Abington is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States, 20 miles (32 km) southeast of Boston.

The lands included the current towns of Bridgewater, Rockland, Whitman, and parts of Hanover.

The town was officially incorporated in 1712,[1] having been named six years earlier by Governor Joseph Dudley as a tribute to Anne Venables-Bertie, Countess of Abingdon, wife of the second Earl of Abingdon, who helped him secure the governorship of the colony from Queen Anne.

Indeed, the original petition from Governor Dudley ordered that "the Town be named Abingdon".

In 1815, Jesse Reed invented a machine that mass-produced tacks, which in turn led to the shoe industry becoming established in the town.

[7] Abington ranks 308th of 351 communities in the Commonwealth, and is the fourth-smallest town (behind Hull, Whitman and Rockland) in Plymouth County.

Abington is bordered by Holbrook to the northwest, Weymouth to the northeast, Rockland to the east, Whitman to the south, and Brockton to the west.

Abington has two major waterways; the Shumatuscacant River to the west provides the town's border with Brockton, and Beaver Brook runs through the eastern part of town; it was the source of much of the water power used by the shoe factories.

In the northwestern corner of town lies Ames Nowell State Park, a large forested area around Cleveland Pond.

The northeast corner of town is also the site of portions of the runways of the South Weymouth Naval Air Station, which was closed in 1997 as a part of the fourth round of BRAC base closures.

The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters.

[8] As of the census of 2010, there were 15,985 people, 6,080 households, and 4,111 families residing in the town with 6,377 total housing units.

On the national level, Abington is a part of Massachusetts's 8th congressional district, and is represented by Stephen Lynch.

[23] The town is patrolled by the First (Norwell) Barracks of Troop D of the Massachusetts State Police.

[26] The town annually holds festivals celebrating Founders Day (the first weekend in June), Halloween, and Christmas.