Middlesex County, Massachusetts

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 shires." Middlesex initially contained Charlestown, Cambridge, Watertown, Sudbury, Concord, Woburn, Medford, and Reading.Davis, William T. Bench and Bar of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, p. 44. The Boston History Company, 1895. In 1649 the first Middlesex County Registry of Deeds was created in Cambridge.

On April 19, 1775, Middlesex was the site of the first armed conflict of the American Revolutionary War.

In 1855, the Massachusetts State Legislature created a minor Registry of Deeds for the Northern District of Middlesex County in Lowell.

In the late 19th century and early 20th century, Boston annexed several of its adjacent cities and towns including Charlestown and Brighton from Middlesex County, resulting in an enlargement and accretion toward Suffolk County.

Beginning prior to the dissolution of the executive county government, the county comprised two regions with separate county seats for administrative purposes:

• The Middlesex-North District (smaller) with its county seat in Lowell under the Registry of Deeds consisted of the city of Lowell, and its adjacent towns of Billerica, Carlisle, Chelmsford, Dracut, Dunstable, Tewksbury, Tyngsborough, Westford and Wilmington.
• The Middlesex-South District (larger) with the county seat in Cambridge{{cite web|url=http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx |access-date=June 7, 2011 |title=Find a County |publisher=National Association of Counties |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110531210815/http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx |archive-date=May 31, 2011 }} consisted of the remaining 44 cities and towns of Middlesex County.{{M.G.L.|36|1}}

Since the start of the 21st century, much of the current and former county offices have physically decentralized from the Cambridge seat, with the sole exceptions being the Registry of Deeds and the Middlesex Probate and Family Court, which both retain locations in Cambridge and Lowell. Since the first quarter of 2008, the Superior Courthouse{{cite news |last1=Redmond |first1=Lisa |date=March 10, 2008 |title=Middlesex Superior Court moving to Woburn |url=http://www.lowellsun.com/breakingnews/ci_8521720 |publisher=Digital First Media |agency=Lowell Sun |access-date=January 31, 2018 |quote=WOBURN – Middlesex Superior Court, currently located in the Edward J. Sullivan Courthouse in Cambridge, will move to a new facility in Woburn in the TradeCenter on Sylvan Road beginning Friday, according to Chief Justice for Administration and Management Robert A. Mulligan. |archive-date=January 29, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180129141612/http://www.lowellsun.com/breakingnews/ci_8521720 |url-status=live }} has been seated in the city of Woburn;{{cite web |url=https://www.tradecenter128.com/media.htm |title=Press Release: Middlesex Superior Court Moves to Woburn |date=March 17, 2008 |publisher=Cummings Properties, LLC |access-date=January 31, 2018 |quote=Woburn, MA, March 17, 2008 – The new furniture has been installed, years of case files have been dusted off, moved and organized, and the computers are all hooked up and ready to go. After 40 years in Cambridge, the Superior Court is open and ready for business in Woburn. [ ... ] Serving nearly all of the 54 communities in Middlesex County, the new Woburn building houses 15 courtrooms, clerks' offices, judges' chambers, the probation department, the law library, and more. In addition, the Court estimates that more than 400 people will use the building every day, including, lawyers, judges, administrative staff, jurors, plaintiffs, defendants, visitors, and others who work at the building and use the system. |archive-date=January 30, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180130091238/https://www.tradecenter128.com/media.htm |url-status=live }}{{cite news |last1=Properties |first1=Cummings |date=September 20, 2013 |title=Press Release:Middlesex Superior Court renews lease in Woburn |url=https://patch.com/massachusetts/woburn/middlesex-superior-court-renews-lease-in-woburn |work=Cummings Properties, Business |publisher=Patch Media |access-date=January 31, 2018 |quote=The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has extended its lease for the Middlesex County Superior Courthouse at TradeCenter 128 in Woburn for a seven-year term. This renewal comes five years after the Court moved from the Edward J. Sullivan Courthouse in Cambridge, which was in need of extensive renovations and has since been slated for redevelopment. |archive-date=January 29, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180129141451/https://patch.com/massachusetts/woburn/middlesex-superior-court-renews-lease-in-woburn |url-status=live }} the Sheriff's Office is now administratively seated in the city of Medford and the Cambridge-based County Jail{{cite news |last1=Hanson |first1=Melissa |date=June 28, 2014 |title=Middlesex Jail in Cambridge closes |url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2014/06/28/middlesex-jail-cambridge-closes/tH9JuyPXowVZTQLGQ9VdkJ/story.html |url-status=dead|newspaper=The Boston Globe |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180129141409/https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2014/06/28/middlesex-jail-cambridge-closes/tH9JuyPXowVZTQLGQ9VdkJ/story.html|archive-date=January 29, 2018|access-date=February 10, 2018 |url-access=subscription |quote=The Middlesex Jail at the Edward J. Sullivan Courthouse in Cambridge closed Saturday after 32 years of operation, according to Middlesex Sheriff Peter J. Koutoujian.}} has since been amalgamated with another county jail facility in Billerica.{{cite news |last1=Boeri |first1=David |date=June 30, 2014 |title=One Last Elevator Ride Down: Cambridge High-Rise Jail Is No More |url=http://www.wbur.org/news/2014/06/30/middlesex-jail-cambridge-billerica |work=WBUR |access-date=February 10, 2018 |quote=A high-security weekend operation has emptied the Middlesex County Jail in Cambridge of all its inmates. |archive-date=January 29, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180129200901/http://www.wbur.org/news/2014/06/30/middlesex-jail-cambridge-billerica |url-status=live }} The Cambridge District Court (which has jurisdiction for Arlington, Belmont and Cambridge); along with the Middlesex County District Attorney's Office, although not a part of the Middlesex County government, was also relatedly forced to relocate to Medford at the time of the closure of the Superior Courthouse building in Cambridge.{{cite news |last1=Barry |first1=Rob |date=February 26, 2009 |title=Cambridge Court opens in Medford |url=http://www.wickedlocal.com/article/20090226/news/302269714 |publisher=WickedLocal |agency=GateHouse Media, LLC |access-date=February 10, 2018 |url-access=subscription |quote=The Cambridge District Court moved into Medford this week, placing itself in the former Cross Country building at 4040 Mystic Valley Pkwy. |archive-date=January 29, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180129141718/http://www.wickedlocal.com/article/20090226/news/302269714 |url-status=live }}{{cite news |last1=Kenney |first1=Joan |last2=Whiting |first2=Charlotte |date=February 17, 2009 |title=Third District Court of Middlesex County Relocates From Cambridge to Medford |url=http://www.bostonbar.org/pub/bw/0809/022309/court_move.pdf |department=Public Information Office |work=Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court |publisher=Boston Bar Association |access-date=February 10, 2018 |quote=Chief Justice for Administration and Management Robert A. Mulligan today announced that the Third District Court of Middlesex County, currently located in the Edward J. Sullivan Courthouse in Cambridge, will move to a new court facility on the Mystic Valley Parkway in Medford after the close of business on February 20, 2009, and open for business at this new site on Monday, February 23, 2009. |archive-date=January 29, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180129195027/http://www.bostonbar.org/pub/bw/0809/022309/court_move.pdf |url-status=live }}

Of the fourteen counties of Massachusetts, Middlesex is one of eight{{cite web |url=https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleVI/Chapter34B |title=General Laws of Massachusetts, Chapter 34B. Abolition of County Government |work=Massachusetts General Court |access-date=November 26, 2016 |archive-date=May 25, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210525142932/https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleVI/Chapter34b |url-status=live }} which have had no county government or county commissioners since July 1, 1998, when county functions were assumed by state agencies at local option following a change in state law. Immediately prior to its dissolution, the executive branch consisted of three County Commissioners elected at-large to staggered four-year terms. There was a County Treasurer elected to a six-year term. The county derived its revenue primarily from document filing fees at the Registries of Deeds and from a Deeds Excise Tax; also a transfer tax was assessed on the sale price of real estate and collected by the Registries of Deeds.Middlesex County Directory: 1993-1995, (Cambridge: Middlesex County Commissioners Office, 1995)

Budgets as proposed by the County Commissioners were approved by a County Advisory Board that consisted of a single representative of each of the 54 cities and towns in Middlesex County. The votes of the individual members of the advisory board were weighted based on the overall valuation of property in their respective communities.

The County Sheriff and two Registers of Deeds (one for the Northern District at Lowell and another for the Southern District at Cambridge) are each elected to serve six-year terms.{{MassGenLaws|34|4}} Besides the employees of the Sheriff's Office and the two Registries of Deeds, the county had a Maintenance Department, a Security Department, some administrative staff in the Treasurer's and Commissioners' Offices, and the employees of the hospital.

The county government also owned and operated the Superior Courthouse, one of which was formerly in Cambridge (since 2008 relocated to Woburn.){{cite news |last1=Moskowitz |first1=Eric |date=February 14, 2008 |title=Court move a hassle for commuters |url=http://archive.boston.com/news/local/articles/2008/02/14/court_move_a_hassle_for_commuters/ |access-date=January 29, 2018 |archive-date=November 5, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161105032846/http://archive.boston.com/news/local/articles/2008/02/14/court_move_a_hassle_for_commuters/ |url-status=live }} and one in Lowell; and the defunct Middlesex County Hospital in the city of Waltham.

The legislation abolishing the Middlesex County executive retained the Sheriff and Registers of Deeds as independently elected officials, and transferred the Sheriff's Office under the state Department of Public Safety and the two Registry of Deeds offices to the Massachusetts Secretary of State's Office.{{MassGenLaws|34B|10}} Additionally, all county maintenance and security employees were absorbed into the corresponding staffs of the Massachusetts Trial Court. The legislation also transferred ownership of the two Superior Courthouses to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The hospital was closed. Finally, the office of County Commissioner was immediately abolished and the office of County Treasurer was abolished as of December 31, 2002.{{MassGenLaws|34B|2}} Any county roads transferred to the Commonwealth as part of the dissolution. The other administrative duties (such as Sheriff, Department of Deeds and court system, etc.) and all supporting staff were transferred under the Commonwealth as well.

Records of land ownership in Middlesex County continue to be maintained at the two Registries of Deeds. Besides the Sheriff and the two Registers of Deeds, the Middlesex District Attorney, the Middlesex Register of Probate and the Middlesex Clerk of Courts (which were already part of state government before the abolition of Middlesex County government) are all elected countywide to six-year terms.

In Middlesex County (as in the entirety of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts), the governmental functions such as property tax assessment and collection, public education, road repair and maintenance, and elections were all conducted at the municipal city and town level and not by the county government.

In 2012 the 22-story Superior Court Building in Cambridge which was transferred from the abolished Executive County government was sold{{Cite news |last=Baldassari |first=Erin |date=December 17, 2012 |title=Leggat McCall wins bid for Sullivan Courthouse redevelopment in Cambridge |publisher=WickedLocal |agency=GateHouse Media, LLC |url=http://cambridge.wickedlocal.com/x1107423193/Leggat-McCall-wins-bid-for-Sullivan-Courthouse-redevelopment-in-Cambridge |url-access=subscription |access-date=December 17, 2012 |quote=Leggat McCall Properties was selected from a pool of seven bidders to redevelop the 22-story, 600,000-square-foot EJ Sullivan Courthouse in East Cambridge, the state announced Friday, Dec. 14. |archive-date=January 30, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180130014120/http://cambridge.wickedlocal.com/x1107423193/Leggat-McCall-wins-bid-for-Sullivan-Courthouse-redevelopment-in-Cambridge |url-status=live }}{{Cite news |last=Parker |first=Brock |date=November 16, 2011 |title=State advertising 22-story Sullivan Courthouse, seeking to sell by September |publisher=Boston Globe Media Partners, LLC |url=http://archive.boston.com/yourtown/news/cambridge/2011/11/state_advertising_22-story_sul.html |url-access=subscription |access-date=February 10, 2018 |quote=State officials are advertising for a buyer for the 22-story, asbestos-plagued Edward J. Sullivan Courthouse in Cambridge and hope to move prisoners housed in county jail at the facility to another location by the spring of 2013. |archive-date=January 30, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180130091232/http://archive.boston.com/yourtown/news/cambridge/2011/11/state_advertising_22-story_sul.html |url-status=live }} by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.{{Cite news |last=Ansari, Esq. |first=Maryam K. |date=December 19, 2012 |title=Cambridge Residents Contesting Plans for Sullivan Courthouse |work=FindLaw Network |publisher=Boston Real Estate Law News |agency=Thomson Reuters |url=http://bostonrealestatelawnews.com/2012/12/cambridge-residents-contesting-plans-for-sullivan-courthouse.html |access-date=February 10, 2018 |archive-date=January 30, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180130014347/http://bostonrealestatelawnews.com/2012/12/cambridge-residents-contesting-plans-for-sullivan-courthouse.html |url-status=live }} Due to its transfer from state control,{{Cite news |last=Goodison |first=Donna |date=July 20, 2017 |title=Cambridge courthouse judged fit for redo |work=Boston Herald and Herald Media |url=http://www.bostonherald.com/business/real_estate/2017/07/cambridge_courthouse_judged_fit_for_redo |access-date=February 10, 2018 |quote=The Appeals Court upheld a 2015 Land Court decision that determined the former Edward J. Sullivan Courthouse, when transferred from state ownership to private ownership under Boston developer Leggat McCall Properties, would still be considered a legal, preexisting nonconforming structure despite losing its government immunity from zoning rules. |archive-date=January 30, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180130145429/http://www.bostonherald.com/business/real_estate/2017/07/cambridge_courthouse_judged_fit_for_redo |url-status=live }} many local residents had tried to force the private developers to reduce the overall height of the structure.{{Cite news |last=Chesto |first=Jon |date=August 8, 2017 |title=A towering dilemma in East Cambridge |work=The Boston Globe |url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/business/talking-points/2017/08/08/towering-dilemma-east-cambridge/c2wZnnDecPvEiiHSoyH7EK/story.html |url-status=dead |url-access=subscription |access-date=February 10, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170811191556/http://www.bostonglobe.com/business/talking-points/2017/08/08/towering-dilemma-east-cambridge/c2wZnnDecPvEiiHSoyH7EK/story.html |archive-date=August 11, 2017 |quote=The developers who want to remodel the imposing former courthouse tower in East Cambridge and enliven its ground floor had hoped an appeals court decision last month was the final green light they needed.}}{{Cite web |last=Staff writer |date=July 20, 2017 |title=40 Thorndike Street |url=http://www.bldup.com/projects/40-thorndike-street |access-date=February 10, 2018 |website=Bldup.com |publisher=BLDUP |quote=Upcoming mixed-use development located steps from Kendall Square that will transform the existing 22-story Sullivan Courthouse and Middlesex Jail tower in East Cambridge into a 20-story mixed-use tower. The new 40 Thorndike Street will feature approximately 430,000 square feet of office, research & development space and 15,000 square feet of ground-floor retail, along with 24 apartment residences on lower floors. Lower office floors will be marketed to startup companies as innovation space. Retail will include a grocery store and a health club; a daycare could be included as well. |archive-date=January 30, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180130013843/http://www.bldup.com/projects/40-thorndike-street |url-status=live }}

Even following the abolition of the executive branch for county government in Middlesex, communities are still granted a right by the Massachusetts state legislature to form their own regional compacts for sharing of services and costs thereof.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of {{convert|847|sqmi}}, of which {{convert|818|sqmi}} is land and {{convert|29|sqmi}} (3.5%) is water.{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/geo/maps-data/data/docs/gazetteer/counties_list_25.txt|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=September 16, 2014|date=August 22, 2012|title=2010 Census Gazetteer Files|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20140914175857/http://www.census.gov/geo/maps-data/data/docs/gazetteer/counties_list_25.txt|archive-date=September 14, 2014}} It is the third-largest county in Massachusetts by land area.

It is bounded southeast by the Charles River and drained by the Merrimack, Nashua, and Concord rivers, and other streams.{{Cite AmCyc|wstitle=Middlesex (United States)|display=Middlesex: I. A N. E. county of Massachusetts}}

The MetroWest region comprises much of the southern portion of the county.

• Hillsborough County, New Hampshire (north)
• Essex County (northeast)
• Suffolk County (southeast)
• Norfolk County (south)
• Worcester County (west)

These routes pass through Middlesex County

• {{jct|state=MA|I|90}}, From Hopkinton to Newton
• {{jct|state=MA|I|93}}, From Somerville to Tewksbury
• {{jct|state=MA|I|95}}, From Newton to Wakefield
• {{jct|state=MA|I|290}}, In Marlboro
• {{jct|state=MA|I|495}}, From Hopkinton to Tewksbury
• {{jct|state=MA|US|1}}, From Cambridge to Malden
• {{jct|state=MA|US|3}}/Route 3, From Cambridge to Tyngsborough
• {{jct|state=MA|US|20}}, From Marlborough to Watertown
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|2}}, From Littleton to Cambridge
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|2A}}, From Shirley to Cambridge
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|3A}}, From Burlington to Tyngsborough
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|4}}, From Lexington-Arlington line to Chelmsford
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|9}}, From Framingham to Newton
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|13}}, In Townsend
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|16}}, From Holliston to Everett
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|27}}, From Sherborn to Chelmsford
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|28}}, From Cambridge to North Reading
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|30}}, From Framingham to Newton
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|31}}, In Ashby
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|38}}, From Somerville to Dracut
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|40}}, From Groton to Chelmsford
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|60}}, From Waltham to Malden
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|62}}, From Hudson to North Reading
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|85}}, From Hopkinton to Hudson
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|99}}, From Everett to Melrose
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|110}}, From Ayer to Dracut
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|111}}, From Concord to Pepperell
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|113}}, From Pepperell to Dracut
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|115}}, In Sherborn
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|117}}, From Stow to Waltham
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|119}}, From Concord to Ashby
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|125}}, From Wilmington to North Reading
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|126}}, From Holliston to Concord
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|128}}, From Newton to Wakefield
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|129}}, From Chelmsford to Wakefield
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|133}}, From Lowell to Tewksbury
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|135}}, From Hopkinton to Natick
• {{jct|state=MA|MA|225}}, From Shirley to Lexington

• Assabet River National Wildlife Refuge
• Great Meadows National Wildlife Refuge
• Longfellow House–Washington's Headquarters National Historic Site
• Lowell National Historical Park
• Minute Man National Historical Park
• Oxbow National Wildlife Refuge (part)

{{US Census population

|1790= 42769

|1800= 46928

|1810= 52789

|1820= 61472

|1830= 77961

|1840= 106611

|1850= 161383

|1860= 216354

|1870= 274353

|1880= 317830

|1890= 431167

|1900= 565696

|1910= 669915

|1920= 778352

|1930= 934924

|1940= 971390

|1950= 1064569

|1960= 1238742

|1970= 1397268

|1980= 1367034

|1990= 1398468

|2000= 1465396

|2010= 1503085

|2020= 1632002

|estyear=2024

|estimate=1668956

|estref={{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/data/tables.html|title=Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=April 3, 2024}}

|align-fn=center

|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|title=U.S. Decennial Census|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=September 16, 2014|archive-date=July 1, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210701194652/https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|url-status=live}}
1790-1960{{cite web|url=http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu/|title=Historical Census Browser|publisher=University of Virginia Library|access-date=September 16, 2014|archive-date=August 11, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120811110448/http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu/|url-status=live}} 1900-1990{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/ma190090.txt|title=Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=September 16, 2014|archive-date=April 28, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150428025655/http://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/ma190090.txt|url-status=live}}
1990-2000{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf|title=Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=September 16, 2014|archive-date=December 18, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141218203824/http://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf|url-status=live}} 2010-2020{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/library/visualizations/interactive/2020-population-and-housing-state-data.html|title=2020 Population and Housing State Data|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=August 15, 2021|archive-date=August 12, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210812173619/https://www.census.gov/library/visualizations/interactive/2020-population-and-housing-state-data.html|url-status=live}}

}}

{{As of|2006}}, Middlesex County was tenth in the United States on the list of most millionaires per county.{{cite news | url=https://money.cnn.com/2006/03/28/news/economy/millionaires/ | work=CNN | first=Jeanne | last=Sahadi | title=Top 10 millionaire counties | date=March 28, 2006 | access-date=August 3, 2020 | archive-date=October 30, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201030082932/https://money.cnn.com/2006/03/28/news/economy/millionaires/ | url-status=live }}

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 1,503,085 people, 580,688 households, and 366,656 families residing in the county.{{cite web

|url=http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_DP/DPDP1/0500000US25017

|title=DP-1 Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data

|access-date=January 12, 2016

|publisher=United States Census Bureau

|archive-url=https://archive.today/20200213031244/http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_DP/DPDP1/0500000US25017

|archive-date=February 13, 2020

|url-status=dead

}} The population density was {{convert|1,837.9|PD/sqmi}}. There were 612,004 housing units at an average density of {{convert|748.3|/sqmi}}.{{cite web

|url=http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_SF1/GCTPH1.CY07/0500000US25017

|access-date=January 12, 2016

|title=Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density: 2010 - County

|publisher=United States Census Bureau

|archive-url=https://archive.today/20200213184155/http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_SF1/GCTPH1.CY07/0500000US25017

|archive-date=February 13, 2020

|url-status=dead

}} The racial makeup of the county was 80.0% white, 9.3% Asian, 4.7% black or African American, 0.2% American Indian, 3.3% from other races, and 2.5% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 6.5% of the population.

The largest ancestry groups were:{{cite web

|url=http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/10_5YR/DP02/0500000US25017

|title=DP02 SELECTED SOCIAL CHARACTERISTICS IN THE UNITED STATES – 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates

|access-date=January 12, 2016

|publisher=United States Census Bureau

|archive-url=https://archive.today/20200213032015/http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/10_5YR/DP02/0500000US25017

|archive-date=February 13, 2020

|url-status=dead

}}

{{Div col|colwidth=15em}}

• 23.5% Irish
• 16.2% Italian
• 11.2% English
• 7.1% German
• 5.6% French
• 4.0% Polish
• 3.6% French Canadian
• 3.2% Chinese
• 3.1% Portuguese
• 2.9% American
• 2.7% Scottish
• 2.6% Russian
• 2.5% Indian
• 2.4% Brazilian
• 2.0% Scotch-Irish
• 2.0% Puerto Rican
• 1.7% Swedish
• 1.6% Greek
• 1.2% Sub-Saharan African
• 1.2% Haitian
• 1.2% Armenian
• 1.1% Canadian
• 1.0% Cambodian
• 1.0% Arab

{{div col end}}

Of the 580,688 households, 31.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.5% were married couples living together, 10.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 36.9% were non-families, and 27.8% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.10. The median age was 38.5 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $77,377 and the median income for a family was $97,382. Males had a median income of $64,722 versus $50,538 for females. The per capita income for the county was $40,139. About 5.1% of families and 7.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.0% of those under age 18 and 8.0% of those age 65 or over.{{cite web

|url=http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/10_5YR/DP03/0500000US25017

|title=DP03 SELECTED ECONOMIC CHARACTERISTICS – 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates

|access-date=January 12, 2016

|publisher=United States Census Bureau

|archive-url=https://archive.today/20200213020651/http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/10_5YR/DP03/0500000US25017

|archive-date=February 13, 2020

|url-status=dead

}}

79.6% spoke English, 4.3% Spanish, 2.7% Portuguese, 1.6% Italian, 1.6% Chinese including Mandarin and other Chinese dialects and 1.5% French as their first language.

Middlesex County has the largest Irish-American population of any U.S. county with a plurality of Irish ancestry.{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/releases/archives/facts_for_features_special_editions/006328.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060225100820/http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/releases/archives/facts_for_features_special_editions/006328.html|archive-date=February 25, 2006|title=US Census Press Releases|date=February 25, 2006}}{{Cite web |url=https://www.census.gov/popest/data/counties/totals/2011/tables/CO-EST2011-01-25.csv |title=Archived copy |access-date=December 7, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151012164941/http://www.census.gov/popest/data/counties/totals/2011/tables/CO-EST2011-01-25.csv |archive-date=October 12, 2015 |url-status=dead }}

{{See also|List of Massachusetts locations by per capita income}}

The ranking of unincorporated communities that are included on the list is reflective if the census-designated locations and villages were included as cities or towns. Data is from the 2007-2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates.{{cite web |url=http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=ACS_11_5YR_DP03&prodType=table|archive-url=https://archive.today/20200212213610/http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=ACS_11_5YR_DP03&prodType=table|url-status=dead|archive-date=February 12, 2020|title=SELECTED ECONOMIC CHARACTERISTICS 2007-2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates|publisher=U.S. Census Bureau|access-date=January 26, 2013}}{{cite web |url=http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=ACS_11_5YR_DP05&prodType=table|archive-url=https://archive.today/20200212212105/http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=ACS_11_5YR_DP05&prodType=table|url-status=dead|archive-date=February 12, 2020|title=ACS DEMOGRAPHIC AND HOUSING ESTIMATES 2007-2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates|publisher=U.S. Census Bureau |access-date=January 26, 2013}}{{cite web |url=http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=ACS_11_5YR_S1101&prodType=table|archive-url=https://archive.today/20200212212620/http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=ACS_11_5YR_S1101&prodType=table|url-status=dead|archive-date=February 12, 2020|title=HOUSEHOLDS AND FAMILIES 2007-2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates|publisher=U.S. Census Bureau |access-date=January 26, 2013}}

{{Infobox law enforcement agency

| agencyname = Middlesex Sheriff's Office

| nativename =

| nativenamea =

| nativenamer =

| commonname =

| abbreviation = MSO

| fictional =

| patch = MiddlesexSheriffpatch.jpg

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| employees = 800

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| budget = $60 Million

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The primary responsibility of the Middlesex Sheriff's Office is oversight of the Middlesex House of Correction and Jail in Billerica. It formerly ran the Middlesex Jail in Cambridge, which closed on June 28, 2014. In addition, the Sheriff's Office operates the Office of Civil Process and, the Lowell Community Counseling Centers, and crime prevention and community service programs. The office of sheriff was created in 1692, making it one of the oldest law enforcement agencies in the United States. The sheriff is elected to a 6-year term.{{Cite web |title=Middlesex Sheriff |url=https://www.middlesexsheriff.org/ |access-date=March 17, 2022 |website=Middlesexsheriff.org |archive-date=March 14, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220314200932/https://www.middlesexsheriff.org/ |url-status=live }}

Notable sheriffs include:

{{div col}}

• Col. James Prescott (1775–1781)
• Col. Loammi Baldwin (1781–1794)
• Col. Samuel Chandler (1841–1851)
• Charles Kimball (1859–1879)
• John J. Buckley (1970–1980)
• John P. McGonigle (1985–1994)
• James DiPaola (1996–2010)
• John Granara (Special) (2010–2011)
• Peter Koutoujian (2011–Present)

{{div col end}}

Prior to 1960, Middlesex County was a Republican Party stronghold, backing only two Democratic Party presidential candidates from 1876 to 1956. The 1960 election started a reverse trend, with the county becoming a Democratic stronghold. This has been even more apparent in recent years, with George H. W. Bush in 1988 being the last Republican presidential candidate to manage forty percent of the county's votes and Mitt Romney in 2012 being the last Republican presidential candidate to manage even thirty percent of the vote. In 2020, Joe Biden won 71% of the vote, the highest percent for any presidential candidate since 1964.

{{clear}}

{{PresHead|place=Middlesex County, Massachusetts|source={{cite web|url=http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS|title=Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections|first=David|last=Leip|website=uselectionatlas.org|access-date=July 10, 2017|archive-date=March 23, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180323225526/https://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/|url-status=live}}}}

{{PresRow|2024|Democratic|235,118|554,471|25,243|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|2020|Democratic|226,956|617,196|19,425|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|2016|Democratic|219,793|520,360|56,582|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|2012|Democratic|267,321|471,804|15,045|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|2008|Democratic|245,766|464,484|15,781|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|2004|Democratic|237,815|440,862|10,283|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|2000|Democratic|198,914|404,043|54,091|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1996|Democratic|169,926|398,190|59,861|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1992|Democratic|193,703|343,994|151,756|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1988|Democratic|290,352|361,563|10,713|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1984|Democratic|319,604|325,065|2,085|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1980|Democratic|256,999|270,751|109,929|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1976|Democratic|260,044|359,919|23,419|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1972|Democratic|269,064|345,343|3,244|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1968|Democratic|188,304|370,310|18,982|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1964|Democratic|134,729|439,790|2,291|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1960|Democratic|246,126|356,130|1,260|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1956|Republican|343,125|216,668|1,580|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1952|Republican|316,069|236,910|1,626|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1948|Democratic|228,262|248,240|9,406|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1944|Republican|236,102|210,253|725|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1940|Republican|242,658|218,663|2,116|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1936|Republican|199,704|189,512|30,304|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1932|Republican|184,486|174,257|7,008|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1928|Republican|189,189|173,339|1,313|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1924|Republican|162,530|64,544|28,161|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1920|Republican|156,636|61,661|5,781|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1916|Republican|60,802|49,844|2,426|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1912|Democratic|30,511|36,689|35,667|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1908|Republican|58,672|31,362|5,853|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1904|Republican|55,704|32,889|3,275|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1900|Republican|49,638|29,476|2,841|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1896|Republican|57,281|19,591|3,394|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1892|Republican|40,375|34,769|1,946|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1888|Republican|35,768|28,570|1,519|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1884|Republican|27,654|22,206|7,157|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1880|Republican|30,339|19,801|1,013|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1876|Republican|27,304|19,561|193|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1872|Republican|26,570|12,434|0|Massachusetts}}

{{PresRow|1868|Republican|24,694|12,454|0|Massachusetts}}

|}

File:Map of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, by Geo. H. Walker & Co., 1889.jpg

File:Middlesex County Massachusetts incorporated and unincorporated areas Cambridge highlighted.svg

Most municipalities in Middlesex County have a town form of government; the remainder are cities, and are so designated on this list. Villages listed below are census or postal divisions but have no separate corporate or statutory existence from the cities and towns in which they are located.

{{div col|colwidth=22em}}

• Cambridge (traditional county seat) de jure
• Everett
• Framingham
• Lowell (traditional county seat)
• Malden
• Marlborough
• Medford
• Melrose
• Newton
• Somerville
• Waltham
• Watertown
• Woburn

{{div col end}}

{{div col|colwidth=12em}}

• Acton
• Arlington
• Ashby
• Ashland
• Ayer
• Bedford
• Belmont
• Billerica
• Boxborough
• Burlington
• Carlisle
• Chelmsford
• Concord
• Dracut
• Dunstable
• Groton
• Holliston
• Hopkinton
• Hudson
• Lexington
• Lincoln
• Littleton
• Maynard
• Natick
• North Reading
• Pepperell
• Reading
• Sherborn
• Shirley
• Stoneham
• Stow
• Sudbury
• Tewksbury
• Townsend
• Tyngsborough
• Wakefield
• Wayland
• Westford
• Weston
• Wilmington
• Winchester

{{div col end}}

{{div col|colwidth=12em}}

• Ayer
• Cochituate
• Devens
• East Pepperell
• Groton
• Hanscom AFB
• Hopkinton
• Littleton Common
• Pepperell
• Pinehurst
• Shirley
• Townsend
• West Concord

{{div col end}}

{{div col|colwidth=12em}}

• Auburndale
• Chestnut Hill
• East Lexington
• Felchville
• Forge Village
• Gleasondale
• Graniteville
• Greenwood
• Melrose Highlands
• Nabnasset
• Newton Centre
• Newton Highlands
• Newton Lower Falls
• Newton Upper Falls
• Newtonville
• Nonantum
• North Billerica
• North Chelmsford
• North Woburn
• Pingryville
• Saxonville
• Thompsonville
• Waban
• West Newton

{{div col end}}

{{expand section|date=July 2022}}

School districts include:{{cite web|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st25_ma/schooldistrict_maps/c25017_middlesex/DC20SD_C25017.pdf|title=2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Middlesex County, MA|publisher=U.S. Census Bureau|accessdate=July 22, 2022|archive-date=July 22, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220722170353/https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st25_ma/schooldistrict_maps/c25017_middlesex/DC20SD_C25017.pdf|url-status=live}} - [https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st25_ma/schooldistrict_maps/c25017_middlesex/DC20SD_C25017_SD2MS.txt Text list] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220722170353/https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st25_ma/schooldistrict_maps/c25017_middlesex/DC20SD_C25017_SD2MS.txt |date=July 22, 2022 }}

K-12:

{{div col|colwidth=30em}}

• Ayer-Shirley School District
• Acton-Boxborough Regional School District
• Arlington School District
• Ashland School District
• Bedford School District
• Belmont School District
• Billerica School District
• Burlington School District
• Cambridge Public School District
• Chelmsford School District
• Dracut School District
• Everett School District
• Framingham School District
• Groton-Dunstable School District
• Holliston School District
• Hopkinton School District
• Hudson School District
• Lexington School District
• Littleton School District
• Lowell Public Schools
• Malden School District
• Marlborough School District
• Maynard School District
• Medford Public Schools
• Melrose School District
• Nashoba School District
• Natick School District
• Newton School District
• North Middlesex School District
• North Reading School District
• Reading Public Schools
• Somerville School District
• Stoneham School District
• Tewksbury School District
• Tyngsborough School District
• Wakefield School District
• Waltham School District
• Watertown School District
• Wayland School District
• Westford School District
• Weston School District
• Wilmington School District
• Winchester School District
• Woburn School District

{{div col end}}

Secondary:

• Concord-Carlisle School District
• Dover-Sherborn School District
• Lincoln-Sudbury School District

Elementary:

{{div col|colwidth=30em}}

• Carlisle School District
• Concord School District
• Lincoln School District
• Sherborn School District
• Sudbury School District

{{div col end}}

Tertiary institutions include:

• Harvard University (Cambridge)
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) (Cambridge)
• Framingham State University (Framingham)

Middlesex County is home to the Middlesex County Volunteers, a fife and drum corps that plays music from the 17th, 18th, 19th and 20th centuries. Founded in 1982 at the end of the United States Bicentennial celebration, the group performs extensively throughout New England. They have also performed at the Boston Pops, throughout the British Isles and Western Europe, and at the Edinburgh Military Tattoo's Salute to Australia in Sydney, Australia.

{{portal|Massachusetts}}

• Middlesex, historic county of England
• List of Massachusetts locations by per capita income
• Registry of Deeds (Massachusetts)
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Middlesex County, Massachusetts
• Middlesex Fells
• Middlesex Community College (Massachusetts)
• Middlesex Turnpike (Massachusetts)
• Middlesex County Sheriff's Office

{{Notelist}}

{{reflist}}

• [https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_QGolOAyd9RMC History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Volume 1 (A-H)], [https://archive.org/details/historymiddlese00drakgoog/page/n314 Volume 2 (L-W)] by Samuel Adams Drake, published 1879 and 1880. 572 and 505 pages.
• [https://archive.org/details/ancientmiddlese00goulgoog Ancient Middlesex with Brief Biographical Sketches.] By Levi Swanton Gould, published 1905, 366 pages.

• {{Cite book |publisher = At the presses of S. Hall, and Thomas & Andrews |location = Boston, Massachusetts |author = Jedidiah Morse |author-link=Jedidiah Morse |title = The American Gazetteer |chapter-url=https://archive.org/stream/americangazettee00mors#page/n329/mode/2up |chapter=Middlesex |date = 1797 |ol = 23272543M }}
• Edwin P. Conklin, Middlesex County and Its People: A History. In Four Volumes. New York: Lewis Historical Pub. Co., 1927.
• Samuel Adams Drake, History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts: Containing Carefully Prepared Histories of Every City and Town in the County. Boston: Estes and Lauriat, 1880. [https://archive.org/details/historymiddlese01drakgoog Volume 1] | [https://archive.org/details/historymiddlese00drakgoog Volume 2]
• D. Hamilton Hurd, History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts: With Biographical Sketches of Many of its Pioneers and Prominent Men. In Three Volumes. Philadelphia, PA: J.W. Lewis & Co., 1890. [https://archive.org/details/middlesexcounty01hurd Volume 1] | [https://archive.org/details/historyofmiddles00hurd2 Volume 2] | [https://archive.org/details/historyofmiddles00hurd3 Volume 3]
• Robert H. Rodgers, Middlesex County in the Colony of the Massachusetts Bay in New England: Records of Probate and Administration, February 1670/71 – June 1676. Rockport, ME: Picton Press, 2005.

{{Commons category}}

• [http://www.middlesexsheriff.org/ Middlesex County Sheriff's Department]
• [https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/general_ref/cousub_outline/cen2k_pgsz/ma_cosub.pdf US Census Bureau map] of cities, towns, Native American reservations, and census-designated places
• [https://archive.today/20130414114347/http://maps.bpl.org/details_12690 1856 Map of Middlesex County] by Henry F. Walling
• Walling & Gray. [https://web.archive.org/web/20080404034546/http://www.salemdeeds.com/atlases_pages.asp?ImageName=PAGE_0044_0045.jpg&atlastype=MassWorld&atlastown=&atlas=MASSACHUSETTS+1871&atlas_desc=MASSACHUSETTS+1871&pageprefix= 1871 Map of Middlesex County Plate 44-45] from the [https://web.archive.org/web/20080404033909/http://www.salemdeeds.com/atlases_results.asp?ImageType=index&atlastype=MassWorld&atlastown=&atlas=MASSACHUSETTS+1871&atlas_desc=MASSACHUSETTS+1871 1871 Atlas of Massachusetts.]
• [http://www.nationalregisterofhistoricplaces.com/MA/Middlesex/districts.html National Register of Historic Places listing for Middlesex Co., Massachusetts]
• [http://newenglandtowns.org/massachusetts/middlesex-county Middlesex County entry from Hayward's New England Gazetteer of 1839]
• [http://www.sec.state.ma.us/cis/cispdf/ma_city_town.pdf Map of cities and towns of Massachusetts] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927054352/http://www.sec.state.ma.us/cis/cispdf/ma_city_town.pdf |date=September 27, 2011 }}
• [http://www.sec.state.ma.us/cis/cispdf/ma_counties.pdf Massachusetts County Map]
• [https://archive.org/details/historymiddlese00drakgoog/page/n164 History of Middlesex County] by Samual Adams Drake, 1880. Contains the histories of each town in the county.
• [https://books.google.com/books?id=m74TAAAAYAAJ History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts With Biographical Sketches of Many of Its Pioneers and Prominent Men], edited by Duane Hamilton Hurd. J. W. Lewis & Co., Philadelphia. 1890.
• [http://www.lowelldeeds.com/ Middlesex North District Registry of Deeds]
• [https://www.masslandrecords.com/ Middlesex South District Registry of Deeds]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20040421135513/http://lwvma.org/govcounty.shtml League of Women Voters, Massachusetts: County Government]

{{Geographic Location

|Centre = Middlesex County, Massachusetts

|North = Hillsborough County, New Hampshire

|Northeast = Essex County

|East =

|Southeast = Suffolk County

|South = Norfolk County

|Southwest =

|West = Worcester County

|Northwest =

}}

{{Middlesex County, Massachusetts}}

{{Massachusetts}}

{{Greater_Boston}}

{{Massachusetts Public High Schools}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:Massachusetts counties

Category:Counties in Greater Boston

Category:1643 establishments in the Massachusetts Bay Colony

Category:Populated places established in 1643

Category:1997 disestablishments in Massachusetts

Category:Populated places disestablished in 1997