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Citizen Information Service

Legal Holidays and Statistics

State Legal Holidays

Whenever a holiday falls on a Sunday, it is observed on the following Monday.

  • January 1: New Year's Day
  • Third Monday in January: Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
  • Third Monday in February: Washington's Birthday
  • Third Monday in April: Patriots' Day
  • Last Monday in May: Memorial Day
  • June 19: Juneteenth
  • July 4: Independence Day
  • First Monday in September: Labor Day
  • Second Monday in October: Columbus Day
  • November 11: Veterans' Day
  • Fourth Thursday in November: Thanksgiving Day
  • December 25: Christmas

Suffolk County Holidays

The following holidays are only celebrated in Suffolk County. Since they are not state holidays, all state and municipal agencies, authorities, quasi-public entities, and other offices located in Suffolk County are open for business.

  • March 17: Evacuation Day
  • June 17: Bunker Hill Day

Population and Area

According to the 2020 United States Census, Massachusetts has a population of 7,029,917.

It has a gross area of 8,257 square miles, a net land area of 7,838 square miles, ranks 15th in population, and 45th in area among the states of the nation.

It is divided into 14 counties, varying in size and population from Nantucket (area 50.34 sq. mi., pop. 14,255) to Worcester (area 1,575.95 sq. mi., pop. 862,111) and Middlesex (area 844.21 sq. mi., pop. 1,632,002).

The 14 counties consist of 39 cities and 312 towns, with Boston the largest (pop. 675,647) and Gosnold the smallest (pop. 70). More than half the state’s total population lives in the Greater Boston area.

Massachusetts cities over or approximating 100,000 population include:

  • Boston: 675,647
  • Worcester: 206,518
  • Springfield: 155,929
  • Cambridge: 118,403
  • Lowell: 115,554
  • Brockton: 105,643
  • Quincy: 101,636
  • Lynn: 101,253
  • New Bedford: 101,079
  • Fall River: 94,000

Demographics

The following demographic figures are sourced from the 2020 United States Census and the American Community Survey five-year estimates.

Age

  • 5 years and under: 5.0%
  • 18 years and under: 19.5%
  • 18-64 years old: 63.1%
  • 65 years and older: 17.4%

Race and Hispanic Origin

  • White: 79.8%
  • Hispanic or Latino: 12.8%
  • Black or African American: 9.3%
  • Asian: 7.5%
  • Multiracial: 2.7%
  • American Indian and Alaska Native: 0.5%
  • Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander: 0.1%

Geographical Boundaries

Massachusetts lies between the parallels of 41° 10' and 42° 53' north latitude, and between 69° 57' and 73° 30' west longitude.

It has a shoreline of approximately 1,519 miles on the Atlantic Ocean, Massachusetts Bay, and Buzzards Bay. At its widest parts, the state is 190 miles east-west, and 110 miles north-south.

The northern border, alongside New Hampshire and Vermont, runs almost due east and west for 135 miles; the western border, alongside New York, runs for 49 miles.

The southern border runs alongside Connecticut for 91 miles and Rhode Island for 65 miles.

Time Zone

Massachusetts operates on United States Eastern Standard Time. By law, it also observes Daylight Saving Time, moving forward one hour at 2 a.m. on the second Sunday in March, and moving backward one hour at 2 a.m. on the first Sunday in November.

Climate

The prevailing wind is from the west, with an average velocity of 10-13 miles per hour.

According to NOAA, average monthly temperatures in Boston range from lows of 22° Fahrenheit (-5.5° Celsius) in January to highs of 82° Fahrenheit (27.7° Celsius) in July.

The lowest temperature ever recorded in Massachusetts from the National Centers for Environmental Information, was -35° Fahrenheit (-37.2° Celsius), recorded three times:

  • Taunton, on January 5, 1904
  • Coldbrook, on February 15, 1943
  • Chester, on January 12, 1981

The highest temperature ever recorded in Massachusetts, from the National Centers for Environmental Information, was 107° Fahrenheit (41.6° Celsius) on August 2, 1975 in Chester and New Bedford.

The last killing frost generally occurs before May 10, and the earliest fall frost usually comes in late September or early October.

The normal annual precipitation is 44.23 inches.

Topography

Massachusetts topography varies greatly; from the rocky shores, sandy beaches and salt marshes of the coast; through rolling hills, and fertile valley to lofty wooded hills in the western part of the state.

Minerals

Valuable mineral resources aren’t usually credited to Massachusetts, but mining of non-metallic minerals is still considerable within the state.

  • Clay, lime, marble, sand and gravel, silica, quartz, granite, limestone, sandstone, slate, and traprock are all mined in various amounts.
  • Small deposits of alum, asbestos, barite, feldspar, graphite, mica, peat, and semi-precious stones (such as beryl, aquamarine, and tourmaline) have also been worked.
  • Test borings in the Narragansett Basin (southeastern Massachusetts) indicate the possibility of fairly substantial coal deposits.
  • Ores of copper, gold, iron, lead, silver, zinc, and other metallic minerals have also been discovered.
  • Dolomitic marbles are found in Ashley Falls, West Stockbridge, and Lee—all in Berkshire County.
  • Verd antique is quarried near Westfield , in Hampden County.
  • The Quincy quarries produce monumental granite (used for the Washington Monument), while building granites come chiefly from Milford, West Chelmsford, Becket, and Fall River.
  • Diatomite, a hydrous or opaline form of silica is found in South Framingham.
  • Mineral production within the state was valued at $101,100,000 in 1984. The valuation was based on returns from clay, lime, sand, and stone (mostly granite and basalt).

Soil

Massachusetts soils vary widely in color and character. The uplands contain an abundance of mineral matter, while the lowlands are rich in organic matter.

  • The western region is hilly, separated by the Connecticut River Valley from a central upland plateau region which slopes to the Atlantic coast.
  • Except on Cape Cod—where there are long stretches of sandy, treeless flats—almost all of the land was originally covered with dense forests.
  • Even after the forests were cleared or thinned, however, the soil did not yield readily to cultivation by early farmers. It took many years, and much skill and patience, before cultivation became productive.
  • The most arable soil is found in the broad Connecticut Valley in the west-central part of Massachusetts. Rich alluvial deposits are found in the fertile river valleys.
  • Massachusetts soils yield profitably when production is carried on under modern procedures. Even the sandy soils on Cape Cod have been made fruitful when farmed by skillful agriculturists.

Farming

Major farm products, on the basis of income, are milk, nursery and greenhouse, eggs, vegetables, cattle, hogs, sheep, cranberries, and fruit.

According to the 2017 USDA Census of Agriculture, the total market value of farm products sold in Massachusetts was $475,184,000, separated by the following outputs:

  • Greenhouse and nursery: 29.5%
  • Vegetables: 21.5%
  • Cranberries: 12.6%
  • Milk: 9.5%
  • Livestock and poultry: 7.8%
  • Other crops 7.0%
  • Aquaculture: 6.1%
  • Other Fruits: 6.0%

Key Industries

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts remains a vibrant and attractive area for industry. Massachusetts attracts industrial and commercial activity in the arts, defense technology, financial services, information technology, life sciences and biotechnology, manufacturing, and maritime.

  • The Commonwealth has a rapidly growing film industry, supported with a state office for film production guidance.
  • The financial service industry ranks as the third largest industry sector in the state, and third in the country in asset management jobs and investments.
  • For life sciences, Massachusetts excels through its world-class academic institutions, including the University of Massachusetts campuses.
  • Manufacturing also has a rich and diverse history, and is the fourth largest employer in the state.

Rivers

There are 4,230 miles of rivers within the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

  • The largest is the Connecticut River, which flows southward through the entire state. It enters from New Hampshire at Northfield and exits to Connecticut by Agawam. Its tributaries are the Deerfield, Westfield , Chicopee, and Miller rivers.
  • In the far western part of the state, the Housatonic River flows south and the Hoosic River flows north between the Hoosac and Taconic mountain ranges.
  • The Merrimack River, in the northeast, rises in New Hampshire and empties into the Atlantic Ocean. It is navigable for shipping up to a distance of about 15 miles from its mouth. Its tributaries are the Nashua and Concord rivers.
  • The Blackstone River flows south from Worcester, ending at the Seekonk River in Pawtucket, Rhode Island.
  • The Mystic River and Charles Rivers, originating from Lower Mystic Lake and Echo Lake respectively, meet up and flow into Boston Harbor.
  • The Taunton River rises in Bridgewater, flows southwest, and empties into Mount Hope Bay at Fall River.

Lakes

Massachusetts has more than 1,100 lakes and ponds.

  • The state’s largest lakes are manmade: the Quabbin Reservoir (24,704 acres) and the Wachusett Reservoir (4,160 acres). These two reservoirs provide Greater Boston with most of its water supply.
  • The largest natural lakes are:
    • Assawompset Pond (2,656 acres) in Lakeville and Middleborough, drained by the Nemasket River into the Taunton River
    • North Watuppa Pond (1,805 acres) and South Watuppa Pond (1,551 acres) in Fall River and Westport, drained into the Quequechan River
    • Long Pond (1,361 acres) in Lakeville and Freetown, drained by the Long Pond River into Assawompset Pond
    • Lake Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg – usually (and mercifully) called Webster Lake (1,188 acres) – in Webster, drained into the French River
    • Lake Quinsigamond (1,051 acres) in Worcester, Shrewsbury, and Grafton, draining into the Quinsigamond River

Islands

Massachusetts contains several sets of islands south of Cape Cod, as well as a group near the City of Boston. Most of the islands are used for farming, resort-recreation areas, public facilities, or fortifications.

  • Martha’s Vineyard, triangular in shape, is about 19 miles long and less than 10 miles wide. It contains the towns of Edgartown, Chilmark, Tisbury, West Tisbury, Aquinnah, and Oak Bluffs.
  • Nantucket, also roughly triangular, is about 15 miles long and four miles wide. Nantucket was once famed for its whaling industry. Today, both Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket are popular summer destinations.
  • The Elizabeth Islands are a chain of small islands lying between Vineyard Sound and Buzzards Bay. Bartholemew Gosnold established a colony on Cuttyhunk Island in 1602, though abandoned it that same year. Today, around 70 people live permanently in the Town of Gosnold, which encompasses the island group.
  • The Boston Harbor islands, maintained by Boston Harbor Islands National and State Park, includes a collection of 34 islands situated off the coast of Boston and surrounding cities and towns.
    • Some islands have been made part of the mainland, connected by the great amount of landfill that developed over time. Governor's Island, where the first apple and pear trees in America were planted, is now a part of Boston's Logan International Airport.