Sanbornton 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 3,026 at the 2020 census. It includes the villages of North Sanbornton and Gaza.

History

Located in the fork of the Pemigewasset and Winnipesaukee rivers, the town was first called "Crotchtown". It was granted by

colonial Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 au ...

Governor

Benning Wentworth Benning Wentworth (July 24, 1696 – October 14, 1770) was an American merchant and colonial administrator who served as the governor of New Hampshire from 1741 to 1766. While serving as governor, Wentworth is best known for issuing several l ...

in 1748 to his friend John Sanborn of

Hampton Hampton may refer to: Places Australia *Hampton bioregion, an IBRA biogeographic region in Western Australia *Hampton, New South Wales *Hampton, Queensland, a town in the Toowoomba Region * Hampton, Victoria Canada * Hampton, New Brunswick *Ha ...

, along with 59 others from Hampton,

Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...

and Stratham. Twelve of the grantees were named Sanborn, therefore the community was named "Sanborntown". Among the other settlers were members of the Leavitt family, related to the Sanborns. But ongoing hostilities during the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the ...

delayed permanent settlement until 1764. It would be incorporated by Governor John Wentworth in 1770. The town originally included Sanbornton Bridge, or Bridge Village, set off in 1869 as Tilton.

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 4.58% of the town. Bounded on the west by the

Pemigewasset River The Pemigewasset River , known locally as "The Pemi", is a river in the state of New Hampshire, the United States. It is in length and (with its tributaries) drains approximately . The name "Pemigewasset" comes from the Abenaki word ''bemijijoase ...

and on the east 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 ...

, Sanbornton is largely drained by Salmon Brook, a tributary of the Pemigewasset. The highest point in town is the summit of Hersey 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 ...

, along the town's northwestern border. The town is served by

Interstate 93 Interstate 93 (I-93) is an Interstate Highway in the New England states of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont in the United States. Spanning approximately along a north–south axis, it is one of three primary Interstate Highways ...

New Hampshire Route 132 New Hampshire Route 132 (abbreviated NH 132) is a north–south highway in Belknap and Merrimack counties in central New Hampshire. NH 132 runs from Concord north to Ashland in the Lakes Region, parallel to Interstate 93. The southern termin ...

, and

New Hampshire Route 127 New Hampshire Route 127 (abbreviated NH 127) is a north–south state highway in central New Hampshire. The highway runs from Hopkinton in Merrimack County northward to Sanbornton in Belknap County. The southern terminus of NH 127 is at U.S. ...

. I-93 accesses the town via Exit 22 (NH 127) and leads north to

Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west. Plymouth ...

and south to

Concord Concord may refer to: Meaning "agreement" * Pact or treaty, frequently between nations (indicating a condition of harmony) * Harmony, in music * Agreement (linguistics), a change in the form of a word depending on grammatical features of other ...

. NH 132 parallels I-93 as a local road, connecting Tilton to the south with New Hampton and Ashland to the north. NH 127 intersects NH 132 in the village of Gaza within Sanbornton and leads southwest to

Franklin Franklin may refer to: People * Franklin (given name) * Franklin (surname) * Franklin (class), a member of a historical English social class Places Australia * Franklin, Tasmania, a township * Division of Franklin, federal electoral d ...

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 ...

crosses a very small southeastern corner of Sanbornton at the village of Winnisquam, where the road crosses Lake Winnisquam.

Adjacent municipalities

* Meredith (north) *

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 ...

(northeast) * Belmont (east) * Tilton (south) *

(southwest) *

Hill A hill is a landform that extends above the surrounding terrain. It often has a distinct Summit (topography), summit. Terminology The distinction between a hill and a mountain is unclear and largely subjective, but a hill is universally con ...

(west) * New Hampton (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 2,581 people, 969 households, and 749 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 54.3 people per square mile (21.0/km). There were 1,359 housing units at an average density of 28.6 per square mile (11.0/km). The racial makeup of the town was 98.14%

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 ...

, 0.15%

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 ...

, 0.15% Native American, 0.50%

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 ...

, 0.12% 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 0.93% 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 ...

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 0.43% of the population. There were 969 households, out of which 33.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.7% were married couples living together, 8.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.7% were non-families. 16.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 2.97. In the town, the population was spread out, with 25.3% under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 28.9% from 25 to 44, 28.4% from 45 to 64, and 10.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.5 males. The median income for a household in the town was $48,458, and the median income for a family was $52,179. Males had a median income of $35,472 versus $26,117 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 $22,879. About 2.2% of families and 5.1% 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 8.4% of those under age 18 and 4.3% of those age 65 or over.

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 populatio ...

, Sanbornton 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 ...

, Sanbornton 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 ...

, Sanbornton 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.

Notable people

* Albert E. Bodwell (1851–1926), noted 19th-century New Hampshire architect *

Joseph M. Harper Joseph Merrill Harper (June 21, 1787January 15, 1865) was an Americans, American physician, banker and Jacksonian Democrats, Jacksonian politician in the U.S. state of New Hampshire. He served as a member of the United States House of Represent ...

(1787–1865), US Representative, Acting Governor of New Hampshire * Don Kent (1917–2010), meteorologist *

Lois Lowry Lois Ann Lowry (; née Hammersberg; March 20, 1937) is an American writer. She is the author of several books for children and young adults, including '' The Giver Quartet,'' ''Number the Stars'', and '' Rabble Starkey.'' She is known for writing ...

(born 1937), children's author (summer resident) * Daniel S. Miles (1772–1845), religious leader * George W. Swain (1824–1904),

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

state senator *

Esther W. Taylor Esther W. Taylor (April 16, 1826 – August 9, 1904) was an American physician, one of the earliest women physicians in New England. Biography Esther Woodman Colby was born in Sanbornton, New Hampshire, April 16, 1826. Her parents were Ebenezer a ...

(1826–1904), physician

References

External links

*
Sanbornton Public Library

Sanbornton Historical Document Foundation

Mohawk Trail Riders Snowmobile Club

* ttp://www.lanetavern.org/ Lane Tavern, Sanbornton Historical Society {{authority control Towns in Belknap County, New Hampshire Towns in New Hampshire