Northumberland 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 ...

located in western Coös County,

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 ...

, United States, north of

Lancaster Lancaster may refer to: Lands and titles *The County Palatine of Lancaster, a synonym for Lancashire *Duchy of Lancaster, one of only two British royal duchies *Duke of Lancaster *Earl of Lancaster *House of Lancaster, a British royal dynasty ...

. It is part of the

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

, NH– VT micropolitan statistical area. As of the 2020 census, the town population was 2,126, of whom 1,068 lived in the

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

of Groveton.

History

North of the mountain ridge known as Cape Horn, near the

Connecticut River The Connecticut River is the longest river in the New England region of the United States, flowing roughly southward for through four states. It rises 300 yards (270 m) south of the U.S. border with Quebec, Canada, and discharges into Long Isl ...

, are the remains of Fort Wentworth, built by the

New Hampshire Militia The New Hampshire Militia was a militia of what is now the U.S. state of New Hampshire. First organized in 1631, it was redesignated as the New Hampshire National Guard in 1879. History The Militia was first organized within the Province of Ne ...

in 1755 during 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 ...

. The town was granted as "Stonington" in 1761 to John Hogg and others by Governor

Benning Wentworth Benning Wentworth (July 24, 1696 – October 14, 1770) was an American merchant, landowner and colonial administrator who served as the List of colonial governors of New Hampshire, governor of New Hampshire from 1741 to 1766. He is best known ...

, and first settled in 1767 by Thomas Burnside and Daniel Spaulding. Burnside was a member of

Rogers' Rangers Rogers' Rangers was a company of soldiers from the Province of New Hampshire raised by Major Robert Rogers and attached to the British Army during the French and Indian War. The unit was quickly adopted into the New England Colonies army as an i ...

. The land was regranted by Governor John Wentworth in 1771 as "Northumberland", the name derived from

Northumberland Northumberland ( ) is a ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North East England, on the Anglo-Scottish border, border with Scotland. It is bordered by the North Sea to the east, Tyne and Wear and County Durham to the south, Cumb ...

in England. The town was incorporated November 16, 1779. In 1797, the town voted to construct a meeting house, which was completed in 1799. The structure can still be found alongside U.S. Route 3. Groveton is the northern terminus of a railroad track owned by the New Hampshire & Vermont Railroad, where it intersects the St. Lawrence & Atlantic Railroad. This was formerly the junction of the

Grand Trunk Railway The Grand Trunk Railway (; ) was a Rail transport, railway system that operated in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario and in the List of states and territories of the United States, American sta ...

and the Boston, Concord & Montreal Railroad—a major point of access for the northern White Mountains. The area was once known for its large

corn Maize (; ''Zea mays''), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout Poaceae, grass that produces cereal grain. It was domesticated by indigenous peoples of Mexico, indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago ...

and

potato The potato () is a starchy tuberous vegetable native to the Americas that is consumed as a staple food in many parts of the world. Potatoes are underground stem tubers of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'', a perennial in the nightshade famil ...

crop,

starch Starch or amylum is a polymeric carbohydrate consisting of numerous glucose units joined by glycosidic bonds. This polysaccharide is produced by most green plants for energy storage. Worldwide, it is the most common carbohydrate in human diet ...

mills, and manufacturing (

leather Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning (leather), tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffal ...

, shoe pegs). More recently, the town economy centered on the

lumber Lumber is wood that has been processed into uniform and useful sizes (dimensional lumber), including beams and planks or boards. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, window frames). ...

industry. That changed in 2007, however, when the Wausau Paper mill closed, eliminating 300 jobs.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the town has a total area of , of which are land and are water, comprising 2.96% of the town. The

, which forms the New Hampshire–

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...

border, runs along the western edge of town. The Upper Ammonoosuc River runs through town in a southwesterly direction to the Connecticut and is crossed by a

covered bridge A covered bridge is a timber-truss bridge with a roof, decking, and siding, which in most covered bridges create an almost complete enclosure. The purpose of the covering is to protect the wooden structural members from the weather. Uncovered woo ...

at Groveton. There are several mountains in town, including Morse Mountain ( 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 ...

), Cape Horn (), Moore Mountain (), and Spaulding Hill (). The town's highest point is above sea level on a spur of the Pilot Range on the town's eastern boundary. Cape Horn State Forest is located in the central portion of the town boundaries. The nucleus of Northumberland (outside of Groveton) is arranged along

US 3 U.S. Route 3 (US 3) is a United States Numbered Highway running from Cambridge, Massachusetts, through New Hampshire, to the Canada–United States border near Third Connecticut Lake, where it connects to Quebec Route 257. Massachu ...

, which runs along the

. Route 110 intersects US 3 in Northumberland and runs east toward adjacent Stark.

Adjacent municipalities

* Stratford (north) * Stark (east) *

(south) * Guildhall, Vermont (southwest) * Maidstone, Vermont (northwest)

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 2,438 people, 989 households, and 666 families residing in the town. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), 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 geog ...

was . There were 1,112 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 98.44%

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 ...

, 0.25% Native American, 0.33% Asian, and 0.98% 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 0.53% of the population. There were 989 households, out of which 32.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.3% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 10.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.6% were non-families. 26.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 2.91. In the town, the population was spread out, with 26.2% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 27.6% from 25 to 44, 23.5% from 45 to 64, and 15.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.1 males. The median income for a household in the town was $31,570, and the median income for a family was $34,444. Males had a median income of $33,281 versus $19,464 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 $15,101. About 9.4% of families and 11.4% 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 13.4% of those under age 18 and 10.1% of those age 65 or over.

Sites of interest

Groveton Covered Bridge

Notable person

* William E. Holyoke (1868–1934), US Navy sailor; recipient of the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

References

External links

*
Northumberland Public Library

{{authority control Towns in Coös County, New Hampshire Populated places established in 1767 Berlin, New Hampshire micropolitan area New Hampshire populated places on the Connecticut River Towns in New Hampshire 1767 establishments in New Hampshire