Barnstable, town in southeastern Massachusetts, seat of Barnstable County, on Cape Cod. Barnstable comprises seven residential villages, including Hyannis, West Barnstable, and Centerville, and extends from Cape Cod Bay to Nantucket Sound. It is a popular summer resort, with cranberry farming and fishing industries. The Cape Cod Conservatory of Music and Art and a community college are here. Barnstable was settled by farmers of a separatist parish of the pilgrims in about 1638; the farmers later pursued whaling. Barnstable was incorporated as a city in 1639, and by the 18th century it had become a notable port and trading center dealing in codfish, rum and molasses; it was home to hundreds of sea captains. Just east of Barnstable is the grave of Sachem Iyanough, chief of the Cummaquid people; Hyannis is named for him. The West Parish Congregational Church (1634) contains a half-ton bell cast by Paul Revere. Barnstable experienced a substantial increase in new residential construction in the 1980s. It is named for Barnstaple, England. Population 30,898 (1980); 40,949 (1990); 47,821 (2000 estimate).
