Salem, New Hampshire

Infobox Settlement
official_name = Salem, New Hampshire
nickname =
motto =


image_

imagesize =
image_caption =

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mapsize = 250px
map_caption = Location in Rockingham County, New Hampshire
settlement_type = Town


mapsize1 =
map_caption1 =
subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = United States
subdivision_type1 = State
subdivision_name1 = New Hampshire
subdivision_type2 = County
subdivision_name2 = Rockingham County
subdivision_type3 = ZIP Code
subdivision_name3 = 03079
government_type =
leader_title = Board of Selectmen
leader_name = Michael J. Lyons, Chairman
Everett P. McBride, Jr.
Elizabeth Roth|Elizabeth A. Roth
Pat Hargreaves
Arthur E. Barnes, III
established_title = Incorporated
established_date = 1750
area_magnitude = 1 E8
area_total_km2 = 67.0
area_total_sq_mi = 25.9
area_land_km2 = 64.0
area_land_sq_mi = 24.7
area_water_km2 = 3.0
area_water_sq_mi = 1.2
area_water_percent = 4.49
population_as_of = 2007
population_note =
population_total = 29,498
population_density_km2 = 460.9
population_density_sq_mi = 1194.3
timezone = Eastern
utc_offset = -5
timezone_DST = Eastern
utc_offset_DST = -4
latd = 42 |latm = 47 |lats = 18 |latNS = N
longd = 71 |longm = 12 |longs = 03 |longEW = W
elevation_m = 40
elevation_ft = 131
website = [http://www.townofsalemnh.org/ www.townofsalemnh.org]
postal_code_type = ZIP code
postal_code = 03079
area_code = 603
blank_name = FIPS code
blank_info = 33-66660
blank1_name = GNIS feature ID
blank1_info = 0873713
footnotes =

Salem is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 28,112 at the 2000 census. Salem is a marketing and distributing center, with several colleges, recreation attractions and a large shopping mall, the Mall at Rockingham Park.

History

The area was first settled in 1652. As early as 1736, Salem was the "North Parish" of Methuen, Massachusetts, or "Methuen District". In 1741, when the boundary line between Massachusetts and New Hampshire was re-established, the "North Parish" became part of New Hampshire, and was given the name "Salem", taken from nearby Salem, Massachusetts. It was incorporated in 1750 by Colonial Governor Benning Wentworth.

In 1902, Canobie Lake Park was established in Salem by the Massachusetts Northeast Street Railway Company, to encourage leisure excursions on its trolleys. The plan was successful, and the enterprise quickly became one of the leading resorts of its type in New England. Crowds arrived from all over, including the nearby mill towns of Haverhill, Lawrence, Lowell and Methuen in Massachusetts, and Manchester and Nashua in New Hampshire. Factory workers and others found respite strolling along tree-lined promenades, between flower-beds or beside the lake. Rides, arcades and a dance hall provided lively entertainments. The rise of the automobile, however, brought the decline of the trolley. But Canobie Lake Park, one of the few former street railway amusement resorts still in existence, continues to be popular.Seed, Douglas, & Khalife, Katherine (1996). Salem, NH. Volume II - Trolleys, Canobie Lake, and Rockingham Park, Images Of America. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 0-7524-0438-5.]

Other features of Salem's tourism history include Rockingham Park Race Track, the first horse race track in New England, and "America's Stonehenge", a curiosity (formerly "Mystery Hill"). A recent attraction in town is the Icenter, a skating arena. The Church of Spiritual Life, a Spiritualist Church, meets at the town Masonic Hall.

Starting in the 1950s, Salem developed rapidly as part of Greater Boston, with suburban-style residential neighborhoods and a long strip of commercial development along NH Route 28. Recent (c. 2006) commercial construction has continued to focus on Route 28, as well as on the commercial zone off Exit 2 on Interstate 93.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of convert|25.9|sqmi|km2, of which convert|24.7|sqmi|km2|abbr=on is land and convert|1.2|sqmi|km2|abbr=on is water, comprising 4.49% of the town. Salem is drained by the Spicket River and Policy Brook. Canobie Lake is on the western boundary, Arlington Mill Reservoir is in the north, and World End Pond is in the southeast. The highest point in Salem is the summit of Gordons Hill, at convert|380|ft|m above sea level, along the town's western border.

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 28,112 people, 10,402 households, and 7,603 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,138.0 people per square mile (439.4/km²). There were 10,866 housing units at an average density of 439.9/sq mi (169.9/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 95.01% White, 0.55% African American, 0.21% Native American, 2.27% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.83% from other races, and 1.07% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.96% of the population.

There were 10,402 households out of which 34.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.6% were married couples living together, 8.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.9% were non-families. 21.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.69 and the average family size was 3.16.

In the town the population was spread out with 25.3% under the age of 18, 6.2% from 18 to 24, 31.7% from 25 to 44, 25.3% from 45 to 64, and 11.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 99.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.9 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $58,090, and the median income for a family was $67,278. Males had a median income of $46,330 versus $31,031 for females. The per capita income for the town was $26,170. About 3.1% of families and 4.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.1% of those under age 18 and 7.6% of those age 65 or over.

Education

"Colleges:"
* Hesser College
* Southern New Hampshire University"High School:"
* Salem High School (includes Windham)"Administration:"
* [http://www.salemschooldistrictnh.com/schools Salem School District]

Salem in popular culture

Rockingham Park Race Track, located in Salem, as mentioned in the film "The Sting" starring Paul Newman and Robert Redford, was central to that film's plot.

References

External links

* [http://www.townofsalemnh.org Town website]
* [http://www.salem.lib.nh.us/ Kelley Public Library]
* [http://www.nh.gov/nhes/elmi/htmlprofiles/salem.html New Hampshire Economic and Labor Market Information Bureau Profile]