Town in New Hampshire, United States
Bennington
is a
town
in
Hillsborough County
,
New Hampshire
, United States. The population was 1,501 at the
2020 census
.
[2]
The main village of the town, where 338 people resided at the 2020 census, is defined as the
Bennington census-designated place
(CDP) and is located on the
Contoocook River
at the intersection of New Hampshire routes
31
and
47
.
History
[
edit
]
Situated in an area once called "Society Land", the town was formed from parts of
Deering
,
Francestown
,
Greenfield
and
Hancock
.
[3]
It was named to commemorate the 1777
Battle of Bennington
, an
American Revolutionary War
battle fought in
New York
near
Bennington, Vermont
. The Vermont town in turn derived its name from New Hampshire governor
Benning Wentworth
. The town was incorporated in 1842.
[3]
The first census, taken in 1850, recorded 541 residents.
Located at the Great Falls of the
Contoocook River
, which drop 70 feet (21 m) over 1.2 miles (1.9 km), Bennington provided
water power
for
mills
. The first
gristmill
was built in 1782, with a
cotton
mill in 1810. A
tannery
and tool manufacturing industry would follow. A factory with
paper-making
machinery was established in 1835, located at or near the site of the present-day Monadnock Paper Mill. In 1858, the town's industries included a
cutlery
manufacturer, a gristmill, two paper mills, and a
sawmill
. Bennington also had quite a number of farms.
In 1874, plans were underway to build the Peterborough and Hillsborough railroad through Bennington.
[3]
Geography
[
edit
]
According to the
United States Census Bureau
, the town has a total area of 11.6 square miles (30.0 km
2
), of which 11.4 square miles (29.4 km
2
) are land and 0.2 square miles (0.6 km
2
) are water, comprising 1.94% of the town.
[1]
Bennington is drained by the north-flowing
Contoocook River
, which forms
Powder Mill Pond
on the southern boundary. The highest point in Bennington is 2,020 feet (620 m) above
sea level
on
Crotched Mountain
, whose 2,066-foot (630 m) summit lies just east in
Francestown
. Bennington lies fully within the
Merrimack River
watershed
.
[4]
Transportation
[
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]
The town is crossed by
U. S. Route 202
and state routes
31
and
47
. It is bordered by the towns of
Deering
to the northeast,
Francestown
to the east,
Greenfield
to the south,
Hancock
to the southwest, and
Antrim
to the west and north.
Adjacent municipalities
[
edit
]
Demographics
[
edit
]
Town Hall
Monadnock Paper Mill
c.
1910
As of the
census
of 2010, there were 1,476 people, 564 households, and 386 families residing in the town. There were 666 housing units, of which 102, or 15.3%, were vacant. 43 of the vacant units were for seasonal or recreational use. The racial makeup of the town was 97.4%
white
, 0.4%
African American
, 0.1%
Native American
, 0.6%
Asian
, 0.0%
Native Hawaiian
or Pacific Islander, 0.4% some other race, and 1.1% from two or more races. 0.9% of the population were
Hispanic
or
Latino
of any race.
[6]
Of the 564 households, 35.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.6% were headed by
married couples
living together, 13.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.6% were non-families. 24.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.8% were someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.62, and the average family size was 3.08.
[6]
In the town, 25.7% of the population were under the age of 18, 9.6% were from 18 to 24, 26.3% from 25 to 44, 29.6% from 45 to 64, and 8.9% were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38.3 years. For every 100 females, there were 107.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 107.0 males.
[6]
For the period 2011?2015, the estimated median annual income for a household was $65,481, and the median income for a family was $75,278. Male full-time workers had a median income of $47,000 versus $39,659 for females. The
per capita income
for the town was $28,071. 4.5% of the population and 4.5% of families were below the poverty line. 2.0% of the population under the age of 18 and 2.4% of those 65 or older were living in poverty.
[7]
Economy
[
edit
]
Bennington is the home of the
Monadnock Paper Mills
as well as
Crotched Mountain Ski & Ride
, a medium-sized ski resort on the Francestown line.
Education
[
edit
]
Bennington is part of SAU (School Administrative Unit) #1, which is a school district that includes 9 towns, better known as the Contoocook Valley Regional School District.
[8]
Students from Bennington attend the following schools:
References
[
edit
]
- A. J. Coolidge & J. B. Mansfield,
A History and Description of New England
, 1859; H. O. Houghton & Company, printers; Cambridge, Massachusetts
- ^
a
b
"2021 U.S. Gazetteer Files ? New Hampshire"
. United States Census Bureau
. Retrieved
December 3,
2021
.
- ^
a
b
c
"Bennington town, Hillsborough County, New Hampshire: 2020 DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171)"
. U.S. Census Bureau
. Retrieved
December 3,
2021
.
- ^
a
b
c
Statistics and Gazetteer of New-Hampshire
(1875)
- ^
Foster, Debra H.; Batorfalvy, Tatianna N.; Medalie, Laura (1995).
Water Use in New Hampshire: An Activities Guide for Teachers
. U.S. Department of the Interior and U.S. Geological Survey.
- ^
"Census of Population and Housing"
. Census.gov
. Retrieved
June 4,
2016
.
- ^
a
b
c
"Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Census Summary File 1 (DP-1): Bennington town, Hillsborough County, New Hampshire"
.
American Factfinder
. U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from
the original
on February 13, 2020
. Retrieved
November 1,
2017
.
- ^
"Selected Economic Characteristics: 2011-2015 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (DP03): Bennington town, Hillsborough County, New Hampshire"
.
American Factfinder
. U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from
the original
on February 13, 2020
. Retrieved
November 1,
2017
.
- ^
Contoocook Valley Regional School District
- ^
Pierce School
- ^
Great Brook School
- ^
ConVal High School
External links
[
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]
Places adjacent to Bennington, New Hampshire
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