New Durham dates to 1762, and 3 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 74% of U.S. towns · #76 of 126 in New Hampshire. What drives it
Most of New Durham was built recently: 8% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1983. Its Register listings are the Free Will Baptist Church, the New Durham Town Hall and the New Durham Meetinghouse and Pound. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1919 on, and the census since 1790.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1812.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives New Durham’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, New Durham is more historic than 74% of U.S. towns, #76 of 126 in New Hampshire. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of New Durham’s overall grade.
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 New Durham’s 10.9 sits near the middle of its state (49% of New Hampshire towns have fewer) while its 3 listings outnumber those of 65% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1762.
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 (±3.6 points).
Founding year: Wikidata (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 New Durham’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Granted by the Masonian Proprietors in 1749 as "Cochecho Township", New Durham was first settled by Europeans in 1750, almost entirely by colonists from Durham. It would be incorporated as "New Durham" on December 7, 1762. With a somewhat uneven and rocky surface, the town was better suited to grazing than cultivation. Lumber became the chief article of trade, and by 1859 New Durham had five sawmills and four shingle mills. It also had two gristmills, and a gunpowder factory called the Eureka Powder Works. On September 19, 1849, the Cocheco Railroad opened through the town, connecting Dover with Alton Bay.
Passages that mention New Durham, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Strafford County, New Hampshire1914 · page 793Read the page →
Read the text
land street, one-half mile southw-est of East Rochester and one and one-half mile northeast of the public square in the city of Rochester. He might reside, however, in many other places did he so desire, for he owns 500 acres of land in the town of Rochester ; 500 acres in the town of New Durham ; 200 acres in the town of Milton; and 350 acres in the town of Farmington. Mr. Corson was born on a farm on the Salmon Falls road, in the town of Rochester, N.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Strafford County, New Hampshire1914 · page 438Read the page →
Read the text
The census of 1790 shows there were 562 inhabitants in the town of which number 138 were free white males 16 years of age and upward, including heads of families of whom there were 104. There were 142 children. In 1785 there were 70 poll tax payers. New Durham was settled largely by citizens of Durham, as is shown by the United States census of 1790, as published in 1907. Following are some of the Old Durham names that appear in the New Durham census. Samuel Runnels, 13 in family; Thomas Tash, 10 in family; John Edgerly, 4 in family; Josiah Doe, 5 in family; Caleb
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 Durham, 1762 to 2020
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
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.
In 1762, according to Wikidata. New Durham’s post office opened in 1812, and the first U.S. census counted 554 people here in 1790.
How does New Durham rank for history?
New Durham is more historic than 74% of U.S. towns, #76 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 New Durham?
Three places: the Free Will Baptist Church (listed 1980), the New Durham Town Hall (1980) and the New Durham Meetinghouse and Pound (1980).
How old are the homes in New Durham?
8% of New Durham’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.6 points), against a typical 17% for a New Hampshire town; the median home was built in 1983.
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 (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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