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Bridgewater, New Hampshire
Bridgewater, New Hampshire
Town
	Bridgewater Inn
	Location in Grafton County, New Hampshire
	Coordinates: 43°38′16″N 71°44′10″W / 43.63778°N 71.73611°W
Country	United States
State	New Hampshire
County	Grafton
Incorporated	1788
Government
• Board of Selectmen	Maurice Jenness Jr.; Terence Murphy; P. Wesley Morrill Jr.;
Area
• Total	21.7 sq mi (56.2 km2)
• Land	21.5 sq mi (55.7 km2)
• Water	0.2 sq mi (0.5 km2) 0.97%
Elevation	640 ft (195 m)
Population (2020)
• Total	1,160
• Density	54/sq mi (20.8/km2)
Time zone	UTC-5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (Eastern)
ZIP Codes	03222 (Bristol); 03264 (Plymouth)
Area code	603
FIPS code	33-07540
GNIS feature ID	0873551
Website	www.bridgewater-nh.com

Bridgewater is a town in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 1,160 at the 2020 census.^[2]

History

The land comprising Bridgewater was originally part of a town known as "New Chester", which was separated into Bridgewater, Bristol, Hill, Danbury, and Wilmot. The town name was chosen because many of the settlers were from Bridgewater, Massachusetts.^[3]

Bridgewater originally included all of Bridgewater, Hill and Bristol. It was first settled in 1776, by Thomas Crawford. It was incorporated February 12, 1788.^[4]

In 1874, the Bridgewater station was served by the Montreal railroad.^[4]

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 21.7 square miles (56.2 km²), of which 21.5 square miles (55.7 km²) are land and 0.19 square miles (0.5 km²) are water, comprising 0.97% of the town.^[1] The highest point in Bridgewater is Peaked Hill, at 1,905 feet (581 m) above sea level. Bridgewater lies fully within the Merrimack River watershed.^[5] The western town line follows the eastern shore of Newfound Lake.^[6]

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1790	281	—
1800	664	136.3%
1810	1,104	66.3%
1820	727	−34.1%
1830	783	7.7%
1840	747	−4.6%
1850	667	−10.7%
1860	560	−16.0%
1870	453	−19.1%
1880	384	−15.2%
1890	332	−13.5%
1900	244	−26.5%
1910	187	−23.4%
1920	199	6.4%
1930	151	−24.1%
1940	226	49.7%
1950	222	−1.8%
1960	293	32.0%
1970	398	35.8%
1980	606	52.3%
1990	796	31.4%
2000	974	22.4%
2010	1,083	11.2%
2020	1,160	7.1%
U.S. Decennial Census^[2]^[7]

At the 2000 census there were 974 people, 414 households, and 289 families living in the town. The population density was 45.8 inhabitants per square mile (17.7/km²). There were 850 housing units at an average density of 40.0 per square mile (15.4/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 99.08% White, 0.10% Native American, 0.51% Asian, 0.21% from other races, and 0.10% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.62%.^[8]

Of the 414 households 24.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.6% were married couples living together, 6.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.0% were non-families. 23.9% of households were one person and 12.3% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.78.

The age distribution was 19.7% under the age of 18, 4.5% from 18 to 24, 25.2% from 25 to 44, 31.3% from 45 to 64, and 19.3% 65 or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.8 males.

The median household income was $50,662 and the median family income was $54,722. Males had a median income of $33,250 versus $26,250 for females. The per capita income for the town was $28,600. About 6.1% of families and 6.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.4% of those under age 18 and 4.9% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Bridgewater is within the Newfound Area School District.^[9] Bridgewater-Hebron Village School is in Bridgewater. The district's secondary schools are Newfound Memorial Middle School, and Newfound Regional High School in Bristol.