Freetown is a New England town in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 8,472 at the U.S. Census, 2000.

Freetown is one of the oldest communities in the United States, having been settled by the Pilgrims and their descendants in the latter half of the 17th century. The town once included the city of Fall River, Massachusetts (1659-1803), and a portion of Acushnet, Massachusetts (1659-1815). The town celebrated its tricentennial in 1983.

Freetown is currently divided into two villages, which historically developed almost entirely independent from one another: Assonet, Massachusetts and East Freetown,...

Freetown is a New England town in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 8,472 at the U.S. Census, 2000.

Freetown is one of the oldest communities in the United States, having been settled by the Pilgrims and their descendants in the latter half of the 17th century. The town once included the city of Fall River, Massachusetts (1659-1803), and a portion of Acushnet, Massachusetts (1659-1815). The town celebrated its tricentennial in 1983.

Freetown is currently divided into two villages, which historically developed almost entirely independent from one another: Assonet, Massachusetts and East Freetown, Massachusetts.

History
Freetown was first settled on April 2, 1659 on the banks of the Assonet River, when the areas of Assonet, Massachusetts and Fall River, Massachusetts were purchased from the Wampanoag in an exchange known as Ye Freemen's Purchase. Its population slowly grew, and it existed as a Proprietary settlement until it was officially incorporated in July 1683. It remained a part of Plymouth Colony until that colony merged with the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1685. The town was the fifth municipal corporation established in Bristol County.A History of the Town of Freetown, Massachusetts with an Account of the Old Home Festival, July 30th, 1902. Assonet Village Improvement Society (1902).

Throughout the 1700s, the town continued to grow and prosper. In 1747, through the Pocasset Purchase, the village of East Freetown, Massachusetts (at the time called'New Freetown') was acquired from Tiverton, Rhode Island (which was being transferred from Massachusetts to Rhode Island). The townspeople were also some of America's earliest patriots, fighting in King Philip's War and other local skirmishes. On May 28 1775, during the Revolutionary War, the Battle of Freetown was fought in a part of the town that is now part of the city of Fall River, Massachusetts.A History of the Town of Freetown, Massachusetts with an Account of the Old Home Festival, July 30th, 1902. Assonet Village Improvement Society (1902).