Holderness is a
town
A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city.
The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...
in
Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 2,004 at the
2020 census.
An agricultural and resort area, Holderness is home to the
Squam Lakes Natural Science Center and is located on
Squam Lake. Holderness is also home to
Holderness School, a co-educational college-preparatory boarding school.
History
The Squam Lakes were a trade route for the
Abenaki and early European settlers, who traveled the
Squam River to the
Pemigewasset River, then to the
Merrimack River and seacoast. In 1751, Thomas Shepard submitted a petition on behalf of 64 grantees to
colonial Governor
Benning Wentworth for 6 miles square on the Pemigewasset River. The governing council accepted, and the town was named after
Robert Darcy,
4th Earl of Holderness. The
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War, 1754 to 1763, was a colonial conflict in North America between Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of France, France, along with their respective Native Americans in the United States, Native American ...
, however, prevented settlement until after the 1759
Fall of Quebec. The land was regranted as "New Holderness" in 1761 to a group of
New England
New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...
families, and first settled in 1763. As proprietor of half the town,
Samuel Livermore intended to create at New Holderness a great estate patterned after those of the
English countryside. By 1790, the town had 329 residents, and in 1816, "New" was dropped from its name.
Holderness became a
farming
Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...
and
fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment (Freshwater ecosystem, freshwater or Marine ecosystem, marine), but may also be caught from Fish stocking, stocked Body of water, ...
community, except for the "business or flat iron area" located on the Squam River, which has falls that drop about before meeting the Pemigewasset River. With
water power to operate mills, the southwestern corner of town developed into an industrial center, to which the Boston, Concord & Montreal Railroad entered in 1849. But the mill village would be at odds with the agricultural community, especially when denied civic amenities including gaslights and sidewalks. Consequently, in 1868, it was set off as
Ashland.
Tourists in the 19th century discovered the region's scenic mountains and lakes. Before the age of automobiles, they would depart the train in Ashland and board a
steamer, which traveled up the Squam River to rustic fishing camps or hillside hotels beside Squam Lake. Today, Holderness remains a popular resort area, where in 1981 the movie ''
On Golden Pond'' was filmed.
In 1924, pioneer ornithologist
Katharine (Clark) Harding Day studied a breeding population of the
veery (''Catharus fuscescens'') in Holderness.
Image:Carnes Island, Holderness, NH.jpg, Carne's Island
Image:Steamer Halcyon, Holderness, NH.jpg, Steamer ''Halcyon''
Image:The Asquam House, Holderness, NH.jpg, Asquam House in 1912. A "high-class modern hotel on Shepherd Hill on the shores of Asquam Lakes".
Geography
Holderness is in central
New Hampshire
New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...
along the southeastern border of Grafton County. According to the
U.S. Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , of which are land and are water, comprising 15.05% of the town.
Bounded on the northwest by the
Pemigewasset River, Holderness is drained by Owl Brook and the Squam River. Part of
Squam Lake is in the east, and
Little Squam Lake is in the center. Mount Prospect, with an elevation of above
sea level
Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an mean, average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal Body of water, bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical ...
, is in the north. The highest point in Holderness is Mount Webster in the northeast part of the town, elevation and part of the Squam Range. Via the Pemigewasset River, Holderness lies fully within the
Merrimack River watershed.
The town is served by
U.S. Route 3 and state routes
25,
113 and
175.
Demographics
As of the
census
A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...
of 2000, there were 1,930 people, 768 households, and 546 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 1,208 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 97.88%
White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 0.47%
African American
African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 0.05%
Native American, 0.36%
Asian, 0.10% from
other races, and 1.14% from two or more races.
Hispanic
The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or
Latino of any race were 0.41% of the population.
There were 768 households, out of which 30.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.2% were
married couples living together, 5.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.9% were non-families. 21.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 2.91.
In the town, the population was spread out, with 24.4% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 24.5% from 25 to 44, 31.4% from 45 to 64, and 12.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.8 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $47,895, and the median income for a family was $55,526. Males had a median income of $36,500 versus $26,116 for females. The
per capita income
Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year.
In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...
for the town was $27,825. About 2.8% of families and 4.9% 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 ...
, including 9.2% of those under age 18 and 4.0% of those age 65 or over.
Town government
Holderness is governed in the traditional New England style, with a five-member board of selectmen as its executive branch, and the traditional
town meeting as its legislative branch. Municipal elections and town meetings are customarily held in March.
Notable people
*
George Butler (1943–2021), documentary filmmaker (''
Pumping Iron'', ''
The Endurance'')
*
Moses Cheney (1793–1875), abolitionist, conductor on
Underground Railroad
*
Oren B. Cheney (1816–1903), founder of
Bates College
*
Arthur Livermore (1766–1853), US congressman
*
Samuel Livermore (1732–1803), US senator
*
Hercules Mooney (1715–1800), officer in the
Continental Army
The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies representing the Thirteen Colonies and later the United States during the American Revolutionary War. It was formed on June 14, 1775, by a resolution passed by the Second Continental Co ...
*
Lorenzo L. Shaw (1828–1907), mill owner
[''Yarmouth Revisited'', Amy Aldredge (2013) ]
*
May Rogers Webster (1873–1938), naturalist, founded Lost River Conservation Camp near her summer home in Holderness
[Dan True]
''Hummingbirds of North America: Attracting, Feeding, and Photographing''
(University of New Mexico Press 1995): 82-83.
*
James H. Wolff (1847–1913), lawyer, war veteran, civil rights activist
Sites of interest
The town has multiple properties listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
:
*
Boulderwood, a private summer camp
*
Burleigh Brae and Webster Boathouse
*
Camp Carnes, a private summer camp
*
Camp Ossipee, a private summer camp
*
Chapel of the Holy Cross
*
Chocorua Island Chapel
*
Holderness Free Library
*
Holderness Inn
*
North Holderness Freewill Baptist Church–Holderness Historical Society Building
*
Rockywold–Deephaven Camps
*
Shepard Hill Historic District
*
Trinity Church
*
True Farm
*
Watch Rock Camp, a private summer camp
*
Webster Estate
References
Further reading
*
External links
*
Holderness Free Libraryat NH.gov
Holderness Historical SocietySquam Lakes AssociationSquam Lakes Natural Science Center
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Towns in Grafton County, New Hampshire
Populated places established in 1761
Towns in New Hampshire