Massachusetts |
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Massachusetts's location in the U.S. |
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| Founded | 1643 |
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| Seat | Salem & Lawrence County government abolished in 1999 |
| Largest city | Lynn |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
828.53 sq mi (2,146 km²) 500.67 sq mi (1,297 km²) 327.86 sq mi (849 km²), 39.57% |
| Population - (2010) - Density |
743,159 1,483/sq mi (573/km²) |
Essex County is a county located in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of Massachusetts. As of the 2010 census, the population was 743,159. It has two traditional county seats: Salem and Lawrence.[1] Its county government was abolished in 1999, though it continues to exist as a historic geographic area.
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The county was created by the Massachusetts General Court on May 10, 1643, when it was ordered "that the whole plantation within this jurisdiction be divided into four sheires". Essex initially contained Salem, Lynn, Wenham, Ipswich, Rowley, Newbury, Gloucester, and Andover.[2]
Essex County is famous as the area that Elbridge Gerry districted into a salamander-like shape in 1812 that gave rise to the word gerrymandering.
Like several other Massachusetts counties, Essex County exists today only as a historical geographic region, and has no county government. All former county functions were assumed by state agencies in 1999. The sheriff (currently Frank Cousins) and some other regional officials with specific duties are still elected locally to perform duties within the county region, but there is no county council, commissioner, or county employees. Communities are now granted the right to form their own regional compacts for sharing services. See also: League of Women Voters page on Massachusetts counties.
According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of 828.53 square miles (2,145.9 km2), of which 500.67 square miles (1,296.7 km2) (or 60.43%) is land and 327.86 square miles (849.2 km2) (or 39.57%) is water.[3] Essex County is adjacent to Rockingham County, New Hampshire (north), the Atlantic Ocean (east), Suffolk County (south), and Middlesex County (west). All county land is incorporated into Towns or Cities.
Essex County includes the North Shore, Cape Ann, and much of the Merrimack Valley.
| Hillsborough County, New Hampshire | Rockingham County, New Hampshire | |||
| Middlesex County | Atlantic Ocean | |||
| Essex County, Massachusetts | ||||
| Suffolk County |
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1790 | 57,879 |
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| 1800 | 61,196 | 5.7% | |
| 1810 | 71,888 | 17.5% | |
| 1820 | 74,655 | 3.8% | |
| 1830 | 82,859 | 11.0% | |
| 1840 | 94,987 | 14.6% | |
| 1850 | 131,300 | 38.2% | |
| 1860 | 165,611 | 26.1% | |
| 1870 | 200,843 | 21.3% | |
| 1880 | 244,535 | 21.8% | |
| 1890 | 299,995 | 22.7% | |
| 1900 | 357,030 | 19.0% | |
| 1910 | 436,477 | 22.3% | |
| 1920 | 482,156 | 10.5% | |
| 1930 | 498,040 | 3.3% | |
| 1940 | 496,313 | −0.3% | |
| 1950 | 522,384 | 5.3% | |
| 1960 | 568,831 | 8.9% | |
| 1970 | 637,887 | 12.1% | |
| 1980 | 633,632 | −0.7% | |
| 1990 | 670,080 | 5.8% | |
| 2000 | 723,419 | 8.0% | |
| 2010 | 743,159 | 2.7% | |
| [4][5][6] | |||
As of the census[7] of 2010, there were 743,159 people, 306,754 households, and 185,081 families residing in the county. The population density was 1508.8 people per square mile (558/km²). There were 287,144 housing units at an average density of 574 per square mile (221/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 76.0% White, 3.8% Black or African American, 0.23% Native American, 3.1% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 6.20% from other races, and 2.6% from two or more races. 16.5% of the population is Hispanic or Latino of any race. 18.4% were of Irish, 15.1% Italian, 9.9% English, 5.6% French and 5.0% French Canadian ancestry according to Census 2010. 80.8% spoke English, 10.2% Spanish, 1.4% French, 1.2% Italian and 1.0% Portuguese as their first language.
There were 275,419 households out of which 32.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.10% were married couples living together, 12.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.80% were non-families. 27.10% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.57 and the average family size was 3.15.
In the county the population was spread out with 25.20% under the age of 18, 7.50% from 18 to 24, 30.30% from 25 to 44, 23.10% from 45 to 64, and 13.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 91.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.80 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $51,576, and the median income for a family was $63,746. Males had a median income of $44,569 versus $32,369 for females. The per capita income for the county was $26,358. About 6.60% of families and 8.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.90% of those under age 18 and 8.90% of those age 65 or over.
In 2006, Essex County received the dubious honor of being named number one on Forbes Magazine's list of most overpriced places to live in the U.S. The magazine cited high living costs and expensive real estate as the major reasons Essex County was picked over cities with higher mean real estate values (San Diego, New York, Honolulu.)
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*Villages are census divisions, but have no separate corporate existence from the towns they are in.
| Year | Republican | Democratic |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 39.01% 136,905 | 59.36% 208,323 |
| 2004 | 40.5% 135,114 | 58.2% 194,068 |
| 2000 | 35.4% 110,010 | 57.5% 178,400 |
| 1996 | 30.6% 89,120 | 58.7% 171,021 |
| 1992 | 31.7% 102,212 | 43.6% 140,593 |
| 1988 | 48.6% 148,614 | 49.7% 151,816 |
| 1984 | 54.8% 162,152 | 44.8% 132,353 |
| 1980 | 43.8% 130,252 | 39.0% 116,173 |
| 1976 | 41.6% 125,538 | 55.0% 165,710 |
| 1972 | 46.5% 138,040 | 53.0% 157,324 |
| 1968 | 35.4% 99,721 | 61.0% 171,901 |
| 1964 | 25.3% 71,653 | 73.4% 210,135 |
| 1960 | 42.9% 126,599 | 56.9% 167,875 |
| Voter Registration and Party Enrollment as of October 13, 2010[8] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Number of Voters | Percentage | |||
| Democratic | 158,409 | 32.98% | |||
| Republican | 57,759 | 12.02% | |||
| Unaffiliated | 261,600 | 54.46% | |||
| Minor Parties | 2,619 | 0.55% | |||
| Total | 480,387 | 100% | |||
Essex County is home to several libraries and schools, both public and private.
On November 12, 1996, Essex National Heritage Area (ENHA) was authorized by Congress. The heritage area consists of all of Essex County, MA a 500-square-mile (1,300 km2) area between the Atlantic Coast and the Merrimack Valley. The area includes 34 cities and towns; two National Historic Sites (Salem Maritime National Historic Site and Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site); and thousands of historic sites and districts that illuminate colonial settlement, the development of the shoe and textile industries, and the growth and decline of the maritime industries — including fishing, privateering, and the China trade.[9] The Essex National Heritage Area is one of 49 heritage areas designated by Congress, affiliated with the National Park Service.
The Essex National Heritage Commission is a non-profit organization chartered to promote tourism and cultural awareness of the area, connecting people to the places of Essex County, MA. The Commission's mission is to promote and preserve the historic, cultural and natural resources of the ENHA. This is accomplished through the commission's projects and programs which include; Partnership Grant Program, Explorers membership program, Photo Safaris, and the annual September weekend event 'Trails & Sails' as well as other important regional partnership building projects like the Essex Heritage Scenic Byway, and the Border to Boston trail.
Essex County References
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