Merrimack is a sprawling bedroom community, located in between Nashua and Manchester, the two largest cities in the state. The town is home to about 23,000 people, with residential subdivisions mixed with some commercial development and a rural feel remaining in some of the lightly populated residential areas. The Merrimack River is the town’s eastern border, the Souhegan River runs through the middle of the town, and Naticook Lake is a popular recreation spot in the southern part of town.

After struggling through the late 1980s and early ’90s, local businesses have stabilized in recent years, and the town seems to be experiencing some slow economic growth, led by Fidelity Investments' arrival in 1996 with the promise of expanding to bring at least 2,500 employees to town.

History

The town was chartered in its present form in 1750, after several changes of name and territory. The town was part of the original Dunstable grant, which encompassed several area communities. In 1734, Massachusetts granted the town organization as Naticook, which included Litchfield as well as part of Merrimack.

In 1746, the people of Naticook west of the Merrimack River, between Pennichuck Pond and the Souhegan River, petitioned to be called Merrimack. Although the 1746 charter was lost, that is the year the town marks as its beginning. In 1750 the town took its current shape with the addition of a portion called Souhegan East, the land north of the Souhegan River.

Merrimack was the home of Matthew Thornton, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence.

Incorporated: 1746

Origin: Although first occupied in 1665, settlement did not begin until 1722, when the establishment of Brenton's Farm (Litchfield) presented the need of a ferry across the river to reach new settlements. The ferry concession was owned by Edward Lutwyche. When the town was separated from Nashua (then Dunstable) in 1746, it was given the name of the river, Merrimack. In 1774, Lutwyche's Ferry was sold to Revolutionary War patriot Matthew Thornton, giving it the current name of Thornton's Ferry.

Population, Year of the First Census Taken: 819 residents in 1790

Population Trends: Merrimack ranked fifth in both numeric and percent of population increase over fifty years, growing more than 13 times larger. Decennial growth rates ranged from a 13 percent increase between 1990-2000 to a 188 percent increase between 1960-1970. Merrimack's population increased by a total of 23,211 residents, going from 1,908 in 1950 to 25,119 residents in 2000. The 2003 Census estimate for Merrimack was 26,394 residents, which ranked eighth among New Hampshire's incorporated cities and towns.

Population Density, 2003: 791.7 persons per square mile of land area. Merrimack contains 32.6 square miles of land area and 0.8 square miles of inland water area.