Hampshire County, Massachusetts

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′N 72°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]