Milford

History

Milford separated from neighboring Amherst in 1794. Like most towns named Milford in the United States, its name comes from the fact that it grew around a mill built on a ford—in this case on the Souhegan River. Milford was once home to numerous granite quarries, which produced a stone that was used, among other things, to make the pillars for the U.S. Treasury in Washington, D.C. —as seen on the back of the American $10 bill. Its nickname remains "The Granite Town", although only one small quarry is in operation as of 2017. Like many New England riverside towns, Milford developed several thriving textile mills in the 19th century. That industry left New England by World War II, but Milford remains the commercial and retail center for surrounding towns. Major employers included casting company Hitchiner Manufacturing Co., a metal cable manufacturer, Hendrix Wire and Cable Inc., and a contract manufacturing solutions company, Cirtronics Corporation. In 2018, local firm Alene Candles became one of the first companies in the state to implement a "conscious leadership" program in a manufacturing production setting. Milford is home to the Milford State Fish Hatchery. The town also holds the Souhegan Valley Boys & Girls Club, built on the former home of the now-bankrupt private theater American Stage Festival. Milford was a stop on the Underground Railroad for escaped slaves. It was also the home of Harriet E. Wilson, who published the semi-autobiographical novel Our Nig: Or, Sketches in the Life of a Free Black in 1859, making it the first novel by an African-American woman published in the country. Officially designated "Union Square", the Milford Oval is neither square nor oval in shape, but rather triangular. The "square" name in American parlance denotes a town…

Geography

Milford is in southern New Hampshire and south-central Hillsborough County. It is southwest of Manchester, the largest city in the state, and northwest of Nashua. According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , of which are land and are water, comprising 0.22% of the town. |source 2 = National Weather Service }}

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Black-capped Chickadee

  Poecile atricapillus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  12,059
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  11,372
• Tufted Titmouse

  Baeolophus bicolor (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  9,161
• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  8,696
• American Goldfinch

  Spinus tristis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  8,516
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  8,290
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  8,221
• White-breasted Nuthatch

  Sitta carolinensis Latham, 1790 · Aves
  6,804

Most recent

• M 3.8 — 2025-01-27
  9 km SE of York Harbor, Maine
• M 2.7 — 2023-12-23
  5 km SW of Chichester, New Hampshire
• M 2.7 — 2018-02-15
  0 km SE of East Kingston, New Hampshire
• M 2.8 — 2016-03-21
  4 km ESE of Warner, New Hampshire
• M 2.61 — 2013-10-11
  New Hampshire
• M 3.15 — 2010-09-26
  2 km SW of Canterbury, New Hampshire