Welcome to Rollinsford’s history page!

This page is run by the Historical Committee in order to inform residents about our current projects, to provide resources to residents, and of course, to share town history. Feel free to contact us if you have any questions and come to a meeting if you would like to join the committee!


Notecards are available for purchase!

Our notecards are available for purchase at the Town Hall. Each set is $10 and contains all 8 designs.

Congratulations to the photographers who made the final 8!

• Jack Brownley
• Brian Cummings
• Dennis Drake
• Tamara Niedzolkowski
• Caitlin Rollo
• Andrew Schilling-Payne
• Pam Sorbello
• Shawn St.Hilaire

Thank you to each and every one of you who took the time to share your favorite photos with us. We were blown away by all of you and we enjoyed every single submission. Selecting the final collection was not easy. That said, we feel like this collection is absolutely stunning!

Please like our new Facebook page for updates on the notecards (tag your photographer!) and to see some of the amazing photos that we were not able to print – many photos were beautiful but not high enough resolution to print, but they are BEAUTIFUL online. Check them out on our Flickr slideshow: Rollinsford Photostory.


OUR LATEST EVENT:

GUIDED HISTORY HIKE
OF SALMON FALLS VILLAGE

Sunday, April 22 at 2:00 pm

Come hear the story behind downtown Rollinsford, one of the best preserved mill villages in all of New England, as we take a walking tour of Historic Salmon Falls Village with architectural historian Peter Michaud. You’ll never look at Rollinsford the same again!

The tour will take approximately 1 1/2 hours. We will meet at the Centennial Park gazebo located on the corner of Front Street and Scoutland Road.

View the event flyer »


Historic Barns in Rollinsford

Our barns are an irreplaceable link to Rollinsford’s agricultural history and one of the most beautiful features of a New Hampshire landscape. We often don’t realize how much our barns define the character of a town until they are gone. Because of this, the New Hampshire Preservation Alliance offers programs that provide information and financial assistance to barn owners across the state.
Visit our Historic Barn page to learn about the resources available for preserving your barn.


The Rollinsford Town Emblem

The Rollinsford town emblem has a new look! The original was presented to the town 50 years ago as a gift from the Legion. You can learn about the original emblem, the redesign, and the featured landmarks in a short booklet prepared by the Historical Committee, including the Salmon Falls Mill, the Rollinsford Town Hall, the Ordway Homestead, and the Somersworth Foundry Company which was located where the Legion stands today.
Read the story of the town emblem »


Rollinsford and the Civil War

In honor of the 150th anniversary of the Civil War, Rollinsford resident, American Revolution and Civil War re-enactor, and history professor Chris Benedetto compiled the following slideshow to illustrate the important historical connection between Rollinsford and the Civil War.

Rollinsford’s Civil War Monument


A Brief Overview of the History of Rollinsford

The area was once within the domain of the Newichawannock Indians, an Abenaki sub-tribe which took its name from the Newichawannock River, meaning ‘river with many falls,’ now the Salmon Falls River.

Their village was located at what is today Salmon Falls Village. They fished at the falls, stretching nets across the river to catch migrating salmon and other species swimming upriver to spawn. But war and disease, probably smallpox brought from abroad, would decimate the native population.

Settled in 1623, the land was part of Dover, one of the original townships of New Hampshire. The area was first called Sligo after Sligo in Ireland, and the name survives on a town road.

It would be established in 1729 as a parish called Summersworth, meaning summer town, because the ministers preached here during the summer.

In 1754, it would be set off and incorporated as a town by Colonial Governor Benning Wentworth, although thereafter spelled Somersworth due to a clerical error.

Since the pioneers’ arrival, small communities had developed near various sawmills and gristmills along the Salmon Falls River, but the center of Summersworth was located at Rollinsford Junction.

Beginning in the early 1820s, water powered textile mills were established at the larger falls, and the town would divide between them — Great Falls became Somersworth, and Salmon Falls became Rollinsford, incorporated in 1849. It was named for Edward H. Rollins, a prominent businessman, banker and politician.