Hampton Falls 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 ...

Rockingham County, New Hampshire Rockingham County is a county in the U.S. state of New Hampshire. As of the 2020 census, the population was 314,176, making it New Hampshire's second-most populous county. The county seat is Brentwood. Rockingham County is part of the Boston ...

, United States. The population was 2,403 at the 2020 census.

History

Archaeological excavations have confirmed that what is now Hampton Falls has been occupied by humans for roughly 10,000 years. The first settlers were

indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands Indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands include Native American tribes and First Nation bands residing in or originating from a cultural area encompassing the northeastern and Midwest United States and southeastern Canada. It is part ...

. The land of Hampton Falls was first settled by Europeans in 1638, the same time as Hampton, of which it was then a part. The settlement of Hampton joined

Norfolk County, Massachusetts Colony Norfolk County, Massachusetts Colony was one of the original four counties created in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. The land was originally granted as separate from Massachusetts, but boundary disputes among the settlers led to their petitioning ...

, in 1643, along with

Exeter Exeter ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and the county town of Devon in South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter w ...

Dover Dover ( ) is a town and major ferry port in Kent, southeast England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies southeast of Canterbury and east of Maidstone. ...

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

Salisbury Salisbury ( , ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers River Avon, Hampshire, Avon, River Nadder, Nadder and River Bourne, Wi ...

and Haverhill. The county existed until 1679, when the modern-day

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 ...

towns separated from the

Massachusetts Bay Colony The Massachusetts Bay Colony (1628–1691), more formally the Colony of Massachusetts Bay, was an English settlement on the east coast of North America around Massachusetts Bay, one of the several colonies later reorganized as the Province of M ...

. Records indicate a building that became a church may have existed near where the Weare Monument now is in 1665, but when it was first built is unknown. It was not until 1709 that the town was officially established as the Third Parish of Hampton. The Third Parish originally consisted of all land south of the Taylor River and north of the New Hampshire/

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

border, or the modern-day towns of Seabrook,

Kensington Kensington is an area of London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, around west of Central London. The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up by Kensingt ...

, and Hampton Falls. A meeting house was built shortly after, and Thomas Crosby became the town's minister for the church. Forty-nine members of the Hampton Church were dismissed late in 1711 (see https://history.lanememoriallibrary.org/hampton/biog/bachilermarston.htm), only to become members of the new church in the Third Parish. Parish officers and a representative were chosen in 1718. The first

town meeting Town meeting, also known as an "open town meeting", is a form of local government in which eligible town residents can directly participate in an assembly which determines the governance of their town. Unlike representative town meeting where ...

was held and town records began that year also. The town received its grant as an independent town with the name "Hampton falls" in 1726, but was still referred to as a parish until the Revolutionary War. Those who did use its actual name in writing spelled it with a lowercase f until around the same time. An attempt was made in 1732 to separate the western portion of Hampton Falls and make it a parish of

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the six most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

. The proposal failed in a way, yet succeeded in another; the land was separated, but it did not become part of Kingston—in 1737 it became a town of its own, Kensington. A disease known as the "Throat Distemper" (now thought to have been a malignant form of

diphtheria Diphtheria is an infection caused by the bacteria, bacterium ''Corynebacterium diphtheriae''. Most infections are asymptomatic or have a mild Course (medicine), clinical course, but in some outbreaks, the mortality rate approaches 10%. Signs a ...

) infected the town with its symptoms in 1735 and 1736. 214 people of Hampton Falls perished, 96 of them being under the age of ten. Only two homes in town were throat distemper free. It passed through the town again in 1754, with far fewer casualties, but still many. Seventy-two people wanted Hampton Falls (which then included Seabrook and Kensington) to become a part of Massachusetts in 1739, including Meshech Weare, but the proposal failed in the end. In 1765, the

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...

s of the town wanted to form a new parish in the southern portion of the town, where a church of their religion existed. A town meeting was held on December 30 when the rest of the villagers learned of the Presbyterians' plans, and it was decided that the town would be separated into two. The new parish was formed in 1768, and became incorporated under the name Seabrook shortly after. Hampton Falls was considered one of the leading manufacturing towns in the entire state of New Hampshire around the time of 1770. A plan to unite Seabrook and portions of Hampton Falls was proposed in 1782. The town would have been called "New Hampton Falls", but Hampton Falls was successful in making the proposal fail. In 1835, the town of Hampton Falls had a new meeting-house erected. Where in town it existed is unknown. Fidelity Jumper Classic

On the night between October 29 and 30 in 1827, an

earthquake An earthquakealso called a quake, tremor, or tembloris the shaking of the Earth's surface resulting from a sudden release of energy in the lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from those so weak they ...

struck the small town. A flash of light from a fault in the southern region of the town occurred, with violent trembling shortly following. It caused at least three chimneys to collapse partially or completely, with several others cracked. A more severe earthquake had struck Hampton Falls on November 18, 1755. On May 21, 2006, an F2 tornado formed in the town at around 6:30 p.m. EST. It was near

Interstate 95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from U.S. Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Florida, north to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the ...

where it overturned a truck, leaving two injured men and a kayak in a tree.

Geography

The city of

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

is to the south, and

is to the north. The highest point in town is the summit of Great Hill, 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 ...

), just north of Weares Mill on the Hampton Falls River. 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 3.39% of the town. The town is drained by the

Hampton Falls Hampton Falls is a New England town, town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 2,403 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. History Archaeological excavations have confirmed that what is now Hampton Fal ...

and

Taylor Taylor, Taylors or Taylor's may refer to: People * Taylor (surname) ** List of people with surname Taylor * Taylor (given name), including Tayla and Taylah * Taylor sept, a branch of Scottish clan Cameron * Justice Taylor (disambiguation) ...

rivers and is part of the

Hampton River The Hampton River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 tidal estuary which empties into Hampton Roads near its mouth. Hampton Roads in turn empties into the ...

watershed leading to the Atlantic Ocean via Hampton Harbor. Of roughly of salt marsh in the Seabrook-Hamptons Estuary, nearly lie within Hampton Falls. The town is served by

U.S. Route 1 U.S. Route 1 or U.S. Highway 1 (US 1) is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway that serves the East Coast of the United States. It runs from Key West, Florida, north to Fort Kent, Maine, at the Canadian border, ...

, New Hampshire Route 84 and New Hampshire Route 88.

Adjacent municipalities

* Hampton (northeast) * Seabrook (south) *

(west) *

(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 1,890 people, 704 households, and 546 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 729 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 98.46%

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 ...

, 0.05%

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 ...

, 0.74% Asian, 0.05% from other races, and 0.69% 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 0.69% of the population. There were 704 households, out of which 34.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 70.5% 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, 5.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.4% were non-families. Of all households, 16.5% were made up of individuals, and 7.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.67 and the average family size was 3.03. In the town, the population was spread out, with 25.7% under the age of 18, 4.0% from 18 to 24, 27.1% from 25 to 44, 30.4% from 45 to 64, and 12.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 102.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.3 males. The median income for a household in the town was $76,348, and the median income for a family was $86,229. Males had a median income of $60,250 versus $36,750 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 $35,060. About 2.2% of families and 2.9% 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 3.1% of those under age 18 and 3.3% of those age 65 or over. According to State figures, "Population in Hampton Falls tripled over the last fifty years, growing above the statewide average rate in three of the five decades. Decennial growth rates ranged from a nine percent increase between 1970–1980 to a 42 percent increase between 1960–1970. Population in Hampton Falls grew by a total of 1,251 residents, going from 629 in 1950 to 1,880 residents in 2000."

Government

Like many

New England town The town is the basic unit of Local government in the United States, local government and local division of state authority in the six New England states. Most other U.S. states lack a direct counterpart to the New England town. New England town ...

s, Hampton Falls has a

board of selectmen The select board or board of selectmen is commonly the Executive (government), executive arm of the government of New England towns in the United States. The board typically consists of three or five members, with or without staggered terms. Three ...

form of government. The current selectmen are Edward Beattie, Mark Lane, and Lou Gargiulo. Town meeting is held annually in the school auditorium, and elections are conducted using a New Hampshire Senate Bill 2 system.

Economy

Once a

farming Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...

and

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). ...

ing community, the numerous falls on the Taylor River provided

water power Hydropower (from Ancient Greek -, "water"), also known as water power or water energy, is the use of falling or fast-running water to produce electricity or to power machines. This is achieved by converting the gravitational potential or kin ...

for mills operating within the town. Today it is largely residential, with numerous antique shops along U.S. 1. Applecrest Farm Orchards, established in 1913, is the town's largest employer, with 18 employees.Applecrest Orchards
official site

Education

Currently, the Lincoln Akerman School is the only public school in town. But at one point, five public schools existed, the North, South, West, and two East schools. One of the East Schools, founded around the time of 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 ...

, burned down in 1947 when its furnace exploded, and the Lincoln Akerman School replaced it in 1949. While a new school was being built, students had to travel to the neighboring town of Seabrook to attend school. The other East School was moved to an area near the new library. Another school was turned into a home, and another was crushed by a boulder one winter when students pushed it off a hill. High school students attend

Winnacunnet High School Winnacunnet High School is an American public high school in Hampton, New Hampshire. It serves students in grades 9 through 12 who live in Hampton, Seabrook, North Hampton, South Hampton, and Hampton Falls. Students from South Hampton attend ...

in the neighboring town of Hampton. Heronfield Academy, a private Episcopal middle school, is located on Exeter Road on the border of Hampton Falls and Exeter.

Lincoln Akerman School

Lincoln H. Akerman School () is a kindergarten through 8th grade

elementary school A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...

and

middle school Middle school, also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school, is an educational stage between primary school and secondary school. Afghanistan In Afghanistan, middle school includes g ...

. The school was constructed in 1949 and named after Lincoln Akerman (1916–1942), a local World War II hero and member of the prominent New Hampshire Akerman family. In 1993, kindergarten was added to the school, though it is not required in the state of New Hampshire. In the mid-1990s

Dan Brown Daniel Gerhard Brown (born June 22, 1964) is an American author best known for his Thriller (genre), thriller novels, including the Robert Langdon (book series), Robert Langdon novels ''Angels & Demons'' (2000), ''The Da Vinci Code'' (2003), '' ...

, future best-selling author of ''

The Da Vinci Code ''The Da Vinci Code'' is a 2003 mystery thriller novel by Dan Brown. It is “the best-selling American novel of all time.” Brown's second novel to include the character Robert Langdon—the first was his 2000 novel '' Angels & Demons''� ...

'', taught Spanish to the school's 6th, 7th, and 8th graders. In 2003, Lincoln Akerman was cited in ''The Hampton Union'' for, according to the New Hampshire Educational Improvement and Assessment Program (NHEIAP), being notable for having scores that were "significantly above the state average" and climbing. Specific subjects cited were

social studies In many countries' curricula, social studies is the combined study of humanities, the arts, and social sciences, mainly including history, economics, and civics. The term was coined by American educators around the turn of the twentieth century as ...

language arts English studies (or simply, English) is an academic discipline taught in primary, secondary, and post-secondary education in English-speaking countries. This is not to be confused with English taught as a foreign language, which is a distin ...

, and

math Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many ar ...

. The current principal is Beth Raucci, who has held that position since 2018.

Notable people

* Alice Brown (1856–1948), novelist, poet, playwright * Warren Brown (1836–1919), politician, historian, gentleman farmer, businessman * Harriet E. Clark (1850–1945), teacher and author *

Ralph Adams Cram Ralph Adams Cram (December 16, 1863 – September 22, 1942) was a prolific and influential American architect of collegiate and ecclesiastical buildings, often in the Gothic Revival style. Cram & Ferguson and Cram, Goodhue & Ferguson are partn ...

(1863–1942), architect * Eliphaz Dow (1705–1755), first male executed in New Hampshire *

Maura Healey Maura Tracy Healey (born February 8, 1971) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the 73rd governor of Massachusetts since 2023. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, she served as Massachusetts Attorney Ge ...

(born 1971), 44th

Massachusetts Attorney General The Massachusetts attorney general is an elected constitutionally defined executive officer of the Massachusetts government. The officeholder is the chief lawyer and law enforcement officer of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The officeholder ...

, 73rd

Governor of Massachusetts The governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the head of government of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The governor is the chief executive, head of the state cabinet and the commander-in-chief of the commonw ...

* Scotty Lago (born 1987), Olympic bronze medalist snowboarder * Benson Leavitt (1797–1869), acting mayor of

* Jonathan Leavitt (1797–1852), publisher * Wesley Powell (1915–1981), 70th

Governor of New Hampshire The governor of New Hampshire is the head of government of the U.S. state of New Hampshire. The governor is elected during the biennial state general election in November of even-numbered years. New Hampshire is one of only two states, along w ...

* Andy Pratt (born 1947), singer-songwriter * Florence Ryerson (1892–1965), screenwriter, playwright; co-author of script for ''The Wizard of Oz'' (1939 film) *

Franklin Benjamin Sanborn Franklin Benjamin Sanborn (December 15, 1831 – February 24, 1917) was an American journalist, teacher, author, reformer, and Abolitionism in the United States, abolitionist. Sanborn was a social scientist and memorialist of American transcend ...

(1831–1917), journalist, author, historian, abolitionist, social reformer * John H. Sununu (born 1939), White House chief of staff, 75th

governor of New Hampshire The governor of New Hampshire is the head of government of the U.S. state of New Hampshire. The governor is elected during the biennial state general election in November of even-numbered years. New Hampshire is one of only two states, along w ...

* Nancy Sununu (1939–2024), former First Lady of New Hampshire and chair of the

New Hampshire Republican Party The New Hampshire Republican Party is the affiliate of the United States Republican Party in New Hampshire. Its executive committee is headed by Chairman Jim MacEachern. Elected officials Republicans have a state government trifecta in New Ha ...

Meshech Weare Meshech Weare (June 16, 1713January 14, 1786) was an American farmer, lawyer, and statesman from Seabrook and Hampton Falls, New Hampshire. He served as the first president of New Hampshire. Before 1784 the position of governor was referred t ...

(1713–1786), first president of New Hampshire *

John Greenleaf Whittier John Greenleaf Whittier (December 17, 1807 – September 7, 1892) was an American Quaker poet and advocate of the abolition of slavery in the United States. Frequently listed as one of the fireside poets, he was influenced by the Scottish poet ...

(1807–1892), poet, abolitionist *

Paine Wingate Paine Wingate (May 14, 1739March 7, 1838) was an American preacher, farmer, and statesman from Stratham, New Hampshire. He served New Hampshire in the Continental Congress and both the United States Senate and United States House of Representati ...

(1739–1838), preacher, US senator

References

External links

*
Hampton Falls Free Library

Hampton Falls Historical Society

* ttp://www.sau21.org/las/ Lincoln Akerman School {{authority control 1726 establishments in the Thirteen Colonies Populated coastal places in New Hampshire Populated places established in 1726 Towns in New Hampshire Towns in Rockingham County, New Hampshire