Northfield, New Hampshire

Northfield, New Hampshire
Town
Hall Memorial Library c. 1905
Seal
Motto: "A Great Place to Live!"
Location in Merrimack County and the state of New Hampshire
Coordinates: 43°26′15″N 71°35′35″W / 43.43750°N 71.59306°W / 43.43750; -71.59306Coordinates: 43°26′15″N 71°35′35″W / 43.43750°N 71.59306°W / 43.43750; -71.59306
Country	United States
State	New Hampshire
County	Merrimack
Incorporated	1780
Government
• Board of Selectmen	Wayne Crowley Robert Southworth Dennis Allen
• Town Administrator	Glenn Smith
Area
• Total	29.0 sq mi (75.2 km2)
• Land	28.8 sq mi (74.6 km2)
• Water	0.3 sq mi (0.7 km2)  0.89%
Elevation	440 ft (134 m)
Population (2010)
• Total	4,829
• Density	170/sq mi (64/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (UTC-5)
• Summer (DST)	Eastern (UTC-4)
Area code(s)	603
FIPS code	33-54260
GNIS feature ID	0873686
Website	www.northfieldnh.org

Northfield is a town in Merrimack County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 4,829 at the 2010 census.

Settlers first arrived in Northfield in the early 1700s. Initially Northfield was incorporated as part of Canterbury when that town was established in 1741. At the time it was a frontier town protected by a garrison fort erected on a hill close to Canterbury Center and commanded by Capt. Jeremiah Clough. Tradition has it that the first settlers of the "north fields" of Canterbury came from the scouts from this fort who patrolled the area in the 1740s.

The north fields of Canterbury prospered. Farming was the principal industry. Additionally, dams along the Winnipesaukee and Merrimack rivers and several brooks powered early sawmills and gristmills. By the 1770s there was a substantial population in the north fields of Canterbury.

By 1780 the residents of the north fields found it increasingly difficult to travel to the center of Canterbury to attend to town business. On March 30, 1780, they filed the following petition with the State of New Hampshire (spelling left as printed in 1780):

Canterbury, March 30, 1780
“The humble petition of ye Subscribers Inhabitants of ye North part of sd Canterbury to ye Honorable ye President and members of Council and house of Representatives of said State. We your Humble Petitioners Living at a great Distance from ye Center of the Towne Some of us nine or ten Miles and Consequently at a very great disadvantage in joining with them all Publick Town affairs, being encouraged Partly by our Living in that Part of ye Town that was Laid out for what was called ye upper Parish and Partly by ye Kind Reception our Request met with which we made to ye Town for a dismission but more particularly by our Confidence in your Honors desire to Promote ye Happiness of every Part of ye State Humbly Pray that Honors would take our Case into your Serious Consideration and grant that we together with all those Live in sd Upper Part may be Erected and Incorporated into a body Politick and Corporate to have Continuance in ye Name of Northfield with all such Powers and Authorities Privileges Immunities and Franchises with other Parishes or Towns in this State in General hold Enjoy with your Petitions as in duty bound Shall forever pray.”

The petition, signed by 43 residents, was approved by the state legislature, and the Town of Northfield was born.