Allenstown 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 ...

in Merrimack 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. The population was 4,707 at the 2020 census, up from 4,322 at the 2010 census. Allenstown includes a portion of the village of Suncook. Just over one-half of the town's area is covered by

Bear Brook State Park Bear Brook State Park is a preserve in Allenstown, New Hampshire, and neighboring towns. It is one of New Hampshire's largest state parks. Description The park takes its name from Bear Brook, a stream which runs through the park. Its envi ...

History

Allenstown takes its name from 17th-century provincial governor Samuel Allen. It was granted in 1721 but not incorporated until July 2, 1831. A part of neighboring Bow was annexed to Allenstown in 1815, and a portion of Hooksett was annexed in 1853. Most of the town's earliest settlement occurred in the eastern part of town along Deerfield Road, around the area now mostly occupied by Bear Brook State Park, and where the Old Allenstown Meeting House is located. Following the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

, the town's population shifted from the east to the west part of town, centered around the confluence of the Merrimack and Suncook rivers, in the area now known as Suncook. Railroads were instrumental to the development of Allenstown. First, the Concord and Portsmouth Railroad running from Candia and points east arrived in the 1852, but that line was subsequently torn up from Candia to Allenstown, with a new branch being built from the Suncook River down to the Hooksett Falls in 1862. The

Suncook Valley Railroad The Suncook Valley Railroad was a short-line railroad in the United States, originating in Suncook, New Hampshire, and terminating in Barnstead, New Hampshire. After a long period of operation by lessees, it was operated as an independent railro ...

would follow in 1869, which ran northeast along the river, first to Pittsfield and later, to Center Barnstead. While the Suncook depot was just across the river in Pembroke, the Suncook Valley Railroad built Allenstown another depot in the northern part of town, along what is now Verville Road. In 1902, the Concord & Manchester Electric Railway came to town, connecting its two namesakes. It crossed the Suncook Valley track adjacent to the Catholic Church on Main Street; the Blodgett depot was built at that location to facilitate transfers between the steam road and the interurban. Allenstown, at the junction of the Suncook and Merrimack rivers, proved a prime location in which to harness the Suncook's power for manufacturing. The China Mill, the only large

textile mill Textile manufacturing or textile engineering is a major industry. It is largely based on the conversion of fibre into yarn, then yarn into fabric. These are then dyed or printed, fabricated into cloth which is then converted into useful good ...

in the Allenstown part of Suncook, was built in 1868. At this time, a large number of

French Canadians French Canadians, referred to as Canadiens mainly before the nineteenth century, are an ethnic group descended from French colonists first arriving in France's colony of Canada in 1608. The vast majority of French Canadians live in the provi ...

, mostly from

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

, began emigrating to the area to work in the mills. Eventually, Suncook became one of many New England industrial villages known to locals as " le petit Canada." In 2006, Allenstown was hit hard by the Mother's Day Flood. More than of rainfall caused the Suncook River to overflow, inundating homes, roads, and other low-lying areas. As a result of the flood, 14 flood-prone homes in Allenstown were bought out with federal money and demolished in order to avoid more flooding and evacuations in the future.

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 0.55% of the town. The highest point in Allenstown is Bear Hill in the southeastern section of town, at 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 ...

. Allenstown lies fully within 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 M ...

watershed Watershed may refer to: Hydrology * Drainage divide, the line that separates neighbouring drainage basins * Drainage basin, an area of land where surface water converges (North American usage) Music * Watershed Music Festival, an annual country ...

. The Merrimack River forms the western border of the town, and its tributary the

Suncook River The Suncook River is a river located in central New Hampshire in the United States. It is a tributary of the Merrimack River, which flows to the Gulf of Maine. Course The Suncook River begins at the outlet of Crystal Lake in the town of Gilma ...

forms the northwest border.

occupies in the central and southeastern parts of town, extending from the town's northern corner to its southern corner. (An additional of the park are in the neighboring towns of Deerfield,

Candia The name Candia can refer to: People * The House of Candia, a noble family from Savoy (14th-16th) * Alfredo Ovando Candía, 56th president of Bolivia * Antoinette Candia-Bailey, American academic administrator * Cecilia Maria de Candia, British-It ...

, and Hooksett.)

Adjacent municipalities

Epsom Epsom is a town in the borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, England, about south of central London. The town is first recorded as ''Ebesham'' in the 10th century and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain ...

(north) * Deerfield (east) *

(southeast) * Hooksett (south) * Bow (west) * Pembroke (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 4,843 people, 1,902 households, and 1,253 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 1,962 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 97.83%

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 ...

, 0.50%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.23% Native American, 0.37% Asian, 0.27% from other races, and 0.81% 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 1.18% of the population. There were 1,902 households, out of which 34.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.7% 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, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.1% were non-families. 27.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.06. In the town, the population was spread out, with 27.3% under the age of 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 34.3% from 25 to 44, 21.1% from 45 to 64, and 10.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.0 males. The median income for a household in the town was $41,958, and the median income for a family was $51,659. Males had a median income of $35,520 versus $25,430 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 $18,851. About 2.2% of families and 3.9% 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 3.8% of those under age 18 and 4.7% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation

One New Hampshire state routes and one

U.S. route The United States Numbered Highway System (often called U.S. Routes or U.S. Highways) is an integrated network of roads and highways numbered within a nationwide grid in the contiguous United States. As the designation and numbering of these h ...

cross Allenstown. * NH 28 enters alongside US 3 in the village of Suncook at the southwestern corner of town from Hooksett. It splits from US 3 and follows Pinewood Road north along the eastern shore of the Suncook River before crossing into the town of Pembroke. *

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 ...

enters alongside NH 28 in the village of Suncook at the southwestern corner of town from Hooksett. It is known as Allenstown Road through the Allenstown portion of Suncook before crossing the Suncook River into Pembroke.

References

External links

*
New Hampshire Economic and Labor Market Information Bureau Profile

Allenstown Alternative News
{{authority control Towns in Merrimack County, New Hampshire Populated places established in 1831 Towns in New Hampshire New Hampshire populated places on the Merrimack River