Hinsdale, New Hampshire Facts for Kids

Hinsdale is a town located in Cheshire County, New Hampshire, United States. In 2020, about 3,948 people lived there. Hinsdale is special because it includes parts of two state parks: Pisgah State Park and Wantastiquet Mountain State Forest.

The main part of town, called the Hinsdale census-designated place (CDP), is where most people live. It's found where two important roads, New Hampshire Route 119 and Route 63, meet.

History of Hinsdale
Geography of Hinsdale
- Neighboring Towns
Hinsdale Population Facts
Notable People from Hinsdale
Images for kids
See also

History of Hinsdale

Hinsdale is in the very southwest corner of New Hampshire. It officially became a town in 1753. The town was named after Colonel Ebenezer Hinsdale. He was a chaplain at Fort Dummer, which was an important trading post.

In 1742, Colonel Hinsdale built Fort Hinsdale. This fort included a trading post and a mill for grinding grain. The early history of the town involved conflicts with Native American groups.

Hinsdale is right next to the Connecticut River. It is connected to Brattleboro, Vermont, by a bridge. The land near the river is great for farming. Hinsdale also became a big center for industry, especially for making paper.

An interesting invention happened here in 1875. A man named George A. Long built a self-moving steam vehicle. He even got one of the first patents for an automobile in the country! Also, the Hinsdale post office on Main Street is very famous. It's the oldest post office in the United States that has continuously operated in the same building.

From 1959 to 2008, Hinsdale had a greyhound racing track called the Hinsdale Greyhound Park. More recently, in 2023, a kind man named Geoffrey Holt left $3.8 million to the town. This money will be used to help with education, health, fun activities, and culture in Hinsdale.

Geography of Hinsdale

Hinsdale is located in the southwest part of New Hampshire. To the west, it borders Vermont across the Connecticut River. To the south, it borders Massachusetts. The town covers about 58.7 square kilometers (22.7 square miles). Most of this area is land, but about 9.42% is water.

The highest point in Hinsdale is Wantastiquet Mountain. It stands about 1,378 feet (420 meters) above sea level. This mountain is on the northern edge of the town and looks over the Connecticut River and Brattleboro, Vermont. All the water in Hinsdale flows into the Connecticut River watershed. This means that all the streams and rivers in Hinsdale eventually lead to the Connecticut River.

State routes 63 and 119 are the main roads that serve Hinsdale.

Neighboring Towns

Hinsdale is surrounded by several other towns:

Chesterfield (to the north)
Winchester (to the east)
Northfield, Massachusetts (to the south)
Vernon, Vermont (to the southwest)
Brattleboro, Vermont (to the northwest)

Hinsdale Population Facts

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1790	522	—
1800	634	21.5%
1810	740	16.7%
1820	890	20.3%
1830	937	5.3%
1840	1,141	21.8%
1850	1,963	72.0%
1860	1,312	−33.2%
1870	1,342	2.3%
1880	1,868	39.2%
1890	2,258	20.9%
1900	1,933	−14.4%
1910	1,673	−13.5%
1920	1,773	6.0%
1930	1,757	−0.9%
1940	1,762	0.3%
1950	1,950	10.7%
1960	2,187	12.2%
1970	3,276	49.8%
1980	3,631	10.8%
1990	3,936	8.4%
2000	4,082	3.7%
2010	4,046	−0.9%
2020	3,948	−2.4%
U.S. Decennial Census

According to the 2010 census, Hinsdale had 4,046 people living there. There were 1,681 households. About 29.6% of these households had children under 18. The average household had 2.41 people.

The population included people of different ages. About 21.2% of the people were under 18 years old. About 14.4% were 65 years or older. The average age in Hinsdale was 42.7 years.

Notable People from Hinsdale

Scene at Brightwood Mills in 1908

Many interesting people have connections to Hinsdale:

Elisha Andrews (1844–1917), an economist and educator.
William Babcock (1785–1838), who served as a US congressman.
Charles Anderson Dana (1819–1897), a journalist and government official.
Jacob Estey (1814–1890), who manufactured reed organs.
William Haile (1807–1876), a merchant and manufacturer who became the 26th Governor of New Hampshire.
Geoffrey Holt (1941–2023), known for his generous donation to the town.
Joey R. Hood (1974-), a U.S. Ambassador to Tunisia.
Henry Hooker (1828–1907), an Arizona pioneer.
Phil Labonte (born 1975), the lead singer of the band All That Remains.
Robert Merrill Lee (1909–2003), a general and Supreme Allied Commander Europe.
Anna Marsh (c. 1770–1834), who started the Vermont Asylum of the Insane in 1834.