Albany 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 Carroll County,

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a 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 to the nor ...

, United States. The population was 759 at the 2020 census. Most of Albany is within the southeastern corner of the

White Mountain National Forest The White Mountain National Forest (WMNF) is a federally managed forest contained within the White Mountains in the northeastern United States. It was established in 1918 as a result of the Weeks Act of 1911; federal acquisition of land had alre ...

, including Mount Chocorua and Mount Paugus. Albany is the entrance to the

Mount Washington Mount Washington is the highest peak in the Northeastern United States at and the most topographically prominent mountain east of the Mississippi River. The mountain is notorious for its erratic weather. On the afternoon of April 12, 1934 ...

Valley, and features 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 ...

that spans the Swift River just north of the

Kancamagus Highway Kancamagus (pronounced "cain-ka-MAW-gus", "Fearless One", "Fearless Hunter of Animals"), was the third and final Sagamore of the Penacook Confederacy of Native American tribes. Nephew of Wonalancet and grandson of Passaconaway, Kancamagus rul ...

. Albany is also home to the

World Fellowship Center The World Fellowship Center is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, retreat and intergenerational conference center located in Albany, New Hampshire, United States. It is open between June and September, with most of its scheduled summer progra ...

, an intergenerational camp and conference retreat center founded in 1941 by and for peace activists.

History

The community was first chartered in 1766 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 ...

as "Burton", for General Jonathan Burton of

Wilton, New Hampshire Wilton is a town in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 3,896 at the 2020 census. Like many small New England towns, it grew up around water-powered textile mills, but is now a rural bedroom community with some m ...

. The town was incorporated and renamed "Albany" in 1833, when the

New York Central Railroad The New York Central Railroad was a railroad primarily operating in the Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The railroad primarily connected greater New York and Boston in the east with Chicago and St. Louis in the Mid ...

from

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York C ...

, was chartered.

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 t ...

, the town has a total area of , of which are land and are water, comprising 0.79% of the town. It is drained by the Swift River in the north and the Chocorua River in the south. The town lies fully within the

Saco River The Saco River (Abenaki: ''Sαkóhki'') is a river in northeastern New Hampshire and southwestern Maine in the United States. It drains a rural area of of forests and farmlands west and southwest of Portland, emptying into the Atlantic Ocean ...

watershed. Mount Chocorua, the highest point in Albany, has an elevation of , and Mount Paugus has an elevation of . 85% of the area of the town is part of the

.New Hampshire GRANIT state geographic information system
Most residential development occurs in the southeastern portion of the town, along

New Hampshire Route 16 New Hampshire Route 16 (NH 16) is a , north–south state highway in New Hampshire, United States, the main road connecting the Seacoast region to the Lakes Region and the White Mountains. Much of its length is close to the border with Maine. ...

. Route 112, the

, runs east-west along the Swift River and is nearly entirely within the national forest. The former village of Passaconaway occupies a broad valley along the Kancamagus Highway in the northwestern part of the town. The area is now a national forest visitor attraction. Other place names within the town limits include Ferncroft, in the extreme southwest corner of town, and the former site of Paugus Mill, along the town's southern boundary.

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 in ...

of 2000, there were 654 people, 262 households, and 182 families residing in the town. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: 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 geographical ...

was 8.7 people per square mile (3.4/km). There were 506 housing units at an average density of 6.8 per square mile (2.6/km). The racial makeup of the town was 98.47%

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 o ...

, 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 ...

, 0.31% Native American, 0.15% Asian, 0.31%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

, and 0.61% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, 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 viceroyalties forme ...

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 0.76% of the population. There were 262 households, out of which 34.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.5% were married couples living together, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.2% were non-families. 23.3% 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 2.85. In the town, the population was spread out, with 26.5% under the age of 18, 6.1% from 18 to 24, 36.7% from 25 to 44, 22.8% from 45 to 64, and 8.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 100.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.1 males. The median income for a household in the town was $36,635, and the median income for a family was $39,250. Males had a median income of $29,821 versus $20,250 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 $20,690. About 10.8% of families and 15.7% 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 23.9% of those under age 18 and 4.3% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation

Three New Hampshire State Routes cross Albany: * NH 16 is the main route through the town's main village, and is known locally as the Chocorua Mountain Highway. It crosses the southeast corner of town, entering from Tamworth in the south, crossing briefly into Madison, reentering Albany again along a short concurrency with NH 113, and then leaving to the east into Conway. * NH 112, the Kancamagus Highway, is a popular scenic drive that connects Waterville Valley in the west to Conway in the east. It closely follows the Swift River from Kancamagus Pass. * NH 113 enters the town from Madison in the south, and immediately after crossing the town border, begins a concurrency with NH 16, before leaving into Conway in the east.

References

External links

*
New Hampshire Economic and Labor Market Information Bureau Profile
{{authority control Towns in Carroll County, New Hampshire Populated places established in 1833 Towns in New Hampshire 1833 establishments in New Hampshire