RINDGE, NEW HAMPSHIRE

'Rindge' is a town in Cheshire County, New Hampshire, USA. The population was 5,451 at the 2000 census. (The estimated population in 2005 was 6,130.^[1]) Rindge is home to Franklin Pierce University, the ''Cathedral of the Pines'', and part of ''Annett State Forest''.

Contents

History

Native American inhabitants

Settlement by European-Americans

Notable inhabitants

Geography

Demographics

Education

Sites of interest

References

External links

History

Native American inhabitants

The land in and around Rindge was originally inhabited by ancestors of the Abenaki tribe of Native Americans. Archeological evidence from nearby Swanzey, New Hampshire indicates that the region was inhabited as much as 11,000 years ago (coinciding with the end of the last glacial period). As much as half of the Western Abenakis were victims of a wave of epidemics that coincided with the arrival of Europeans in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. Later, many of the Western Abenaki present in southwestern New Hampshire chose to relocate to Canada during Colonial times, primarily due to their allegiance with the French during the French and Indian War.

Settlement by European-Americans

In the eighteenth century, Massachusetts granted unappropriated land to the veterans of Sir William Phipps' expedition against French-held Canada in 1690 as compensation for their services. Whole townships were granted to certain military companies and became known as Canada townships. Despite the name, none of these townships were ever considered to be part of Canada. Granted in 1736 by Colonial Governor Jonathan Belcher to soldiers from Rowley, Massachusetts returning from the war in Canada, the town was first known as "Rowley-Canada." In 1749, it was renamed by Governor Benning Wentworth as "Monadnock No. 1," or "South Monadnock." The town would be incorporated in 1768 by Governor John Wentworth as "Rindge," in honor of Captain Daniel Rindge of Portsmouth, one of the original grant holders.
Captain Abel Platts is credited as being Rindge's first settler, arriving in 1738 to take possession of his family's land grant.^[2]

Notable inhabitants

★ Addison Gardiner (D), Lieutenant Governor of New York and Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals, born in Rindge in 1797

★ Enoch Hale, New Hampshire Militia officer during the American Revolutionary War

★ Nathan Hale, not the famous spy, but the brother of Enoch Hale and Colonel of the 2nd New Hampshire Regiment

★ Amasa Norcross (R), mayor of Fitchburg, Massachusetts (1873-74) and U.S. Representative from Massachusetts' 10th District (1877-1883), born in Rindge in 1824

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 103.5 km² (40.0 mi²). 96.3 km² (37.2 mi²) of it is land and 7.2 km² (2.8 mi²) of it is water, comprising 6.93% of the town. Rindge is located in a hilly lake region. Hubbard Pond is in the northeast, Contoocook Lake on the northern boundary, and Lake Monomonac on the southern boundary. The town is located on a regional watershed divide and is the headwaters for two river systems (the Contoocook and the Millers).^[3][4] Rindge's highest point is on its eastern border, on the lower slopes of ''Pratt Mountain'', where the elevation reaches 1,505 feet (459 meters) above sea level.
Rindge is home to the villages of Rindge Center, East Rindge, Converseville, and West Rindge.

Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there were 5,451 people, 1,502 households, and 1,138 families residing in the town. The population density was 56.6/km² (146.6/mi²). There were 1,863 housing units at an average density of 19.3/km² (50.1/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.21% White, 1.16% African American, 0.15% Native American, 0.33% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.40% from other races, and 0.73% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.88% of the population. 15.1% were of English, 11.2% Finnish, 11.0% Irish, 9.5% French, 9.3% French Canadian, 8.9% American and 7.5% Italian ancestry according to Census 2000.
There were 1,502 households out of which 38.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.4% were married couples living together, 6.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.2% were non-families. 18.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.87 and the average family size was 3.30.

In the town the population was spread out with 24.1% under the age of 18, 26.3% from 18 to 24, 22.0% from 25 to 44, 19.8% from 45 to 64, and 7.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 24 years. For every 100 females there were 103.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.4 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $50,494, and the median income for a family was $52,500. Males had a median income of $36,268 versus $27,204 for females. The per capita income for the town was $18,495. About 4.3% of families and 7.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.5% of those under age 18 and 3.3% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Rindge belongs to the Jaffrey-Rindge Cooperative School District, which has a total of four schools. Rindge is also the home of Franklin Pierce University.
;Colleges and universities

★ Franklin Pierce University
;Public high schools

★ Conant High School
;Public middle and grade schools

★ Rindge Memorial School

★ Jaffrey Grade School

★ Jaffrey-Rindge Middle School
;Private schools

★ Hampshire Country School

★ Heritage Christian School

★ The Meeting School

Sites of interest

★ 'Annett Wayside Park', part of Annett State Forest, includes picnic tables, toilets, and a hiking trail to Black Reservoir.

★ 'Cathedral of the Pines', a national memorial for all American war dead. The location had been selected by Lieutenant Sanderson Sloane and his wife as the place to build their home when he returned from World War II. A cathedral was created by his parents, Dr. and Mrs. Douglas Sloane, after learning that their son was lost when the bomber he flew was shot down over Germany on February 22, 1944.

★ 'Rindge Historical Society'.

★ 'The Rindge Meeting House', built in 1796, is one of the largest town meeting houses in northern New England and one of the few civic buildings in the region that still straddles the separation of church and state. Owned by the town, the building is leased to the First Congregational Church which uses it for services and other church and community functions. The meeting house was still used for some town functions into the 1990s.

References

1. "2005 Population Estimates of New Hampshire Cities and Towns", NH Office of Energy and Planning, July 2006
2. http://www.nh.searchroots.com/documents/History_Rindge_NH.txt
3. Topozone: Rindge, NH
4. www.town.rindge.nh.us/ch3.pdf

External links

★ Rindge, NH ''Official Website''

★ Rindge Chamber of Commerce

★ The Cathedral of the Pines

★ Franklin Pierce University

★ Jaffrey-Rindge Cooperative School District

★ Hampshire Country School

★ Heritage Christian School

★ Rindge, NH - Index of Deaths 2003-2006

★ New Hampshire Economic and Labor Market Information Bureau Profile