Alstead, New Hampshire
| Alstead, New Hampshire | |
|---|---|
| Town | |
|
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 Location in Cheshire County, New Hampshire |
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| Coordinates: 43°08′56″N 72°21′38″W / 43.14889°N 72.36056°WCoordinates: 43°08′56″N 72°21′38″W / 43.14889°N 72.36056°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | New Hampshire |
| County | Cheshire |
| Incorporated | 1763 |
| Government | |
| • Board of Selectmen | Chris Rietmann Rock Wilson Tim Noonan |
| Area | |
| • Total | 39.3 sq mi (101.9 km2) |
| • Land | 38.8 sq mi (100.4 km2) |
| • Water | 0.6 sq mi (1.5 km2) 1.45% |
| Elevation | 479 ft (146 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Total | 1,937 |
| • Density | 49/sq mi (19/km2) |
| Time zone | Eastern (UTC-5) |
| • Summer (DST) | Eastern (UTC-4) |
| ZIP code | 03602 |
| Area code(s) | 603 |
| FIPS code | 33-00820 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0873529 |
| Website | www |
Alstead (/ˈælstɛd/) is a town in Cheshire County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 1,937 at the 2010 census. Alstead is home to Feuer State Forest.
The town was chartered by Massachusetts Governor Jonathan Belcher in 1735 as one in a line of nine forts intended to protect southwestern New Hampshire from Indian attack. It was granted as Newton or Newtown in 1752 by Governor Benning Wentworth, but would be incorporated in 1763 as Alstead. It was named for Johann Heinrich Alsted, who compiled an early encyclopedia that was popular at Harvard College. Settled about 1764, Alstead would be one of the towns that wavered in its allegiance after the Revolutionary War. It decided to join Vermont in April 1781, but at the insistence of George Washington, returned to New Hampshire authority early the next year.
Formerly known as Paper Mill Village, Alstead is the location of the state's first paper mill. It was established in 1793 on the Cold River by Ephraim and Elisha Kingsbury. Paper was then a rare and expensive product, made by chopping rags of linen and cotton cloth into pulp. The mill was destroyed by fire in 1880. While Alstead was basically an agricultural community, its streams and ponds once powered a variety of small mills. A turbine water mill at East Alstead is probably the last of its type anywhere in the region.
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