New Hampshire is one of the smallest states in America and has a rich heritage dating back into the earliest days of European colonial settlement. As a result, this small state has a huge history filled with many hamlets, and tiny towns that were established, and eventually faded out. Mill towns were founded along rivers, and later supplanted by agriculture or other industry as the need for the mills and their supporting communities decreased.
The logging industry also created many ephemeral logging camps and temporary logging centers that eventually faded from sight as the industry moved to other locations. Finding the sites of these old camps is a challenge, and one that can reward a stubborn, or shall I say, persistent ghost towner with some interesting finds.
Agricultural communities also add to the list of ghost towns that can be discovered in this state. New Hampshire is “blessed” with some severe winter weather, and oft times towns would be located in areas that may be physically appealing, but agriculturally non-productive. After a few seasons of blasting winters, they may have been relocated into more sheltered areas that would be more productive.
Like most other eastern states, the vast majority of ghost towns in New Hampshire are barren sites, marked only by foundation pits and outlines of buildings. This makes research an absolute must. Also unlike the western states, New Hampshire’s counties are divided up into towns (townships). Each of these “towns” usually have several villages, many times all carrying the name of the town such as: Town of Grafton (1990 population of 923) consists of the villages of Grafton (225), Grafton Center (125) and East Grafton (75). These are all located in Grafton County!
My information on New Hampshire is spotty at best. Having never visited the Granite State, any information listed below is strictly through research therefore some of the locations may not actually be ghosts. Care has been made in the selection of sites to be included, but errors may have crept in. If you know of any ghost towns in the Granite State that are not listed here, or know the current status of towns listed with little information,
more
http://freepages.history.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~gtusa/usa/nh.htm
There are not only "Ghost Towns", but "First Towns" in New England. As I've discovered, many of the earliest settlements are quite a distance away from present-day towns. It pays to do research.
