Acworth 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 ...

in Sullivan County,

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 ...

, United States. At the 2020 census, the town had a total population of 853.

History

Originally chartered 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 1752, it was called "Burnet" after William Burnet, a former governor of the

Province of Massachusetts Bay The Province of Massachusetts Bay was a colony in New England which became one of the thirteen original states of the United States. It was chartered on October 7, 1691, by William III and Mary II, the joint monarchs of the kingdoms of Eng ...

. In 1754, however, 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 ...

broke out, and no settlements were made under the charter.A. J. Coolidge & J. B. Mansfield, ''A History and Description of New England;'' Boston, Massachusetts 1859
/ref> Wentworth regranted the township on September 19, 1766, naming it after Sir Jacob Acworth, a former Surveyor of the Royal Navy.''Encyclopedia of New Hampshire'' p. 441 The town was first permanently settled in 1768 by several families from

Londonderry, New Hampshire Londonderry is a town in western Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. It sits between Manchester and Derry, the largest and fourth-largest communities in the state. The population was 25,826 at the 2020 census. Londonderry is known f ...

. Acworth was incorporated in 1772 by Governor John Wentworth, but war again slowed its development. With the close of the

Revolution In political science, a revolution (, 'a turn around') is a rapid, fundamental transformation of a society's class, state, ethnic or religious structures. According to sociologist Jack Goldstone, all revolutions contain "a common set of elements ...

, however, Acworth grew quickly. By 1859, it had 1,251 inhabitants, most of whom were occupied in

agriculture 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 ...

. The Cold 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 industry, including five

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logging, logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ...

s, a

gristmill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist is grain that h ...

, a

woolen Woolen (American English) or woollen (Commonwealth English) is a type of yarn made from carded wool. Woolen yarn is soft, light, stretchy, and full of air. It is thus a good insulator, and makes a good knitting yarn. Woolen yarn is in contrast t ...

factory, a

bobbin A bobbin or spool is a spindle or cylinder, with or without flanges, on which yarn, thread, wire, tape or film is wound. Bobbins are typically found in industrial textile machinery, as well as in sewing machines, fishing reels, tape measures ...

factory and a peg factory. There was also a boot and

shoe A shoe is an item of footwear intended to protect and comfort the human foot. Though the human foot can adapt to varied terrains and climate conditions, it is vulnerable, and shoes provide protection. Form was originally tied to function, but ...

manufacturer. Acworth is a source for museum-quality crystals such as

beryl Beryl ( ) is a mineral composed of beryllium aluminium Silicate minerals#Cyclosilicates, silicate with the chemical formula Be3Al2(SiO3)6. Well-known varieties of beryl include emerald and Aquamarine (gem), aquamarine. Naturally occurring Hex ...

. The town of

Acworth, Georgia Acworth is a city in Cobb County, Georgia, United States. It is part of the Atlanta metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, this city had a population of 22,440, up from 20,425 in 2010. Acworth is located in the foothills of the North Georg ...

, was named for this town, because this was the hometown of a

railroad engineer A train driver is a person who operates a train, railcar, or other rail transport vehicle. The driver is in charge of and is responsible for the mechanical operation of the train, train speed, and all of the train handling (also known as bra ...

there.

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 0.65% of the town. Acworth is drained by the Cold River and its tributaries, except for the northwest corner of town, which drains north to the Little Sugar River. The town lies fully within the

Connecticut River The Connecticut River is the longest river in the New England region of the United States, flowing roughly southward for through four states. It rises 300 yards (270 m) south of the U.S. border with Quebec, Canada, and discharges into Long Isl ...

watershed. The highest point in Acworth is Gove Hill in the northeast part of town, 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 ...

. The town is crossed by one numbered state highway, New Hampshire Route 123A, which follows the Cold River and passes through the village of South Acworth. Although not numbered routes, the state also maintains a handful of other roads in the town, including Cold River Road, Hill Road, and a portion of Charlestown Road.

Adjacent municipalities

* Unity (north) * Lempster (east) * Marlow (southeast) * Alstead (south) * Langdon (southwest) * Charlestown (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 836 people, 318 households, and 234 families residing in the town. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was 21.5 people per square mile (8.3/km). There were 512 housing units at an average density of 13.2 per square mile (5.1/km). The racial makeup of the town was 96.77%

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 ...

, 0.84%

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 ...

, 0.84% Native American, 0.24% Asian, and 1.32% 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 1.08% of the population. There were 318 households, out of which 30.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.7% 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, 6.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.4% were non-families. 19.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.06. In the town, the population was spread out, with 25.7% under the age of 18, 4.7% from 18 to 24, 24.0% from 25 to 44, 30.4% from 45 to 64, and 15.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females, there were 101.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 101.0 males. The median income for a household in the town was $37,386, and the median income for a family was $41,397. Males had a median income of $29,792 versus $26,912 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 $18,132. About 10.1% of families and 15.6% 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 26.6% of those under age 18 and 5.4% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

* George W. Anderson (1861–1938), federal judge * Nedom L. Angier (1814–1882), mayor of Atlanta; Georgia state treasurer * John Graham Brooks (1846–1938), sociologist, political reformer * Thomas J. Cram (1804–1883), engineer in the service of the U.S. Corps of Topographical Engineers * Adrian Dubois (born 1987), professional soccer player * Alice B. Fogel, New Hampshire Poet Laureate, 2014–2019 * Perley Keyes (1774–1834), member of the New York Senate *

Talcott Parsons Talcott Parsons (December 13, 1902 – May 8, 1979) was an American sociologist of the classical tradition, best known for his social action theory and structural functionalism. Parsons is considered one of the most influential figures in soci ...

(1902–1979), Harvard sociologist * Fritz Wetherbee (born 1936), television personality * Hiram Wilson (1803–1864), abolitionist * Joseph Gardner Wilson (1826–1873), Oregon supreme court justice and US congressman * Urban A. Woodbury (1838–1915), Civil War veteran and the 45th

governor of Vermont The governor of Vermont is the head of government of the U.S. state of Vermont. The officeholder is elected in even-numbered years by direct voting for a term of two years. Vermont and bordering New Hampshire are the only states to hold guberna ...

References

External links

* * ttps://web.archive.org/web/20090610034943/http://www.historicalsocietiesnh.org/drsulli.htm Acworth Historical Society
Acworth Silsby Library

''The Acworthian''
online newsletter

* ttp://gedcomindex.com/Reference/Haywards/frame022.html ''Hayward's New England Gazetteer'' (1839) {{authority control Towns in Sullivan County, New Hampshire Populated places established in 1772 Towns in New Hampshire