Allenstown is a
town
A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world.
Origin and use
The word "town" shares an ori ...
in
Merrimack County,
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...
, United States. The population was 4,707 at the
2020 census,
up from 4,322 at the 2010 census. Allenstown includes a portion of the village of
Suncook. Just over one-half of the town's area is covered by
Bear Brook State Park
Bear Brook State Park is a Nature reserve, preserve in Allenstown, New Hampshire, and neighboring towns. It is one of New Hampshire's largest state parks.
Amenities at Bear Brook include camp sites, a picnic area, over of hiking trails, swimmin ...
.
History
Allenstown takes its name from 17th-century provincial governor
Samuel Allen. It was granted in 1721 but not incorporated until July 2, 1831. A part of neighboring
Bow was annexed to Allenstown in 1815, and a portion of
Hooksett was annexed in 1853.
Most of the town's earliest settlement occurred in the eastern part of town along Deerfield Road, around the area now mostly occupied by Bear Brook State Park, and where the Old
Allenstown Meeting House is located. Following the
Civil War
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
, the town's population shifted from the east to the west part of town, centered around the confluence of the
Merrimack and
Suncook rivers, in the area now known as
Suncook.
Railroads were instrumental to the development of Allenstown. First, a branch of the
Concord and Portsmouth Railroad running to Hooksett arrived in the late 1850s, followed by the
Suncook Valley Railroad in 1869, which first ran northeast to
Pittsfield
Pittsfield is the largest city and the county seat of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the principal city of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Berkshire County. Pittsfieldâ ...
and later, to
Center Barnstead. Two railroad stations existed in Allenstown: one in Suncook village, along what is now Canal Street, and the other in the northern part of town, along what is now Verville Road.
Allenstown, at the junction of the Suncook and Merrimack rivers, proved a prime location in which to harness the Suncook's power for manufacturing. The China Mill, the only large
textile mill
Textile Manufacturing or Textile Engineering is a major industry. It is largely based on the conversion of fibre into yarn, then yarn into fabric. These are then dyed or printed, fabricated into cloth which is then converted into useful goods ...
in the Allenstown part of Suncook, was built in 1868. At this time, a large number of
French Canadians
French Canadians (referred to as Canadiens mainly before the twentieth century; french: Canadiens français, ; feminine form: , ), or Franco-Canadians (french: Franco-Canadiens), refers to either an ethnic group who trace their ancestry to Fren ...
, mostly from
Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
, began emigrating to the area to work in the mills. Eventually, Suncook became one of many New England industrial villages known to locals as "
le petit Canada."
[
In 2006, Allenstown was hit hard by the Mother's Day Flood. More than of rainfall caused the Suncook River to overflow, inundating homes, roads, and other low-lying areas. As a result of the flood, 14 flood-prone homes in Allenstown were bought out with federal money and demolished in order to avoid more flooding and evacuations in the future.
]
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...
, the town has a total area of , of which are land and are water, comprising 0.55% of the town. The highest point in Allenstown is Bear Hill in the southeast part of town, at above sea level
Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardised g ...
. Allenstown lies fully within the Merrimack River
The Merrimack River (or Merrimac River, an occasional earlier spelling) is a river in the northeastern United States. It rises at the confluence of the Pemigewasset and Winnipesaukee rivers in Franklin, New Hampshire, flows southward into Mas ...
watershed
Watershed is a hydrological term, which has been adopted in other fields in a more or less figurative sense. It may refer to:
Hydrology
* Drainage divide, the line that separates neighbouring drainage basins
* Drainage basin, called a "watershe ...
. The Merrimack River forms the western border of the town, and its tributary the Suncook River
The Suncook River is a river located in central New Hampshire in the United States. It is a tributary of the Merrimack River, which flows to the Gulf of Maine.
Course
The Suncook River begins at the outlet of Crystal Lake in the town of Gilmanto ...
forms the northwest border.
Bear Brook State Park
Bear Brook State Park is a Nature reserve, preserve in Allenstown, New Hampshire, and neighboring towns. It is one of New Hampshire's largest state parks.
Amenities at Bear Brook include camp sites, a picnic area, over of hiking trails, swimmin ...
occupies in the central and southeast parts of town, extending from the town's northern corner to its southern corner. (An additional of the park are in the neighboring towns of Deerfield, Candia, and Hooksett.)
Adjacent municipalities
* Epsom
Epsom is the principal town of the Borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, England, about south of central London. The town is first recorded as ''Ebesham'' in the 10th century and its name probably derives from that of a Saxon landowner. The ...
(north)
* Deerfield (east)
* Candia (southeast)
* Hooksett (south)
* Bow (west)
* Pembroke (northwest)
Demographics
As of the census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...
of 2000, there were 4,843 people, 1,902 households, and 1,253 families residing in the town. The population density
Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...
was 235.9 people per square mile (91.1/km). There were 1,962 housing units at an average density of 95.6 per square mile (36.9/km). The racial makeup of the town was 97.83% White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
, 0.50% African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 0.23% Native American, 0.37% Asian
Asian may refer to:
* Items from or related to the continent of Asia:
** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia
** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia
** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
, 0.27% from other races
Other often refers to:
* Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy
Other or The Other may also refer to:
Film and television
* ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack
* ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...
, and 0.81% from two or more races. Hispanic
The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad.
The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...
or Latino
Latino or Latinos most often refers to:
* Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America
* Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States
* The people or cultures of Latin America;
** Latin A ...
of any race were 1.18% of the population.
There were 1,902 households, out of which 34.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.7% were married couples
Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...
living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.1% were non-families. 27.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.06.
In the town, the population was spread out, with 27.3% under the age of 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 34.3% from 25 to 44, 21.1% from 45 to 64, and 10.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.0 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $41,958, and the median income for a family was $51,659. Males had a median income of $35,520 versus $25,430 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population.
Per capita i ...
for the town was $18,851. About 2.2% of families and 3.9% of the population were below the poverty line
The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...
, including 3.8% of those under age 18 and 4.7% of those age 65 or over.
Transportation
One New Hampshire state routes and one U.S. route
The United States Numbered Highway System (often called U.S. Routes or U.S. Highways) is an integrated network of roads and highways numbered within a nationwide grid in the contiguous United States. As the designation and numbering of these hi ...
cross Allenstown.
* NH 28 enters alongside US 3 in the village of Suncook at the southwest corner of town from Hooksett. It splits from US 3 and follows Pinewood Road north along the eastern shore of the Suncook River before crossing into the town of Pembroke.
*US 3
U.S. Route 3 (US 3) is a United States highway running from Cambridge, Massachusetts, through New Hampshire, to the Canada–US border near Third Connecticut Lake, where it connects to Quebec Route 257.
Massachusetts Route 3 connects t ...
enters alongside NH 28 in the village of Suncook at the southwest corner of town from Hooksett. It is known as Allenstown Road through the Allenstown portion of Suncook before crossing the Suncook River into Pembroke.
See also
*Bear Brook murders
The Bear Brook murders (also referred to as the Allenstown Four) are female American murder victims, two discovered in 1985 and two in 2000, at Bear Brook State Park in Allenstown, New Hampshire, United States. All four of the victims were eithe ...
* New Hampshire Historical Marker No. 193: Old Allenstown Meeting House / Meeting House Burying Ground
* New Hampshire Historical Marker No. 205: Bear Brook CCC Camp 1935–1942
* New Hampshire Historical Marker No. 211: Suncook Connection Bridge
* New Hampshire Historical Marker No. 230: Robert Frost in Allenstown / Buck Street Mills
References
External links
*
New Hampshire Economic and Labor Market Information Bureau Profile
Allenstown Alternative News
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Towns in Merrimack County, New Hampshire
Populated places established in 1831
Towns in New Hampshire
New Hampshire populated places on the Merrimack River