Thornton 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 Grafton 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 2,708 at the 2020 census, up from 2,490 at the 2010 census.

History

Thornton was incorporated on July 6, 1763, and named for Doctor

Matthew Thornton Matthew Thornton (March 3, 1714 – June 24, 1803) was an Irish-born Founding Father of the United States who signed the United States Declaration of Independence as a representative of New Hampshire. Background and early life Thornton was ...

, a signer of the

Declaration of Independence A declaration of independence or declaration of statehood or proclamation of independence is an assertion by a polity in a defined territory that it is independent and constitutes a state. Such places are usually declared from part or all of the ...

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 1.19% of the town. 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 ...

crosses the west side of the town and drains the town via its tributaries Eastman Brook, Mill Brook, Hubbard Brook, the Mad River, and others. Via the Pemigewasset, the town is part of the

Merrimack River The Merrimack River (or Merrimac River, an occasional earlier spelling) is a river in the northeastern United States. It rises at the confluence of the Pemigewasset and Winnipesaukee rivers in Franklin, New Hampshire, flows southward into Mas ...

watershed. The highest point in Thornton is 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 ...

on the western ridge of Dickey Mountain, whose summit lies in the neighboring town of Waterville Valley. 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 alrea ...

covers most of the eastern side of the town.

Demographics

At the 2000 census there were 1,843 people, 759 households, and 507 families living in the town. The population density was 36.6 people per square mile (14.1/km). There were 1,487 housing units at an average density of 29.5 per square mile (11.4/km). The

racial makeup A race is a categorization of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society. The term came into common usage during the 1500s, when it was used to refer to groups of variou ...

of the town was 97.61% White, 0.27% African American, 0.11% Native American, 0.27% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.33% from other races, and 1.36% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.71%. Of the 759 households 29.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.5% were married couples living together, 6.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.2% were non-families. 21.1% of households were one person and 6.6% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 2.86. The age distribution was 22.4% under the age of 18, 7.5% from 18 to 24, 33.1% from 25 to 44, 24.6% from 45 to 64, and 12.4% 65 or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.5 males. The median household income was $38,380 and the median family income was $45,172. Males had a median income of $27,750 versus $22,938 for females. The per capita income for the town was $18,478. About 6.9% of families and 9.5% 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 13.5% of those under age 18 and 3.0% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

* Moses Cheney (1793–1875), 19th century abolitionist *

Karl Drerup Karl Joseph Maria Drerup (1904 – 2000) was a leading figure in the mid-twentieth-century American enamels field. Trained as a painter, Drerup taught himself to enamel in the early 1940s, fusing glass to metal through a high-temperature firin ...

(1904–2000), German-American enamels artist *

Orison Swett Marden Dr. Orison Swett Marden (1848–1924) was an American inspirational author who wrote about achieving success in life and founded ''SUCCESS'' magazine in 1897. His writings discuss common-sense principles and virtues that make for a well-rou ...

(1848–1924), hotelier, author *

Nevin S. Scrimshaw Nevin Stewart Scrimshaw (January 20, 1918 – February 8, 2013) was an American food scientist and Institute Professor emeritus at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Scrimshaw was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. During the course of hi ...

(1918–2013), nutritionist, winner of

World Food Prize The World Food Prize is an international award recognizing the achievements of individuals who have advanced human development by improving the quality, quantity, or availability of food in the world. Conceived by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Nor ...

References

External links

*
New Hampshire Economic and Labor Market Information Bureau Profile
{{authority control Towns in Grafton County, New Hampshire Towns in New Hampshire