Bradford, New Hampshire

History

Granted by Governor Benning Wentworth in 1765 to John Pierce and George Jaffrey of Portsmouth, it was settled in 1771 by Dea. William Presbury and family. Three years later other settlers arrived, several of them from Bradford, Massachusetts, after which the town was named New Bradford. Later, it was called Bradfordton, but upon incorporation by the General Court on September 27, 1787, it was officially named Bradford.

Parts of the town are hilly, but the largest portion is in a valley with varied soil. Streams provided water power for watermills. By 1859, when Bradford's population reached 1,341, industries included one woolen mill, one sash, blind and door factory, one wheelwright shop, two sawmills, one gristmill, one tannery, and one clothing mill. In 1850, the Concord & Claremont Railroad opened from Concord to Bradford, which would remain its terminus until the line was extended to Claremont in 1871-1872.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 36.0 square miles (93 km²), of which 35.3 sq mi (91 km²) is land and 0.7 sq mi (1.8 km²) is water, comprising 1.94% of the town. The village of Bradford is located near the northern border of the town, at the intersection of routes 103 and 114, just north of the Warner River and adjacent to the outlet of Todd Lake. The largest water body in the town is Lake Massasecum, near the town's eastern border.

The highest point in Bradford is an unnamed 2,096-foot (639 m) summit overlooking Ayers Pond on the town's western border. Knights Hill—1,910 ft (580 m) above sea level—and Rowes Hill—1,950 ft (590 m)—constitute a large, hilly mass occupying the southern portion of town. Bradford lies fully within the Merrimack River watershed.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 1,454 people, 559 households, and 403 families residing in the town. The population density was 41.2 people per square mile (15.9/km²). There were 762 housing units at an average density of 21.6 per square mile (8.3/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.25% White, 0.28% African American, 0.34% Native American, 0.14% Asian, 0.28% from other races, and 1.72% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.10% of the population.

There were 559 households out of which 34.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.6% were married couples living together, 11.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.9% were non-families. 20.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 2.96.

In the town, the population was spread out with 25.2% under the age of 18, 7.2% from 18 to 24, 27.0% from 25 to 44, 28.0% from 45 to 64, and 12.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 99.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.1 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $49,018, and the median income for a family was $57,083. Males had a median income of $34,803 versus $25,938 for females. The per capita income for the town was $22,240. About 2.5% of families and 4.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.2% of those under age 18 and 6.2% of those age 65 or over.

Sites of interest

Notable people