Barrington Town Hall is located at 41 Province Lane, Barrington NH 03835.
Phone: 603‑664‑2715.
Beginnings [1]
Barrington was first chartered in 1722, signed by Samuel Shute, then the governor of the New Hampshire Province. Land was to be apportioned among residents of the Town of Portsmouth who "have paid rates in said town for four years last past, to be divided among them in proportion to their respective town rate, which they paid the year last past." A section was reserved for a number of men who had been involved in the earlier creation of an iron works in the new town: John Wentworth, George Jaffrey, Archibald Macphaedris, and Robert Wilson.
The conditions of the grant were "that they build 50 dwelling houses and settle a family in each within seven years, and break up 3 acres of ground for each settlement, and plant or sow ye same within seven years; that a public meeting house should be build; that 200 acres be reserved for a parsonage for the first minister and 100 acres be reserved for a school." The conditions included a provision that if an Indian war should occur during those 7 years, the proprietors should have the 7 years following the close of the war in which to fulfill the conditions of the charter.
The first meeting of the proprietors was held in Portsmouth, May 28, 1722, with Robert (Richard) Wilbert as moderator and Clement Hughes as clerk.
The land was rocky and otherwise considered "bad" and there was difficulty getting people to settle there. It wasn't until the 1740s, after several increases in incentives to attract settlers, that the conditions of the charter were considered to have been met.
In 1747 there were 16 families and more than 90 inhabitants of the section granted the iron works proprietors.
Nearby Towns: Rochester City •