Merrimack County is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

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 ...

. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 153,808, making it the third most populous county in New Hampshire. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

is Concord, the

state capital Below is an index of pages containing lists of capital city, capital cities. National capitals *List of national capitals *List of national capitals by latitude *List of national capitals by population *List of national capitals by area *List of ...

. The county was organized in 1823 from parts of Hillsborough and Rockingham counties, and is named for 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 ...

. Merrimack County comprises the Concord, NH Micropolitan Statistical Area, which in turn constitutes a portion of the

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 ...

– Worcester– Providence, MA– RI– NH– CT Combined Statistical Area. In 2010, the

center of population In Demography, demographics, the center of population (or population center) of a region is a geographical point that describes a centerpoint of the region's population. There are several ways of defining such a "center point", leading to dif ...

of New Hampshire was located in Merrimack County, in the town of Pembroke.

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 county has a total area of , of which is land and (2.3%) is water. It is the third largest county in New Hampshire by land area. The highest point in Merrimack County is Mount Kearsarge, on the border of Warner and Wilmot, at .

Adjacent counties

* Belknap County (northeast) * Strafford County (east) * Rockingham County (southeast) * Hillsborough County (south) * Sullivan County (west) * Grafton County (northwest)

National protected area

* John Hay National Wildlife Refuge

Demographics

2000 census

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 136,225 people, 51,843 households, and 35,460 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 56,244 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 97.08%

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 ...

, 0.54%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

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, 0.86% Asian, 0.02%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.23% from other races, and 1.04% from two or more races. 1.00% of the population were

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. 16.5% were of English, 13.4% Irish, 12.7% French, 11.0%

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

, 8.4% American, 6.4% German and 6.0%

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

ancestry. 94.2% spoke English, 2.9% French and 1.1% Spanish as their first language. There were 51,843 households, out of which 33.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.90% 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, 9.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.60% were non-families. 24.60% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 3.00. In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.90% under the age of 18, 8.10% from 18 to 24, 30.60% from 25 to 44, 24.00% from 45 to 64, and 12.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.70 males. The median income for a household in the county was $48,522, and the median income for a family was $56,842. Males had a median income of $37,722 versus $27,207 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 county was $23,208. About 4.10% of families and 5.90% 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 6.60% of those under age 18 and 5.70% of those age 65 or over.

2010 census

As of the

of 2010, there were 146,445 people, 57,069 households, and 38,104 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 63,541 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 95.3% white, 1.6% Asian, 1.0% black or African American, 0.3% American Indian, 0.3% from other races, and 1.4% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.6% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 20.5% were English, 20.4% were Irish, 10.1% were German, 9.7% were

, 9.7% were

, 5.2% were Scottish, and 4.9% were American. Of the 57,069 households, 31.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.4% were married couples living together, 9.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 33.2% were non-families, and 25.4% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 2.94. The median age was 41.4 years. The median income for a household in the county was $63,012 and the median income for a family was $75,268. Males had a median income of $50,880 versus $37,351 for females. The per capita income for the county was $30,544. About 5.2% of families and 8.1% of the population were below the

, including 10.6% of those under age 18 and 7.4% of those age 65 or over. Merrimack County population density

Politics and government

Merrimack County was reliably Republican through most of its history, with Democrats only carrying the county in four out of 29 presidential elections from 1876 to 1988. Since then, Democrats have carried the county every time.

County Commission

The executive power of Merrimack County's government is held by three county commissioners, each representing one of the three commissioner districts within the county. In addition to the County Commission, there are five directly elected officials: they include County Attorney, Register of Deeds, County Sheriff, Register of Probate, and County Treasurer.

Legislative branch

The legislative branch of Merrimack County is made up of all of the members of the

New Hampshire House of Representatives The New Hampshire House of Representatives is the lower house in the New Hampshire General Court, the bicameral State legislature (United States), legislature of the state of New Hampshire. The House of Representatives consists of 400 members com ...

from the county. In total, there are 45 members from 30 different districts.

Communities

Cities

* Concord (county seat) * Franklin

Towns

* Allenstown * Andover * Boscawen * Bow *

Bradford Bradford is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in West Yorkshire, England. It became a municipal borough in 1847, received a city charter in 1897 and, since the Local Government Act 1972, 1974 reform, the city status in the United Kingdo ...

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...

Chichester Chichester ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in the Chichester District, Chichester district of West Sussex, England.OS Explorer map 120: Chichester, South Harting and Selsey Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher ...

* Danbury * Dunbarton *

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 ...

* Henniker *

Hill A hill is a landform that extends above the surrounding terrain. It often has a distinct summit, and is usually applied to peaks which are above elevation compared to the relative landmass, though not as prominent as Mountain, mountains. Hills ...

* Hooksett * Hopkinton * Loudon * New London * Newbury * Northfield * Pembroke * Pittsfield *

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 ...

Sutton Sutton (''south settlement'' or ''south town'' in Old English) may refer to: Places United Kingdom England In alphabetical order by county: * Sutton, Bedfordshire * Sutton, Berkshire, a List of United Kingdom locations: Stu-Sz#Su, location * S ...

* Warner * Webster * Wilmot

Census-designated places

* Blodgett Landing *

* Contoocook * Henniker * Hooksett * Loudon * New London * Pittsfield * South Hooksett * Suncook * Tilton Northfield * Warner

Villages

* East Andover * Elkins * North Sutton * Penacook * South Newbury * South Sutton

Education

School districts include: K-12 districts: *

Bow School District BOW as an acronym may refer to: * Bag of waters, amniotic sac * Bartow Municipal Airport (IATA:BOW), a public use airport near Bartow, Florida, United States * Basic operating weight of an aircraft * BOW counties, made of Brown, Outagamie, and Winn ...

* Concord School District * Franklin School District * Hopkinton School District * Kearsarge Regional School District * Merrimack Valley School District * Newfound Area School District * Pembroke School District * Pittsfield School District * Shaker Regional School District * Winnisquam Regional School District Secondary districts: * John Stark Regional School District Elementary districts: * Allenstown School District * Andover School District * Chichester School District * Dunbarton School District * Epsom School District * Henniker School District * Hill School District * Hooksett School District Hooksett sends its high school students to Pinkerton Academy, a privately endowed publicly funded high school in

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry, is the second-largest City status in the United Kingdom, city in Northern Ireland, and the fifth-largest on the island of Ireland. Located in County Londonderry, the city now covers both banks of the River Fo ...

, Rockingham County. Previously Hooksett sent high school students to the

Manchester School District Manchester School District is a school district headquartered in Manchester, New Hampshire. It is the largest school district in the state, according to the Associated Press. History Circa 2003 Hooksett, New Hampshire, Hooksett contracted with ...

References

External links

Merrimack County official website

{{coord, 43.30, -71.68, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-NH_source:UScensus1990 Counties in Greater Boston 1823 establishments in New Hampshire Populated places established in 1823 Micropolitan areas of New Hampshire New Hampshire placenames of Native American origin