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A−History
History · Meredith

Meredith dates to 1766, and 23% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 84% of U.S. towns · #59 of 126 in New Hampshire. What drives it

Its Register listings are the Meredith Public Library and the First Free Will Baptist Church in Meredith. Below: 7 old photos and papers, maps from 1889 on, and the census since 1790.

1766founded
2on the National Register
23%homes built before 1940
7old photos & papers
4famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Meredith’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Meredith began

When was Meredith founded?

1766

Meredith dates its founding to 1766 (Wikipedia’s history). It appears in the first U.S. census, 1790.

First census: 881 in 17902020 census: 6,662260 years

How historic is Meredith?

A−

More historic than 84% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1799.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Meredith’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Meredith is more historic than 84% of U.S. towns, #59 of 126 in New Hampshire. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.

A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Meredith’s overall grade.
Founding era1766, from Wikipedia: founded before 1776, an older era than 96% of U.S. townsA+Homes built before 194022.5% of homes (±4.7) · typical NH town 17.5% · U.S. 8.4%B+National Register2 listings, 3.0 per 10,000 residents · typical NH town 9.5 · U.S. 2.4C+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 84%
NewerOlder
New Hampshire towns of 2,500+ (126)Ahead of 54%

New Hampshire towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical New Hampshire town has 9.5 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Meredith’s 3.0 sits below most of its state (28% of New Hampshire towns have fewer) while its 2 listings outnumber those of 60% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B+ to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.7 points). Two sources give 1766.

Founding year: Wikipedia (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Meredith’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

Lost villages3 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Meredith, and 6 old place names are still on the map.Shrank, then grewLost half of its people between 1850 and 1910, then grew 4-fold.Mapped building by building5 fire insurance maps, 1889 to 1912, drew every building in Meredith.Older than the countryEstablished in 1766, 10 years before the Declaration of Independence.
★ What stands out · Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Meredith had its own post office from 1799 to 1833. Three other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Meredith
1799–1833
Meredith Village
1820–1890
Meredith Center
1837–1956
Meredith
1890–today
Bear Island
1892–1954
17901910today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Bear IslandEast Bear IslandLeavitt ParkLovejoy SandsMeredith CenterMeredith Hill
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Meredith
OaklandRobinson

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

People over time

Meredith, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,5005,0005,5006,0006,5007,000180018501900195020003,521 in 1850Low: 1,638

Lost half of its people between 1850 and 1910, then grew 4-fold.

24 censuses, 1790–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Meredith’s Wikipedia page.

Every building

Meredith, building by building, 1889–1912

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.

Meredith fire insurance map, 1889, sheet 11889Sheet 1 of 2
Edition
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

The story

How Meredith came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Meredith.

Read it all →

Meredith was first known as "Palmer's Town" in honor of Samuel Palmer, a teacher of surveying and navigation who laid out much of the land surrounding Lake Winnipesaukee. In 1748, it was one of the first towns to have a charter granted by the Masonian Proprietors. Many grantees were from Salem, Massachusetts, so Palmer's Town was renamed "New Salem". It was settled in 1766 by Jacob Eaton and Colonel Ebenezer Smith, then regranted in 1768 by Governor John Wentworth and named after Sir William Meredith, 3rd Baronet, a member of Parliament who opposed taxation on the colonies.

Farmers grew corn, wheat, rye and potatoes, but the area became noted for apple orchards.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Meredith, 1766 to 2020

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 18th century
  2. 1766
    FoundingMeredith is established
  3. 1799Post officeThe Meredith post office opens
  4. 19th century
  5. 1813Born hereGeorge G. Fogg is born here
  6. 1820Post officeThe Meredith Village post office opens
  7. 1833Post officeThe Meredith post office closes
  8. 1837Post officeThe Meredith Center post office opens
  9. 1842Born hereCharles A. Busiel is born here
  10. 1858Born hereJosephine Roe is born here
  11. 1890Post officeThe Meredith Village post office closes
  12. 20th century
  13. 1900In the archiveSmith Memorial Library and Baptist Church
  14. 1912In the archiveRoad to Big Barn Doors, Meredith Center, NH
  15. 1920In the archivePlymouth Street, Looking North
  16. 1956Post officeThe Meredith Center post office closes
  17. 1979Born hereBradford Anderson is born here
  18. 1986On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  19. 21st century
  20. 2020CensusPopulation peaks at 6,662
By decade

Meredith, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1900s to the 1920s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1900s–1910s6 items
Smith Memorial Library and Baptist Church1900Smith Memorial Library and Baptist ChurchBird's-eye View1905Bird's-eye ViewPostcardRoad to Meredith Village, Lake Winnipesaukee, N.H1908Road to Meredith Village, Lake Winnipesaukee, N.HMeredith Bay and Lake Waukewan, Lake Winnipesaukee, N.H1908Meredith Bay and Lake Waukewan, Lake Winnipesaukee, N…Road to Big Barn Doors, Meredith Center, NHc. 1912Road to Big Barn Doors, Meredith Center, NHRidgefield Farm in1917Ridgefield Farm inPostcard
1920s1 item
Plymouth Street, Looking Northc. 1920Plymouth Street, Looking NorthPostcard
1930s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today17 recent
Waldo Jespersen's "My Kismet Hops Fanatically" sculpture on the Meredith Sculpture Walk path along Lake Winnipesaukeen …2017Waldo Jespersen's "My Kismet Hops Fanatically" sculpt…Rita Dee's "Tres Bien" sculpture on the Meredith Sculpture Walk path along Lake Winnipesaukee2017Rita Dee's "Tres Bien" sculpture on the Meredith Scul…Andreas von Huene's "Trout" sculpture on the Meredith Sculpture Walk path along Lake Winnipesaukee2017Andreas von Huene's "Trout" sculpture on the Meredith…William Royall's "Glacier" sculpture on the Meredith Sculpture Walk path along Lake Winnipesaukee2017William Royall's "Glacier" sculpture on the Meredith …View of the distant White Mountains across Meredith Bay of Lake Winnipesaukee2017View of the distant White Mountains across Meredith B…Seagull on a post at the town dock on Meredith Bay, Lake Winnipesaukee. Meredith, New Hampshire2017Seagull on a post at the town dock on Meredith Bay, L…Pumpkin patch on Moulton Farm near Meredith, New Hampshire2017Pumpkin patch on Moulton Farm near Meredith, New Hamp…Wooden pier extending into Meredith Bay of Lake Winnipesaukee2017Wooden pier extending into Meredith Bay of Lake Winni…The town dock on Meredith Bay of Lake Winnipesaukee2017The town dock on Meredith Bay of Lake WinnipesaukeeView of a small Meredith Bay, Lake Winnipesaukee island. Meredith, New Hampshire2017View of a small Meredith Bay, Lake Winnipesaukee isla…View of a small Meredith Bay, Lake Winnipesaukee island. Meredith, New Hampshire2017View of a small Meredith Bay, Lake Winnipesaukee isla…A swan on Meredith Bay, Lake Winnipesaukee, passes2017A swan on Meredith Bay, Lake Winnipesaukee, passesMoulton Farm near Meredith, New Hampshire2017Moulton Farm near Meredith, New HampshireAnnalee and Winni Playhouse Campus Map2010Annalee and Winni Playhouse Campus MapMapMeredith aerial2008Meredith aerialCamp Lawrence Sunset2008Camp Lawrence SunsetCamp Lawrence Omnibus2008Camp Lawrence Omnibus
On the map

Meredith on the map in 1986

The U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Meredith.

Meredith on the 1986 USGS map1986Lake Winnipesaukee sheet · 1:100,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Meredith.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Smith Memorial Library and Baptist Church
Retake this viewSmith Memorial Library and Baptist Church, 1900

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Meredith’s page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

2 historic places in Meredith

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
2
each building in a district counts
first listed
1984
Meredith Public Library
Meredith Public LibraryFirst Free Will Baptist Church in Meredith
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Classical1
Greek Revival1
Vernacular1
Meredith Public LibraryClassical
First Free Will Baptist Church in MeredithGreek Revival

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Famous people

4 famous people were born in Meredith

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Bradford AndersonAmerican actor · b. 1979
George G. FoggAmerican politician · b. 1813
Charles A. BusielAmerican politician · b. 1842
J
Josephine RoeAmerican mathematician · b. 1858
Help out

Finish Meredith’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
3 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewSmith Memorial Library and Baptist Chur…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Gilford4 historic placesB+Laconia14 historic placesB+Center Harbor1 historic placeA−Sanbornton2 historic placesANew Hampton5 historic placesB+

Questions about Meredith’s history

What year was Meredith founded?

In 1766, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Meredith’s post office opened in 1799, and the first U.S. census counted 881 people here in 1790.

How does Meredith rank for history?

Meredith is more historic than 84% of U.S. towns, #59 of 126 in New Hampshire. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

What is on the National Register in Meredith?

Two places: the Meredith Public Library (listed 1984) and the First Free Will Baptist Church in Meredith (1986).

How old are the homes in Meredith?

23% of Meredith’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.7 points), against a typical 17% for a New Hampshire town; the median home was built in 1975.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikimedia Commons (8), the Library of Congress (16), the National Register of Historic Places (2), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.