Meredith 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 Belknap 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 6,662 at the 2020 census. Meredith is situated in the state's Lakes Region and serves as a major

resort town A resort town, often called a resort city or resort destination, is an urban area where tourism or vacationing is the primary component of the local culture and economy. A typical resort town has one or more actual resorts in the surrounding ...

. Meredith Village, the commercial center of the town, lies long the shores of

Lake Winnipesaukee Lake Winnipesaukee () is the largest lake in the U.S. state of New Hampshire, located in the Lakes Region at the foothills of the White Mountains. It is approximately long (northwest-southeast) and from wide (northeast-southwest), covering & ...

, and several other large lakes lie partially or completely within the town borders. It is home to the Stonedam Island Natural Area and the

Winnipesaukee Scenic Railroad The Plymouth & Lincoln Railroad is a class III shortline railroad operating on the Concord-Lincoln rail line in central New Hampshire, United States. The railroad consists of two distinct passenger operations, the Hobo Railroad, which offers pass ...

, and it serves as one of the ports of call for the MS ''Mount Washington''. Meredith Village, where 2,527 people resided at the 2020 census, is defined as the Meredith census-designated place, and is located at the junction of

U.S. Route 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 to ...

and

New Hampshire Route 25 New Hampshire Route 25 is a long east–west state highway in New Hampshire. It runs completely across the state from Vermont to Maine. The western terminus of Route 25 is at the Vermont state line on the Connecticut River in Piermont, where the ...

at the head of Meredith Bay on Lake Winnipesaukee.

History

Meredith was first known as "Palmer's Town" in honor of Samuel Palmer, a teacher of

surveying Surveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, art, and science of determining the terrestrial two-dimensional or three-dimensional positions of points and the distances and angles between them. A land surveying professional is ca ...

and

navigation Navigation is a field of study that focuses on the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another.Bowditch, 2003:799. The field of navigation includes four general categories: land navigation, ...

who laid out much of the land surrounding Lake Winnipesaukee. In 1748, it was one of the first towns to have a charter granted by the Masonian Proprietors. Many grantees were from

Salem, Massachusetts Salem ( ) is a historic coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, located on the North Shore of Greater Boston. Continuous settlement by Europeans began in 1626 with English colonists. Salem would become one of the most significant seaports tr ...

, so Palmer's Town was renamed "New Salem". It was settled in 1766 by Jacob Eaton and Colonel Ebenezer Smith, then regranted in 1768 by Governor John Wentworth and named after

Sir William Meredith, 3rd Baronet Sir William Meredith, 3rd Baronet (c. 1725 – 2 January 1790), was a British landowner who sat in the House of Commons from 1754 to 1780. A Rockingham Whig, he served as a Lord of the Admiralty from 1765 to 1766. Early life Meredith was the so ...

, a member of

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

who opposed taxation on the

colonies In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state'' ...

. Farmers grew

corn Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago. Th ...

wheat Wheat is a grass widely cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain that is a worldwide staple food. The many species of wheat together make up the genus ''Triticum'' ; the most widely grown is common wheat (''T. aestivum''). The archaeologi ...

, rye and

potato The potato is a starchy food, a tuber of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'' and is a root vegetable native to the Americas. The plant is a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae. Wild potato species can be found from the southern Unit ...

es, but the area became noted for

apple An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple fruit tree, trees are agriculture, cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus ''Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, wh ...

orchard An orchard is an intentional plantation of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit- or nut-producing trees which are generally grown for commercial production. Orchards are also sometimes a feature of larg ...

s. The water rights to the natural Measly Pond Brook (a.k.a. Corliss Brook) was purchased by John Jenness in 1795, and used to power a

gristmill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the Mill (grinding), grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist i ...

and

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes (dimensi ...

in Meredith Village, though it was not the best local waterpower source. The brook drained Lake Waukewan into Lake Winnipesauke. In 1800, John Bond Swasey inherited a farm which covered most of what is now Meredith Village. After his marriage in 1809, he gradually purchased land on both sides of the Measly Pond Brook, related water rights, and several mills. From 1816 to 1818, Swasey constructed a rock-lined canal that redirected the flow from Lake Waukewan, and created a drop at a single rock-lined sluiceway at what is now the Mill Falls Marketplace. The new, more powerful waterfall ran

cotton mill A cotton mill is a building that houses spinning (textiles), spinning or weaving machinery for the production of yarn or cloth from cotton, an important product during the Industrial Revolution in the development of the factory system. Althou ...

s, and in 1895, the Meredith Electric Light Company. By 1859 Meredith village had a

shingle mill Shingle may refer to: Construction *Roof shingles or wall shingles, including: **Wood shingle ***Shake (shingle), a wooden shingle that is split from a bolt, with a more rustic appearance than a sawed shingle *** Quercus imbricaria, or shingle oa ...

blacksmith shop A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...

, harness-maker's shop and

tannery Tanning may refer to: *Tanning (leather), treating animal skins to produce leather *Sun tanning, using the sun to darken pale skin **Indoor tanning, the use of artificial light in place of the sun **Sunless tanning, application of a stain or dye t ...

. Situated at the outlet of Wickwas Lake, Meredith Center had a sawmill, gristmill and blacksmith shop. Connected by the Boston, Concord & Montreal Railroad in March 1849, the town became a summer resort. Passengers also arrived from the Alton Bay depot aboard

steamboat A steamboat is a boat that is marine propulsion, propelled primarily by marine steam engine, steam power, typically driving propellers or Paddle steamer, paddlewheels. Steamboats sometimes use the ship prefix, prefix designation SS, S.S. or S/S ...

s, the most famous of which was the original SS ''Mount Washington'', launched in 1872. Meredith remains a popular tourist destination. In 1974, the Swasey family donated land to create Swasey Park on Lake Waukewan near the beginning of the canal.

Geography

Plymouth Street, Looking North, Meredith, NH

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 , or 26.37%, are water. The highest point in Meredith is the summit of Leavitt Mountain, elevation 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 ...

, in the southwestern part of town. Meredith village is the commercial hub of the town, lying between the northern tip of Meredith Bay (one of several large arms of

) and Lake Waukewan. A second village, Meredith Center, is located near the shores of Lake Wickwas closer to the geographic center of the town. Meredith Center has much less commercial development than Meredith Village, being located near several protected state forests and wildlife areas. The town is crossed by

New Hampshire Route 104 New Hampshire Route 104 (abbreviated NH 104) is a secondary east–west highway in central New Hampshire, United States. The highway runs from Danbury to Meredith on Lake Winnipesaukee in the Lakes Region. The western terminus of NH 104 is in D ...

, and

New Hampshire Route 106 New Hampshire Route 106 is a secondary north–south highway in Merrimack and Belknap counties in central New Hampshire. It connects the town of Pembroke with Meredith in the Lakes Region. The first green LED traffic light in the nation was ...

. It is bordered by the towns of Sanbornton to the southwest, New Hampton to the west, Center Harbor to the north, Moultonborough to the northeast across Lake Winnipesaukee, Gilford to the southeast, and

Laconia Laconia or Lakonia ( el, Λακωνία, , ) is a historical and administrative region of Greece located on the southeastern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. Its administrative capital is Sparta. The word ''laconic''—to speak in a blunt, c ...

to the south. Like many other towns of the Lakes Region, Meredith is dominated by several large bodies of water. About half of the town's southeastern boundary with its neighbor Laconia is occupied by

Lake Winnisquam Lake Winnisquam is in Belknap County in the Lakes Region of central New Hampshire, United States, in the communities of Meredith, Laconia, Sanbornton, Belmont, and Tilton. At , it is the fourth-largest lake entirely in New Hampshire. The lak ...

, while the northern half of town lies within a peninsula, Meredith Neck, that separates Meredith Bay from the main body of Lake Winnipesaukee, giving Meredith an extensive coastline. Bear Island, the second largest on Winnipesaukee, and Stonedam Island, along with dozens of smaller islands are also part of the town. Several smaller lakes lie between Winnipesaukee and Winnisquam, including Wickwas Lake and Pemigewasset Lake. Lake Waukewan forms the western edge of the Meredith Village CDP and extends into neighboring New Hampton.

Adjacent municipalities

* Center Harbor (north) * Moultonborough (northeast) * Gilford (southeast) *

(south) * Sanbornton (southwest) * New Hampton (west)

Climate

The

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

subtype for this climate is "

Dfb DFB may refer to: * Deerfield Beach, Florida, a city * Decafluorobutane, a fluorocarbon gas * Dem Franchize Boyz, former hip hop group, Atlanta, Georgia * Dfb, Köppen climate classification for Humid continental climate * Distributed-feedback ...

" (Humid Continental Climate).

Demographics

Road to Big Barn Doors, Meredith Center, NH

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 2010, there were 6,241 people, 2,708 households, and 1,777 families residing in the town. There were 4,728 housing units, of which 2,020, or 42.7%, were vacant. Of the vacant units, 1,710 were for seasonal or recreational use. The racial makeup of the town was 97.3%

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 ...

, 0.3%

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 ...

, 0.2% Native American, 0.9%

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

n, 0.0%

Native Hawaiian Native Hawaiians (also known as Indigenous Hawaiians, Kānaka Maoli, Aboriginal Hawaiians, First Hawaiians, or simply Hawaiians) ( haw, kānaka, , , and ), are the indigenous ethnic group of Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands. Hawaii ...

or Pacific Islander, 0.3% some other race, and 1.0% from two or more races. Of the population, 1.1% were

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 ...

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. Of the 2,941 households, 25.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.4% were headed by

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, 9.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.4% were non-families. Of all households, 27.5% were made up of individuals, and 11.6% were someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27, and the average family size was 2.71. In the town, 18.6% of the population were under the age of 18, 5.8% were from 18 to 24, 19.7% from 25 to 44, 34.9% from 45 to 64, and 20.8% were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 48.7 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.3 males. For the period 2011–2015, the estimated median annual income for a household was $63,028, and the median income for a family was $80,076. Male full-time workers had a median income of $62,944 versus $42,734 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 $36,510; 12.4% of the population and 8.7% of families were below the poverty line. Of the population, 22.5% under the age of 18 and 7.1% of those 65 or older were living in poverty.

Government

In the

New Hampshire Senate The New Hampshire Senate has been meeting since 1784. It is the upper house of the New Hampshire General Court, alongside the lower New Hampshire House of Representatives. It consists of 24 members representing Senate districts based on population ...

, Meredith is in the 2nd District, represented by

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

Bob Giuda Robert J. Giuda (born February 21, 1952) () is a former international airline captain from Warren, New Hampshire, a former United States Marine and former New Hampshire state senator for the 2nd district. Early life Giuda graduated from ...

. On the

New Hampshire Executive Council The Executive Council of the State of New Hampshire (commonly known as the Governor's Council) is the executive body of the U.S. state of New Hampshire. The Executive Council advises the Governor on all matters and provides a check on the governor ...

, Meredith is in the 1st District, represented by Republican

Joseph Kenney Joseph D. "Joe" Kenney (born July 12, 1960) is an American politician and member of the Republican Party who represented District 1 of the Executive Council of New Hampshire from 2014 to 2019. He previously served as a member of the New Hamps ...

. In the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

, Meredith is in

New Hampshire's 1st congressional district New Hampshire's 1st congressional district covers parts of Southern New Hampshire and the eastern portion of the state. The district contains parts of Hillsborough, Rockingham, Merrimack, Grafton, and Belknap counties; and the entirety of ...

, represented by

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

Chris Pappas.

Education

Meredith's Inter-Lakes Middle High School is home to the Inter-Lakes Community Auditorium, which plays host to the Summer Theatre in Meredith Village (formerly the Lakes Region Summer Theater) every summer. Inter-Lakes Elementary School serves children from Meredith and neighboring Center Harbor. The high school also includes students from the town of

Sandwich A sandwich is a food typically consisting of vegetables, sliced cheese or meat, placed on or between slices of bread, or more generally any dish wherein bread serves as a container or wrapper for another food type. The sandwich began as a po ...

Notable people

Bradford Anderson Bradford William Anderson (born September 21, 1979) is an American actor best known for his role as the young Hacker (computer security), hacker criminal Damian Spinelli, Damian Millhouse Spinelli (a.k.a. The Jackal), on the television soap opera ...

(born 1979), actor * Samuel Newell Bell (1829–1889), US congressman * Charles A. Busiel (1842–1901), manufacturer; US congressman and the 45th

governor of New Hampshire The governor of New Hampshire is the head of government of New Hampshire. The governor is elected during the biennial state general election in November of even-numbered years. New Hampshire is one of only two states, along with bordering Verm ...

* Joseph Libbey Folsom (1817–1855), army officer, real estate investor *

George G. Fogg George Gilman Fogg (May 26, 1813October 5, 1881) was an American politician and diplomat who served as a member of the United States Senate for New Hampshire from 1866 to 1867. From 1861 to 1865, Fogg served as the United States Ambassador to Swi ...

(1813–1881), US senator, diplomat * Samuel Green (1796–1822), criminal *

Dudley Leavitt Dudley Leavitt (August 31, 1830 – October 15, 1908) was an early Patriarch (Latter Day Saints), patriarch of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), a Mormon pioneer and an early settler in southern Utah. Biography Leavi ...

(1772–1851), publisher *

Bob Montana Robert William Montana (October 23, 1920 – January 4, 1975) was an American comic strip artist who created the original likenesses for characters published by Archie Comics and in the newspaper strip '' Archie''. Early life He was born in Sto ...

(1920–1975), illustrator of

Archie Comics Archie Comic Publications, Inc., is an American comic book publisher headquartered in Pelham, New York.George Orton George Washington F. Orton (January 10, 1873 – June 24, 1958) was a Canadian middle and long-distance runner. In 1900, he became the first Canadian to win a medal at an Olympic Games. He won a bronze in the 400 metre hurdles, and then, 45 ...

(1873–1958), Canadian middle-distance runner; Olympic gold medalist *

Eben Ezra Roberts Eben Ezra Roberts (1866–1943) was an American architect known for his work in the early modern Prairie style, pioneered by Frank Lloyd Wright, as well as other traditional residential styles. Roberts was born in Boston and attended architec ...

(1866–1943), architect * Daniel E. Somes (1815–1888), US congressman * Annalee Thorndike (1915–2002), doll designer

Sites of interest

; Museums * Meredith Children's Museum * Meredith Historical Society & Museum ; Regional theatres and summer stock * The Summer Theatre in Meredith Village * In 2008 the

Winnipesaukee Playhouse The Winnipesaukee Playhouse is a 200+ seat courtyard-style theater in Meredith, New Hampshire, United States, in the heart of New Hampshire's Lakes Region. The Playhouse produces both a professional summer stock season and a community theater se ...

purchased the former

Annalee Dolls Annalee Dolls, Inc., also known as Annalee Mobilitee Dolls Inc., and AMD Holdings Inc., is a company located in Meredith, New Hampshire, that manufactures collectible dolls. The company was founded by Barbara Annalee Davis (later Thorndike), w ...

factory in Meredith. In 2013, the theatre completed construction of its new facility and moved from its former site in Weirs Beach to the site of the former Annalee gift shop. ; Orchestras and Other Musical Entertainment * Lakes Region Symphony Orchestra * The Sweetbloods ; Islands * Bear Island * Pine Island ;Food and drink establishments *

Hart's Turkey Farm Hart's Turkey Farm is a restaurant in Meredith, New Hampshire in the United States. The restaurant opened in 1954 and has a large menu showcasing turkey dishes. History In 1946, brothers Larry and Russ Hart, and wives Helen and Gerda, moved to t ...

* Giuseppe's

References

External links

*
Meredith Public Library

The Greater Meredith Program
a community development organization
Meredith Area Chamber of Commerce

* {{authority control 1768 establishments in New Hampshire Populated places established in 1768 Populated places on Lake Winnipesaukee Towns in Belknap County, New Hampshire Towns in New Hampshire