Conway, New Hampshire facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Conway, New Hampshire
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Town
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Town Hall (right) in Center Conway
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Location in Carroll County, New Hampshire
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| Country | United States |
| State | New Hampshire |
| County | Carroll |
| Incorporated | 1765 |
| Villages |
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| Government | |
| • Type | New England town |
| Area | |
| • Total | 71.7 sq mi (185.8 km2) |
| • Land | 69.5 sq mi (180.0 km2) |
| • Water | 2.2 sq mi (5.8 km2) 3.14% |
| Elevation | 465 ft (142 m) |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 9,822 |
| • Density | 141/sq mi (54.6/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-5 (Eastern) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (Eastern) |
| ZIP codes | |
| Area code(s) | 603 |
| FIPS code | 33-14660 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0873570 |
Conway is a town in Carroll County, New Hampshire, United States. It is the largest community in the county, with about 9,822 people living there as of 2020. The town is located on the southeastern edge of the White Mountain National Forest.
Conway is an important center for business and economy in Carroll County. Many people visit Conway because of its beautiful natural sites and fun activities. Tourism is a big part of the town's economy. You can find many places to stay and things to do for visitors exploring the White Mountains. The technology industry is also growing and provides many jobs.
Popular places to visit include natural spots like Cathedral Ledge, which is great for rock climbers. There are also beautiful lakes like Echo Lake and Conway Lake. Several ski resorts are nearby for winter fun. The Conway Scenic Railroad offers exciting train rides. The village of North Conway is famous for its outlet shopping district.
Contents
History
The area where Conway is now was once home to the Pequawket Indians. They were an Abenaki tribe who lived along the Saco River. They fished, hunted, and farmed, living in wigwams protected by stockades. In 1642, an explorer named Darby Field saw a large Indian community called "Pigwacket" in this area. Sadly, the Pequawket tribe became much smaller due to diseases, possibly smallpox, brought from other countries.
In 1765, the colonial governor, Benning Wentworth, officially created the town of "Conway." It was named after Henry Seymour Conway, a British military leader. To own land, settlers had to plant 5 acres (about 20,000 square meters) for every fifty acres they owned within five years. The first roads were built in 1766.
The first meetinghouse (a place for gatherings and church services) started being built in Redstone. It was never fully finished and could only be used in summer. Later, this partly built meetinghouse was moved to Center Conway. In 1775, the town started building two schoolhouses, one in North Conway. By 1849, Conway had twenty school districts!
In the mid-1800s, artists discovered the amazing beauty of the White Mountains. "Artist Falls Brook" became a favorite spot for landscape paintings. Even King Edward VII of the United Kingdom bought twelve White Mountain paintings for Windsor Castle. Famous artists like Asher B. Durand and Benjamin Champney painted here. Champney was known to paint Mount Washington while sitting right in the middle of Main Street!
The Portsmouth, Great Falls and Conway Railroad reached Conway in 1871. This railroad helped transport goods like wood and brought many tourists to the town. Many inns and taverns were built during the 19th and 20th centuries, and tourism is still a main business today. The first ski trail opened in 1936 at Mount Cranmore. In 1959, the Kancamagus Highway opened, connecting Conway with Lincoln. This highway goes through Kancamagus Pass, which is named after a Native American chief. At 2,850 feet (869 meters) above sea level, it's the highest paved road in New Hampshire.
Conway has grown a lot, especially compared to other towns in northern New Hampshire. This is partly because the nearby city of Berlin has seen its population decrease. Conway's economy relies on tourism and services. In 2002, the biggest employer in town was Memorial Hospital, followed by the Conway School District and large stores like Hannaford Bros. Co. and Walmart.
Geography
Conway covers about 185.8 square kilometers (71.7 square miles). Most of this area is land (180.0 sq km or 69.5 sq mi), and 5.8 sq km (2.2 sq mi) is water. The town gets its water from the Saco River and its smaller river, the Swift River. The highest point in Conway is Black Cap, which is 2,369 feet (722 meters) above sea level.
Neighboring Towns
Conway shares its borders with several other towns:
- Chatham (to the north)
- Fryeburg, Maine (to the east)
- Brownfield, Maine (to the southeast)
- Eaton (to the south)
- Madison (to the southwest)
- Albany (to the west)
- Hale's Location (to the west)
- Bartlett (to the northwest)
Villages in Conway
Conway is made up of several smaller communities called villages. The main village is Conway Village. North Conway is especially popular for its many outlet stores.
Here are the villages in Conway:
- Conway Village
- North Conway
- Center Conway
- Redstone
- Kearsarge
- Intervale
- East Conway
- South Conway
- Quint
People of Conway (Demographics)
As of 2010, there were 10,115 people living in Conway. The town had 4,479 households. Most people (96.9%) were White. About 1% of the population was Asian, and 0.4% were Native American. About 1% of the population identified as Hispanic or Latino.
About 25.7% of households had children under 18 living with them. Many households (43.9%) were married couples living together. The average household had 2.22 people.
The population included people of all ages:
- 19.7% were under 18 years old.
- 6.8% were between 18 and 24.
- 24.3% were between 25 and 44.
- 32.1% were between 45 and 64.
- 17.2% were 65 years or older.
The average age in Conway was 44.5 years.
Economy
Tourism is a very important part of Conway's economy. The town is a gateway to the beautiful White Mountains. There is one ski area, Cranmore Mountain Resort, right in Conway, and several others nearby. North Conway is a popular place for shopping, with many outlet and department stores. You can find hotels, bed and breakfasts, and inns in all the villages, including the historic Eastern Slope Inn in North Conway.
Besides tourism, the Mount Washington Valley Economic Council is helping the technology industry grow. The biggest technology employer in the area is The Echo Group, which creates electronic health record software.
Conway is the main business center for Carroll County and a large part of western Maine. This is why you see a lot of development along U.S. Route 302 and New Hampshire Route 16 in town. Besides outlet stores, there are also large retail stores, supermarkets, restaurants, and hotels.
Education
Conway has several schools for students of different ages.
High School
- Kennett High School
Elementary and Middle Schools
- A. Crosby Kennett Middle School
- Conway Elementary School
- Pine Tree School
- John Fuller Elementary School
- Northeast Woodland Chartered Public School
The original A. Crosby Kennett High School building, built in 1923, was located in Conway village. In 2007, a new high school opened near the village of Redstone. The old high school building is now used as the middle school.
Colleges
- Granite State College
- White Mountains Community College
Culture
Conway is located in the middle of the popular White Mountain National Forest. It serves as the main commercial center for many nearby towns in New Hampshire and Maine. You can find many restaurants, two breweries, the year-round Cranmore Mountain Resort, and over a hundred local and national stores. There are also several museums and theaters.
Museums
The Mount Washington Observatory's Weather Discovery Center is in downtown North Conway. It has interactive exhibits about Mount Washington and its weather. Visitors can even video-chat with weather observers on the mountain's summit!
Places to Visit
- The Green Hills Preserve, owned by The Nature Conservancy, is a protected natural area.
- Echo Lake State Park is a beautiful park with a lake.
- Conway Common Lands State Forest is a large forest area.
- Conway Scenic Railroad offers scenic train rides.
- Tuckerman Brewing Company (a local brewery).
- Salyards Center for the Arts (a place for artistic performances).
- New England Ski Museum Nordic Skiing Exhibit (learn about skiing history).
Infrastructure
Transportation
You can get around Conway using public bus service called the Blue Loon, which runs five days a week. There's also a private shuttle service in North Conway village called the Karmic Konnection Koach, which operates on a "pay what you can" system.
For air travel, the closest airport is Eastern Slopes Regional Airport in Fryeburg, Maine, which is for smaller planes. For bigger flights, you can go to Portland International Jetport in Portland, Maine or Manchester-Boston Regional Airport in Manchester, New Hampshire. Bus service connects Conway and Manchester.
Several main roads pass through Conway:
- NH 16 is the main road, connecting different parts of Conway and leading to other towns.
- NH 112, also known as the Kancamagus Highway, enters from the west and ends in Conway village.
- NH 113 also passes through Conway, connecting to other routes.
- NH 153 enters from the south and ends in Conway village.
- US 302 enters Conway from the north and goes through North Conway and Center Conway before leaving for Maine.
- Maine State Route 113 briefly enters Conway because of the Saco River's path, but it doesn't connect to New Hampshire's Route 113.
Hospitals
Memorial Hospital is located in North Conway. It has an emergency department that is open 24 hours a day.
Media
The free Conway Daily Sun newspaper is published in Conway. Two other local papers, The Carroll County Independent and The Mountain Ear, also serve the town. A local TV station, an Outside Television affiliate, broadcasts from North Conway. Several radio stations also have outlets in Conway, including WHOM, WMWV, WOKQ, and WVMJ.
Valley Vision is a public-access TV network available on cable channel 3. The Town of Conway also broadcasts its own programming on Valley Vision, called Conway Community Television (CCTV).
Notable People
- Sean Doherty (born 1995), an Olympic biathlete.
- James Farrington (1791–1859), a doctor, banker, and U.S. congressman from New Hampshire.
- Donald Philbrick (1937–2022), a politician.
See also
In Spanish: Conway (Nuevo Hampshire) para niños
