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AHistory
History · Winchester

Winchester dates to 1753, and 28% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 92% of U.S. towns · #33 of 126 in New Hampshire. What drives it

5 places in town are on the National Register. Below: 20 old photos and papers, maps from 1884 on, and the census since 1790.

1753founded
5on the National Register
28%homes built before 1940
20old photos & papers
12famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Winchester’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Winchester began

When was Winchester founded?

1753

Winchester dates its founding to 1753 (Wikidata). It appears in the first U.S. census, 1790.

First census: 1,209 in 17902020 census: 4,150273 years

How historic is Winchester?

A

More historic than 92% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1811.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Winchester’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Winchester is more historic than 92% of U.S. towns, #33 of 126 in New Hampshire. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its age ranks highest and its National Register listings lowest.

A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Winchester’s overall grade.
Founding era1753, from Wikidata: founded before 1776, an older era than 96% of U.S. townsA+Homes built before 194028.2% of homes (±6.6) · typical NH town 17.5% · U.S. 8.4%A−National Register5 listings, 11.9 per 10,000 residents · typical NH town 9.5 · U.S. 2.4B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 92%
NewerOlder
New Hampshire towns of 2,500+ (126)Ahead of 74%

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 Winchester’s 11.9 sits near the middle of its state (51% of New Hampshire towns have fewer) while its 5 listings outnumber those of 70% of U.S. towns.

NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1753.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A− to A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±6.6 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 Winchester’s past

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

A town in old photos20 old photos, postcards and papers, 1896–1970.Mapped building by building6 fire insurance maps, 1884 to 1913, drew every building in Winchester.On the map since 18985 editions of the USGS map, 1898 to 1998. Watch Winchester change.Lost villages4 hamlets and corners are still on the map.
★ What stands out · By decade

Winchester, decade by decade

4 decades in the archive, from the 1890s to the 1970s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1890s16 items
A. M. Howard Estate Box Factory, Winchester, NH (The Granite Monthly, 1896)1896A. M. Howard Estate Box Factory, Winchester, NH (The …Ansel Dickenson's Sons' Box and Lumber Mills. Robertson Bros. Paper Mill. Pisgah Station. Winchester, NH (The Granite M…1896Ansel Dickenson's Sons' Box and Lumber Mills. Roberts…Ansel Dickenson's Sons' Pail and Box Factory, Winchester, NH (The Granite Monthly, 1896)1896Ansel Dickenson's Sons' Pail and Box Factory, Winches…Ashuelot Warp Mill, Winchester, NH (The Granite Monthly, 1896)1896Ashuelot Warp Mill, Winchester, NH (The Granite Month…Ashuelot Woollen Mills, Winchester, NH (The Granite Monthly, 1896)1896Ashuelot Woollen Mills, Winchester, NH (The Granite M…Eames & Town Grist Mill, Winchester, NH (The Granite Monthly, 1896)1896Eames & Town Grist Mill, Winchester, NH (The Granite …Engine House, Steamer No. 1, Winchester, NH (The Granite Monthly, 1896)1896Engine House, Steamer No. 1, Winchester, NH (The Gran…The Old Pines, South Main Street, looking north; Winchester, NH (The Granite Monthly, 1896)1896The Old Pines, South Main Street, looking north; Winc…The Winchester House, Winchester, NH (The Granite Monthly, 1896)1896The Winchester House, Winchester, NH (The Granite Mon…Winchester Tannery, Winchester, NH (The Granite Monthly, 1896)1896Winchester Tannery, Winchester, NH (The Granite Month…Congregational Church, Winchester, NH (The Granite Monthly, 1896)1896Congregational Church, Winchester, NH (The Granite Mo…Methodist Church, Winchester, NH (The Granite Monthly, 1896)1896Methodist Church, Winchester, NH (The Granite Monthly…School Building No. 3, Winchester, NH (The Granite Monthly, 1896)1896School Building No. 3, Winchester, NH (The Granite Mo…South Main Street, Winchester, NH (The Granite Monthly, 1896)1896South Main Street, Winchester, NH (The Granite Monthl…Town Hall and Universalist Church, Winchester, NH (The Granite Monthly, 1896)1896Town Hall and Universalist Church, Winchester, NH (Th…Winchester National Bank, Winchester, NH (The Granite Monthly, 1896)1896Winchester National Bank, Winchester, NH (The Granite…
1900s–1910s3 items
View of the Commonc. 1905View of the CommonPost Office1909Post OfficePostcardWinchesterNHIronBridgeCirca1910c. 1910PostcardWinchesterNHIronBridgeCirca1910Postcard
1920s–1960snothing 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
1970s1 item
COOMBS COVERED BRIDGE1970COOMBS COVERED BRIDGE
1980s–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
Today9 recent
Ashuelot Recreational Rail Trail2021Ashuelot Recreational Rail TrailUnited Church2018United ChurchMain Street2018Main StreetPetticoat, Winchester NH area, 1810-1825, cotton, HD 2007.17.4 - Flynt Center of Early New England Life - Deerfield, Ma…2017Petticoat, Winchester NH area, 1810-1825, cotton, HD …NH119 East NH10 North Sign2015NH119 East NH10 North SignNH119 East - NH10 NH78 Signs2015NH119 East - NH10 NH78 SignsMireyBrookNH2015MireyBrookNHWinchesterNH Town Hall2011WinchesterNH Town HallThe Ashuelot River2008The Ashuelot River
Every building

Winchester, building by building, 1884–1913

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.

Winchester fire insurance map, 1884, sheet 11884Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone

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

On the map

Winchester on the map, 1898 to 1998

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

Winchester on the 1898 USGS mapWinchester on the 1932 USGS mapWinchester on the 1958 USGS mapWinchester on the 1984 USGS mapWinchester on the 1998 USGS map1898Keene 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 Winchester.

The story

How Winchester came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Winchester.

Read it all →

Originally named "Arlington" in honor of Charles Fitzroy, Earl of Arlington, this town was one of those established in 1733 by colonial Governor Jonathan Belcher as protection for the Massachusetts Bay Colony border at the Connecticut River. This was in the area encompassed in the relatively newly acquired Equivalent Lands. After being designated a part of the Province of New Hampshire in 1741, the town was granted to Colonel Josiah Willard, commander of the Fort Dummer outpost. In 1753, it was incorporated by Governor Benning Wentworth as "Winchester", for Charles Paulet, 3rd Duke of Bolton, 8th Marquess of Winchester, and constable of the Tower of London.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Winchester in 1884

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

Chester; thence on Swansey South Line three hundred and forty rods to the corner between Swansey and Richmond, be and it hereby is disannexed and separated from the town of Richmond, and is annexed to and made a part of said town of Winchester, as fully and amply to all intents, as though it had be…
History of the town of Richmond, Cheshire County, New Hampshire1884Read the page →
Read the text

Chester; thence on Swansey South Line three hundred and forty rods to the corner between Swansey and Richmond, be and it hereby is disannexed and separated from the town of Richmond, and is annexed to and made a part of said town of Winchester, as fully and amply to all intents, as though it had been contained in and comprehended by the original grant, charter or incorporation of said Winchester.

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
An act to sever a tract of Land from the town of Richmond, and annex the same to the town of Winchester. Sec. 1st. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened, that the tract of land contained within the following boundaries, to wit : Beginning at the north-we…
History of the town of Richmond, Cheshire County, New Hampshire1884Read the page →
Read the text

An act to sever a tract of Land from the town of Richmond, and annex the same to the town of Winchester. Sec. 1st. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened, that the tract of land contained within the following boundaries, to wit : Beginning at the north-west corner of the town of Richmond and running southerly on the line dividing Richmond from Winchester three hundred and forty rods to the south line of the road leading by Hollis

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

Winchester, 1753 to 1970

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

  1. 18th century
  2. 1753
    FoundingWinchester is established
  3. 19th century
  4. 1811Post officeThe Winchester post office opens
  5. 1825Born hereMarshall Jewell is born here
  6. 1851Born hereLouis B. Goodall is born here
  7. 1854Post officeThe Ashuelot post office opens
  8. 1860Born hereLeonard Wood is born here
  9. 1877Born hereFrancis P. Murphy is born here
  10. 1896In the archiveA. M. Howard Estate Box Factory, Winchester, NH (The Granite Monthly, 1896)
  11. 1898On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  12. 20th century
  13. 1905In the archiveView of the Common
  14. 1910In the archivePostcardWinchesterNHIronBridgeCirca1910
  15. 1911BuiltWinchester Town Hall is built
  16. 1970In the archiveCOOMBS COVERED BRIDGE
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.

A. M. Howard Estate Box Factory, Winchester, NH (The Granite Monthly, 1896)
Retake this viewA. M. Howard Estate Box Factory, Winchester, NH (The Granite Monthly, 1896), 1896

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

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

5 historic places in Winchester

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

places listed
5
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
5
each building in a district counts
first listed
1976
Coombs Covered Bridge
Coombs Covered BridgeNew Hampshire Conservatory of Music and the ArtsAshuelot Covered BridgeConant Public LibraryWinchester Town Hall, built 1911
BuildingsStructures

Architectural styles listings

Colonial Revival1
Town Lattice Truss1
Romanesque Revival1
Gothic Revival1
Coombs Covered BridgeStructure
New Hampshire Conservatory of Music and the ArtsColonial Revival
Ashuelot Covered BridgeTown Lattice Truss
Conant Public LibraryRomanesque Revival
Winchester Town HallGothic Revival · Built 1911

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

People over time

Winchester, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,50018001850190019502000Peak: 4,341

Between 1,209 and 4,341 people in every census since 1790.

24 censuses, 1790–2020.

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

Famous people

12 famous people were born in Winchester

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

See all →
Leonard Wood5th Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army · b. 1860
Marshall JewellAmerican politician · b. 1825
Louis B. GoodallAmerican politician · b. 1851
Francis P. MurphyAmerican politician · b. 1877
H
Harrison SmithAmerican distance runner · b. 1876
H
Henry AshleyAmerican politician, New York · b. 1778
Places that used to be

Old corners and burying grounds

Winchester’s post office has been open since 1811.

Winchester
1811–today
Ashuelot
1854–today
18101920today
Hamlets and corners on the map
AshuelotCamp Forest LakeCurtis CornerScotland
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Winchester
EvergreenSouth Parish

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

Help out

Finish Winchester’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 viewA. M. Howard Estate Box Factory, Winche…: 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.

Richmond4 historic placesASwanzey5 historic placesAHinsdale2 historic placesA−

Questions about Winchester’s history

What year was Winchester founded?

In 1753, according to Wikidata. Winchester’s post office opened in 1811, and the first U.S. census counted 1,209 people here in 1790.

How does Winchester rank for history?

Winchester is more historic than 92% of U.S. towns, #33 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 Winchester?

5 listings: 3 buildings and 2 structures.

How old are the homes in Winchester?

28% of Winchester’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.6 points), against a typical 17% for a New Hampshire town; the median home was built in 1977.

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 (29), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (5), 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, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) 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.