Peterborough Town

Hillsborough County, New Hampshire

Peterborough Town Hall is located at 1 Grove Street, Peterborough, NH 03458.
Phone: 603‑924‑8000.

Neighborhoods

Beginnings [1, 2]

Taking its name from the Earl of Peterborough, the town was originally granted in 1737. Although a few pioneers found their way here in 1739, it was not until 1749 that the first permanent settlement was made, in the southern part of the town. The early settlements were much handicapped by Indian molestation.

The cotton industry began in Peterborough in 1818 with the Old Bell, a pioneer factory in the use of power machinery. In 1870, in addition to textile goods, piano stools were produced in the town. At about that same time Peterborough entered the summer resort business with 400 visitors each summer.

There is great uncertainty as the first settlement in Peterborough, and also as to the first settlers. The names of these persons, according to Mr. Dunbar's Sketch of Peterborough, were William Robbe, Alexander Scott, Hugh Gregg, William Gregg, Samuel Stinson.

Peterborough was incorporated January 17, 1760, and the first meeting called by Hugh Wilson, authorized to do so by the charter, was held at the meeting-house.

1. Federal Writers' Project, Works Progress Administration, New Hampshire: A Guide to the Granite State, American Guide Series, Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, The Riverside Press, Cambridge, 1938.
2. Smith, Albert, MD, LLD, History of the Town of Peterborough, Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, Press of George H. Ellis, Boston, 1876.

Nearby Towns: Jaffrey Town •