[6] Eighty families from Cape Cod and Nantucket, Massachusetts settled in the area in 1760.
[6] While Barrington has grown substantially over the past decade, it has experienced tough economic times because of a shortage of lobster (the primary industry).
A causeway to Cape Sable Island, just south of the community, was opened in 1949 to replace the ferry service, which had had to run through heavy currents.
Since then, sand has been collecting on the east side of the causeway, making a beach on Cape Sable Island that has nearly connected to the mainland.
Barrington Passage has an indoor hockey arena- The Sandy Wickens Memorial Arena, as well a curling club just down the road at the Barrington Passage Recreational Complex.