–Not graded

History · New Castle

New Castle dates to 1693, and 32% of its homes were built before 1940

Its Register listings are the Fort Constitution, the Portsmouth Harbor Light and the New Castle Congregational Church. Below: 22 old photos and papers, maps from 1893 on, and the census since 1790.

1693founded

3on the National Register

32%homes built before 1940

22old photos & papers

2famous people

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From New Castle’s archive · credits on each photo

Quick answers

How New Castle began

When was New Castle founded?

1693

New Castle dates its founding to 1693 (Wikidata). It appears in the first U.S. census, 1790.

First census: 534 in 17902020 census: 1,000333 years

Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1850.The full story ↓

What stands out about New Castle’s past

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

Shrank, then grewLost half of its people between 1820 and 1930, then more than doubled.A town in postcards22 old photos, postcards and papers, 1884–1905.On the map since 18937 editions of the USGS map, 1893 to 1995. Watch New Castle change.Older than the countryEstablished in 1693, 83 years before the Declaration of Independence.

★ What stands out · People over time

New Castle, census by census

Lost half of its people between 1820 and 1930, then more than doubled.

24 censuses, 1790–2020.

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

By decade

New Castle, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1880s to the 1900s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1910s–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

On the map

New Castle on the map, 1893 to 1995

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of New Castle. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

1893York sheet · 1:62,500

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

The story

How New Castle came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of New Castle.

Read it all →

The main island on which the town sits is the largest of several at the mouth of the Piscataqua River and was originally called "Great Island". Settled in 1623, an earthwork defense was built on Fort Point, which would evolve into Fort William and Mary (rebuilt in 1808 as Fort Constitution). Chartered in 1679 as a parish of Portsmouth, it was incorporated on May 30, 1693, and was named "New Castle" after the fort. Until 1719, it included Rye, then called "Sandy Beach", which was set off as a parish. The principal industries were trade, tavern-keeping, and fishing. There was also agriculture, using the abundant seaweed as fertilizer.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about New Castle, 1893–1915

Passages that mention New Castle, cut from the printed page as they were published.

We are here to greet with festivity and gladness the recurrence of this day. Two hundred U)ng and eventful vears ol the chartered life of the town of New Castle have run their eourse. In i (•<)>, William and Mary, of their especial grace, granted lo their beloveil subjects, men and inhabitants of (… — **Bi-centennial souvenir, 1693-1893**1893Read the page →
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We are here to greet with festivity and gladness the recurrence of this day. Two hundred U)ng and eventful vears ol the chartered life of the town of New Castle have run their eourse. In i (•<)>, William and Mary, of their especial grace, granted lo their beloveil subjects, men and inhabitants of (}reat Island, including Little Harbor anil what is n<nv Rye (then Sandy Heach), to be a town corporate by the name of New Castle. The royal char ter passed the seal of the Province on the 30lh day of May of that year. The town was to pay an annual quit-rent of one peppercorn, on the five and twcn
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.

the fisheries, to traffic in furs, and to build up a colony. Tlnimson's wite came over with him, or folK)wed in a later vessel. It was the first settlement of what is now the slate of New 1 1 am|)sliire. A granite shaft ought to mark the spot. It would stand on ancient territory of the town of New … — **Bi-centennial souvenir, 1693-1893**1893Read the page →
Read the text
the fisheries, to traffic in furs, and to build up a colony. Tlnimson's wite came over with him, or folK)wed in a later vessel. It was the first settlement of what is now the slate of New 1 1 am|)sliire. A granite shaft ought to mark the spot. It would stand on ancient territory of the town of New Castle. There has recently been brought to light a m.-nuscript description of New iMigland, written about 1660 by Samuel Maverick, who settled in 1624.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.

**History of Rockingham County, New Hampshire**1915 · page 526Read the page →
Read the text
Formerly a bridge was built on the southwest side of the town, forming a means of connection betw'een Rye and New Castle, and previous to the building of the new bridges in 1821 all travelers for Portsmouth went by way of the "Old Bridge."
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.

The first meeting-house at New Castle, built in or before the year 1693, gave way to another in 1706, which was furnished with a bell of fine tone sent over from England, decorated w'ith a beautiful altar-piece, and supplied with a silver communion service, to which was added a splendid silver cup,… — **History of Rockingham County, New Hampshire**1915 · page 529Read the page →
Read the text
The first meeting-house at New Castle, built in or before the year 1693, gave way to another in 1706, which was furnished with a bell of fine tone sent over from England, decorated w'ith a beautiful altar-piece, and supplied with a silver communion service, to which was added a splendid silver cup, the bequest of a sister of Sir William Pepperell, and on the pulpit was a large folio Bible with illuminated letters, printed at the University of Oxford.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.

Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Timeline

New Castle, 1658 to 2000

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

17th century
1658Born hereShadrach Walton is born here
1693
FoundingNew Castle is established
18th century
1749Born hereBenjamin Randall is born here
1771BuiltPortsmouth Harbor Light is built
19th century
1850Post officeThe New Castle post office opens
1884In the archiveJaffrey Cottage, New Castle, NH (Harriet Ryan Albee, A Memorial Sketch, 1901)
1892In the archiveGeorge Albert Frost Inner harbor
1893On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
20th century
1900In the archiveCove at New Castle, N.H
21st century
2000CensusPopulation peaks at 1,010

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.

Retake this viewJaffrey Cottage, New Castle, NH (Harriet Ryan Albee, A Memorial Sketch, 1901), 1884

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

Retake this view · +15

On the National Register

3 historic places in New Castle

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

places listed

National Historic Landmarks

none yet

historic buildings protected

each building in a district counts

first listed

1973

Fort Constitution

BuildingsSites

Architectural styles listings

Late Victorian1

Fort ConstitutionSite

Portsmouth Harbor LightLate Victorian · Built 1771

New Castle Congregational ChurchBuilding

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

Famous people

2 famous people were born in New Castle

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

See all →

Benjamin RandallAmerican Baptist leader · b. 1749

Shadrach Waltonb. 1658

Places that used to be

Old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

New Castle’s post office has been open since 1850.

Hamlets and corners on the map

Shaws Hill

Gone or out of use

Fort Constitutionmilitary

1cemetery inside New Castle

Riverside

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

Help out

Finish New Castle’s story

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

Decades since 1900 with photos

00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s

1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.

Retake an old viewJaffrey Cottage, New Castle, NH (Harrie…: stand where they stood+15 Share 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.

Portsmouth42 historic placesA⁺Rye6 historic placesA

Questions about New Castle’s history

What year was New Castle founded?

In 1693, according to Wikidata. New Castle’s post office opened in 1850, and the first U.S. census counted 534 people here in 1790.

What is on the National Register in New Castle?

Three places: the Fort Constitution (listed 1973), the Portsmouth Harbor Light (2009) and the New Castle Congregational Church (2015).

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (11), the Library of Congress (11), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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 old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.

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