In 1872, it became the site of a major coal port, and in the early 20th century a large cannery existed in the town.

However, as neighboring Fall River's industry grew, it absorbed much of Somerset's, and the town took on more of a suburban character.

In fact, the town's population grew during the Great Depression, as many people from Fall River and other localities moved to the suburb.

Today, the town's major industry (other than suburban services) is power generation, with the Montaup Electric Company plant upriver (founded in 1923) and the Brayton Point Power Station at the town's southern tip (founded in 1963).

Originally, Slade's Ferry ran across the Taunton River to connect the two towns since the late 18th century.

In the late 19th century, the Slade's Ferry Bridge connected the two towns, from the current southern terminus of Brayton Avenue in Somerset to Brownell Street in Fall River, and was double-decked, with a railroad section on the top level.

(The path of the old bridge is still somewhat visible; two large sets of power lines cross the river at the same point.)

Cities close to Somerset include Fall River, New Bedford, Attleboro, and Providence, and the town is one hour's drive south of Boston.

Route 138 travels north from the bridge along County Street, the town's main north-south thoroughfare, towards Dighton.

It heads south-southeast for three-quarters of a mile before turning west-northwest towards Swansea, crossing into that town at a bridge over Lee's River.

Due to the controversy in Fall River over the proposed building of an LNG terminal, town officials have consider keeping the old Brightman Street Bridge open, as the tankers would not fit through it, and the terminal's proposed site is upriver of the bridges.

Somerset has bus service along Route 6 provided by the Southeastern Regional Transit Authority (SRTA).

In the state senate, Somerset is part of the First Bristol and Plymouth district, which includes Fall River, Freetown, Lakeville, Rochester, Swansea and Westport.

On the national level, the town is part of Massachusetts's 4th congressional district, which is represented by Jake Auchincloss.

The town is served by one centralized police and fire headquarters, along with a smaller branch fire station in the Brayton Point area which is also trained to handle emergencies at the Brayton Point Power Plant.

Somerset Berkley Regional High School is located along County Street (Route 138).

The school is known locally for having two former baseball players play professionally, Greg Gagne and Jerry Remy.

The original high school building was set to be demolished in late 2014, and on its former site will be a new series of fields for student use.