Newmarket

History

Incorporated in 1727, Newmarket is one of six towns granted by Massachusetts in the last year of the reign of King George I. It started as a parish of Exeter, and was granted full town privileges by the legislature in 1737. It was probably named for Newmarket in Suffolk, England. The Lamprey River, running through the town, was named for John Lamprey, an early settler. Newmarket was a center of the New England shipping trade with the West Indies. The town's main exports were timber, dried fish from the Squamscott River and salted alewives from the Lamprey River. The return cargo brought whale oil, molasses and rum back to Newmarket. Newmarket also had a robust shipbuilding presence. There were many ships built for the Royal Navy using trees from Newmarket and the surrounding towns. There is record of Newmarket building 21 ships in one year. The company dominated the mill town's waterfront and economy, with seven textile mills harnessing water power at the falls. The company had cotton shipped up from the Deep South, so its production was adversely affected by the Civil War. It built numerous support structures, including multi-family housing for workers. The company built dams far upriver to create Pawtuckaway Pond in Nottingham and Mendums Pond in Barrington—during drought, the company could release a regulated flow of water from the dams into the Lamprey to run the works. The company closed in 1929. Adapted for modern commercial and residential uses, the mill buildings are located within the Newmarket Industrial and Commercial Historic District, which in 1980 was added to the National Register of Historic Places. In the 1970s, the mill served as the headquarters of the Timberland Company, during the years when it grew from a small work-boot manufacturer to a leading…

Geography

Situated beside Great Bay in southeastern New Hampshire, Newmarket is drained by the Lamprey River and its tributary, the Piscassic River. The town's highest point is the summit of Bald Hill, at above sea level, near the town's southwestern corner. Great Hill, with an elevation of , rises just south of the town center. According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , of which are land and are water, comprising 11.24% of the town. The town is crossed by New Hampshire Route 108 and is the eastern terminus of New Hampshire Route 152.

Race & ethnicity

Largest nearby schools

• Exeter High School
  High · Exeter · 1,447 students · 13.9:1 ratio
• Portsmouth High School
  High · Portsmouth · 1,032 students · 11.7:1 ratio
• Cooperative Middle School
  Middle · Stratham · 951 students · 10.5:1 ratio
• Stratham Memorial School
  Elementary · Stratham · 521 students · 11.8:1 ratio
• Nottingham Elementary School
  Elementary · Nottingham · 505 students · 15.8:1 ratio
• Portsmouth Middle School
  Middle · Portsmouth · 499 students · 10.6:1 ratio
• Newmarket Elementary School
  Elementary · Newmarket · 472 students · 12.1:1 ratio
• Epping Elementary School
  Elementary · Epping · 456 students · 10.6:1 ratio