Somersworth

History

Prior to European settlement, the area that is now Somersworth was central-south Abenaki land. These Algonquian speaking peoples of the Wabanaki Confederacy lived along what they called Newichwanook, now the Salmon Falls River. Colonists from Britain arriving before 1700 named the area "Sligo", after Sligo in Ireland and settled there as a part of Dover. The community was organized in 1729 as the parish of "Summersworth", meaning "summer town", because during that season the ministers preached there. It was set off and incorporated in 1754 by colonial governor Benning Wentworth, and until 1849 included Rollinsford. A clerical error at incorporation contracted the name to "Somersworth". It was incorporated as a city in 1893, before which it was also known as "Great Falls". Situated where the Salmon Falls River drops over a mile, Somersworth early became a mill town, beginning with gristmills and sawmills. In 1822, the brothers Isaac and Jacob Wendell of Boston purchased for $5,000 a gristmill with its water rights at the Great Falls. They established the Great Falls Manufacturing Company, a textile business that expanded to include three mills for spinning thread and weaving cotton and woolen fabrics, specializing in "drillings, shirtings and sheetings". Throughout the 19th century, other expansive brick mill buildings, including a bleachery and dye works, were erected beside the river. The bleachery became the longest running textile operation in Somersworth. The building housed the operations that took the buff-colored fabric produced in the seven mills and transformed it into a sparkling white material that could be dyed or printed according to the buyer's wishes. The gate house at the dam directed water as needed, regulating the flow either into the river or a…

Geography

Somersworth is located in eastern Strafford County. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which are land and are water, comprising 1.96% of the city. Somersworth is bordered to the northeast by the Salmon Falls River, which is also the state boundary with Maine. The highest point in Somersworth is Prospect Hill rising just west of the city center, on which the city reservoir is built. The hill's elevation is approximately above sea level. New Hampshire Route 9 (High Street) is the main road through the city, leading north into Berwick, Maine, and south into Dover. New Hampshire Route 108 passes through a western portion of the city, leading northwest to Rochester and south to Dover. New Hampshire Route 236 (West High Street) leads west out of downtown to NH 108. * Berwick, Maine (north) * Rollinsford (southeast) * Dover (southwest) * Rochester (northwest)

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Black-capped Chickadee

  Poecile atricapillus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  28,416
• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  21,694
• Downy Woodpecker

  Dryobates pubescens (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  20,023
• American Goldfinch

  Spinus tristis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  19,744
• Tufted Titmouse

  Baeolophus bicolor (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  19,208
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  17,049
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  16,876
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  16,545

Largest nearby schools

• Dover Senior High School
  High · Dover · 1,505 students · 14.3:1 ratio
• Spaulding High School
  High · Rochester · 1,301 students · 14:1 ratio
• Dover Middle School
  Middle · Dover · 1,018 students · 13.8:1 ratio
• Rochester Middle School
  Middle · Rochester · 847 students · 12.8:1 ratio
• Oyster River High School
  High · Durham · 844 students · 12.6:1 ratio
• Oyster River Middle School
  Middle · Durham · 643 students · 10.7:1 ratio
• Woodman Park School
  Elementary · Dover · 436 students · 11.5:1 ratio
• Barrington Elementary School
  Elementary · Barrington · 424 students · 12.8:1 ratio

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 2.9 — 2023-04-25
  4 km SW of Center Sandwich, New Hampshire
• M 2.6 — 2021-12-07
  38 km SE of Old Orchard Beach, Maine
• M 2.7 — 2020-03-09
  50 km ESE of Old Orchard Beach, Maine
• M 2.7 — 2018-02-15
  0 km SE of East Kingston, New Hampshire