Sanbornton 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 ...

Belknap County, New Hampshire Belknap County () is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New Hampshire. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 63,705. The county seat is Laconia, New Hampshire, Laconia. It is located in New Hamp ...

, United States. The population was 3,026 at the 2020 census. It includes the villages of North Sanbornton and Gaza.

History

Located in the fork of the Pemigewasset and Winnipesaukee rivers, the town was first called "Crotchtown". It was granted by colonial Governor

Benning Wentworth Benning Wentworth (July 24, 1696 – October 14, 1770) was an American merchant, landowner and colonial administrator who served as the List of colonial governors of New Hampshire, governor of New Hampshire from 1741 to 1766. He is best known ...

in 1748 to his friend John Sanborn of Hampton, along with 59 others from Hampton,

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 ...

and Stratham. Twelve of the grantees were named Sanborn, therefore the community was named "Sanborntown". Among the other settlers were members of the Leavitt family, related to the Sanborns. But ongoing hostilities during the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War, 1754 to 1763, was a colonial conflict in North America between Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of France, France, along with their respective Native Americans in the United States, Native American ...

delayed permanent settlement until 1764. It would be incorporated by Governor John Wentworth in 1770. There was a border adjustment to Merrimack and Strafford counties on December 24, 1828, that affected Northfield and Sanborntown. The town originally included Sanbornton Bridge, or Bridge Village, set off in 1869 as Tilton.

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 4.58% of the town. Bounded on the west by the Pemigewasset River and on the east by Lake Winnisquam, Sanbornton is largely drained by Salmon Brook, a tributary of the Pemigewasset. The highest point in town is the summit of Hersey Mountain, elevation 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 ...

, along the town's northwestern border. The town is served by

Interstate 93 Interstate 93 (I-93) is an Interstate Highway in the New England states of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont in the United States. Spanning approximately along a north–south axis, it is one of three primary Interstate Highways ...

, New Hampshire Route 132, and New Hampshire Route 127. I-93 accesses the town via Exit 22 (NH 127) and leads north to

Plymouth Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tamar, Tamar, about southwest of Exeter and ...

and south to Concord. NH 132 parallels I-93 as a local road, connecting Tilton to the south with New Hampton and Ashland to the north. NH 127 intersects NH 132 in the village of Gaza within Sanbornton and leads southwest to Franklin.

U.S. Route 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 ...

crosses a very small southeastern corner of Sanbornton at the village of Winnisquam, where the road crosses Lake Winnisquam.

Adjacent municipalities

* Meredith (north) *

Laconia Laconia or Lakonia (, , ) is a historical and Administrative regions of Greece, administrative region of Greece located on the southeastern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. Its administrative capital is Sparti (municipality), Sparta. The word ...

(northeast) * Belmont (east) * Tilton (south) * Franklin (southwest) *

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 ...

(west) * New Hampton (northwest)

Demographics

As of the 2000 census, there were 2,581 people, 969 households, and 749 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 1,359 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 98.14% White, 0.15% African American, 0.15% Native American, 0.50% Asian, 0.12% from other races, and 0.93% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.43% of the population. There were 969 households, out of which 33.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.7% were married couples living together, 8.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.7% were non-families. 16.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 2.97. In the town, the population was spread out, with 25.3% under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 28.9% from 25 to 44, 28.4% from 45 to 64, and 10.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.5 males. The median income for a household in the town was $48,458, and the median income for a family was $52,179. Males had a median income of $35,472 versus $26,117 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 $22,879. About 2.2% of families and 5.1% 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 8.4% of those under age 18 and 4.3% of those age 65 or over.

Government

In the

New Hampshire Senate The New Hampshire State Senate is the upper house of the New Hampshire General Court, alongside the lower New Hampshire House of Representatives. The Senate has been meeting since 1784. The Senate consists of 24 members representing Senate distri ...

, Sanbornton is in the 2nd district, represented by Republican Bob Giuda. On the

New Hampshire Executive Council The Executive Council of the State of New Hampshire (colloquially referred to as the Governor's Council) is the executive body of New Hampshire in the United States. The Executive Council advises the Governor on all matters and provides a check o ...

, Sanbornton is in the 1st district, represented by Republican Joseph Kenney. In the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

, Sanbornton is in

New Hampshire's 1st congressional district New Hampshire's 1st congressional district covers parts of Southern New Hampshire and the eastern portion of the state. The district contains parts of Hillsborough, Rockingham, Merrimack, Grafton, and Belknap counties; and the entirety of ...

, represented by Democrat Chris Pappas.

Notable people

* Albert E. Bodwell (1851–1926), noted 19th-century New Hampshire architect * Sarah A. Colby (1824–1904), physician * Joseph M. Harper (1787–1865), U.S. Representative, Acting Governor of New Hampshire * Don Kent (1917–2010), meteorologist *

Lois Lowry Lois Ann Lowry (; née Hammersberg; born March 20, 1937) is an American writer. She is the author of many books for children and young adults, including '' The Giver Quartet'', '' Number the Stars'', the Anastasia series, and '' Rabble Starkey''. ...

(born 1937), children's author (summer resident) * Daniel S. Miles (1772–1845), religious leader * George W. Swain (1824–1904),

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

state senator * Esther W. Taylor (1826–1904), physician

References

External links

*
Sanbornton Public Library

Sanbornton Historical Document Foundation

Mohawk Trail Riders Snowmobile Club

* ttp://www.lanetavern.org/ Lane Tavern, Sanbornton Historical Society {{authority control Towns in Belknap County, New Hampshire Towns in New Hampshire