10 Small Towns In Rural New Hampshire That Are Downright Delightful
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Ken MacGray
Author
The Granite State is blessed with numerous small towns, stretching to every corner from north to south and east to west. And the further away you get from the major cities, the more rural they get. Here is a selection of ten rural towns from around New Hampshire that are worth checking out.
Benton is a small rural village located partly within the White Mountain National Forest. The town's natural beauty attracts both seasonal residents and visitors alike.
The early days of Bradford were marked by industry, with a number of mills operating within the town. The mills may be gone now but the town retains its character from that time.
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Chichester is small in area and sparsely populated. The civic center of the town with its historic buildings lies on Main Street, well away from the area's busy highways.
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Jaffrey lies at the base of Mt. Monadnock, which has attracted explorers, tourists, and artists for centuries. For Rudyard Kipling, it was his ascent of the mountain that inspired his 1845 poem, "Monadnock".
Lesser known to New Hampshire travelers, Lisbon has an interesting past. It was the site of the first rope ski tow in the state, iron and gold were mined here, and its Parker Young Company was world famous for its piano sounding boards.
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Middleton is a quiet community along an old route between New Hampshire's seacoast and the town of Wolfeboro. The town originally included Brookfield, which was eventually spun off into its own town in 1794.
The village of Nelson is tiny and quaint. It was primarily an agricultural community in its earlier days but also was a center of industry. Nelson's town hall has held contradances for over 200 years, making it the longest-running event of its kind in the world.
Stewartstown is one of the places in New Hampshire where you can be halfway between the equator and the North Pole. The 45th Parallel passes between the town, dividing these two zones.
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As with many New England towns, Wilton flourished in its days as a mill town, powered by the Souhegan River. Today, the town is more rural with orchards, farms, and woodlands.
Whitefield is located at the northern edge of the White Mountains in New Hampshire's North Country. It was this location that drew tourists here via 19th-century railroads so they could take in the clean mountain air.
What did you think of this list of rural New Hampshire towns? Are there others we missed? If you have been to any of these places or would like to suggest others, please share in the comments!
We think you should also check out these peaceful small towns in New Hampshire.
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Featured Addresses
Benton, NH, USA
Bradford, NH, USA
Chichester, NH, USA
Jaffrey, NH 03452, USA
Lisbon, NH, USA
Middleton, NH, USA
Nelson, NH 03457, USA
Stewartstown, NH 03576, USA
Wilton, NH 03086, USA
Whitefield, NH, USA