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Snapshot - Henniker

© Christina Coruth

I'm introducing a new feature called "Snapshot." Once a month, I'll profile a New Hampshire city, town, or unincorporated place. If you have an interest in a particular place, e-mail me and I will do my best to present a "Snapshot" of it!

Picturesque is a word that describes many New Hampshire towns and Henniker is among the most picturesque. Located in Merrimack County in the southern part of the state, Henniker has the unique status of being, as it proclaims, "the only Henniker on earth."

Quick Facts

• Incorporated - 1768
• Location - Merrimack County
• Distances - Manchester (28 miles), Boston, MA (80 miles)
• Population - 4,139
• Type of Government - Selectmen
• US Congressional District 2
• Directions to Henniker - Map and written

History

Governor Benning Wentworth named Henniker for his friend John Henniker of London, a wealthy leather and furs merchant. Penacook Indians thwarted early attempts to settle Henniker. Finally, in 1761 the first permanent settler arrived and in 1763 the first child was born in Henniker. The power of the Contoocook River bolstered Henniker's economy as manufacturing mills sprang up along its banks during the late 19th century. Unfortunately, the mills were forced to leave when the Flood Control Project of 1959, in its efforts to make riverside communities safer, closed them down. In 1946 Henniker became a college town with the founding New England College, an independent liberal arts college.

People

Mary Wallace, Ocean Born Mary, is said to haunt a house in Henniker. Red Sox great Ted Williams fished in Henniker's waters. Both Edna Dean Proctor (1829-1923), renowned poetess, and James W. Patterson (1823-1893), US Senator, regent of the Smithsonian Institution, and educator, were born in Henniker. One of Henniker's most interesting and accomplished daughters was Amy Cheney Beach (1867-1944), composer and concert pianist. As a child prodigy, who pictured musical keys as colors in her mind's eye, she began playing the piano by ear at the age of four years. She was one of the first American women to compose a symphony with the completion of her "Gaelic" -- E-Minor Symphony, Op. 32.

Places

Rustic country charm spans the Contoocook River in the form of the Henniker Covered Bridge. Built in 1972, it is a young bridge. However, since it was constructed using old-fashioned methods, it is no less an authentic bridge than any other. New England College maintains it as a footbridge.

Pats Peak has been the place to go for winter excitement since it went into operation in 1963. Go skiing, snowboarding or snow tubing! Or learn to ski and snowboard. With 21 trails, seven lifts, and night lighting, it's no wonder it's a popular skiing area in Southern New Hampshire.

The copyright of the article Snapshot - Henniker in New Hampshire is owned by Christina Coruth. Permission to republish Snapshot - Henniker in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.