It is one of several U.S. cities nicknamedGate City, which references a reputation for being a travel gateway—in this case between the Boston region and New Hampshire.[7] A number of civic groups and institutions have adopted the title.[1][8][9]
The area was part of a 200-square-mile (520 km2) tract of land inMassachusetts called "Dunstable", named after Edward Tyng ofDunstable in England.[10][11] Located at the confluence of theNashua and Merrimack rivers, Dunstable was first settled about 1654 as afur trading town. Nashua lies approximately in the center of the original 1673 grant.[10] In 1732, Dunstable was split along theMerrimack River, with the town of Nottingham West (now the town ofHudson, New Hampshire) created out of the eastern portion. The previously disputedboundary between Massachusetts and New Hampshire was fixed in 1741 when the governorships of the two provinces were separated.[10] As a result, the township of Dunstable was divided in two.Tyngsborough and some ofDunstable remained in Massachusetts, whileDunstable, New Hampshire, was incorporated in 1746 from the northern section of the town.[10]
Like many 19th century riverfrontNew England communities, New Hampshire's Dunstable was developed during theIndustrial Revolution with textile mills operated fromwater power.[11] In 1823, theNashua Manufacturing Company was incorporated.[11] The company eventually had four mills and employed approximately 1,000 people.[11] The following year, the Jackson Manufacturing Company was incorporated.[12]
In 1836, the New Hampshire half of Dunstable was renamed "Nashua", after the Nashua River; the Dunstable name lives on across the Massachusetts border.[13][14] The Nashua River was named by theNashaway people, and in thePenacook language it means "beautiful stream with a pebbly bottom",[15][16] with an alternative meaning of "land between two rivers".[17][18] In 1842, the town split into two towns.[13] Eleven years later, they joined back together under the name "Nashua", and were re-incorporated as a city.[13] During the split, the northern area, known today as "French Hill", called itself "Nashville", while the southern part kept the name Nashua.[14]
Like the rivalAmoskeag Manufacturing Company upriver inManchester,[20] theNashua mills prospered until aboutWorld War I, after which a slow decline set in. Water power was replaced with newer forms of energy to run factories, such as coal, and cotton could be manufactured into fabric where it grew, saving transportation costs.[21]
According to theUnited States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 31.7 square miles (82.2 km2), of which 30.8 square miles (79.9 km2) are land and 0.89 square miles (2.3 km2) are water, comprising 2.84% of the city.[32] The eastern boundary of Nashua is formed by theMerrimack River, and the city is drained by theNashua River andSalmon Brook, tributaries of the Merrimack. The Nashua River roughly bisects the city.Pennichuck Brook forms the city's northern boundary. The highest point in Nashua is Gilboa Hill in the southern part of the city, at 426 feet (130 m) abovesea level.[33]
Nashua has a four-seasonhumid continental climate, which has transitioned to the hot summer subtype, (KöppenDfa), as of the 1991 to 2020 normals, with short spring and autumn transitions, long humid and warm to hot summers, and cold winters full of snow. The monthly daily average temperature ranges from 22.7 °F (−5.2 °C) in January to 70.9 °F (21.6 °C) in July. On average, there are 9.4 days of 90 °F (32 °C)+ highs and 8.7 days of sub-0 °F (−18 °C) lows. Precipitation is well-spread throughout the year, though winter is the driest. Snowfall, the heaviest of which typically comes fromnor'easters, averages around 55 inches (140 cm) per season, but can vary widely from year to year. Nashua recorded the New Hampshire state record high temperature of 106 °F (41 °C) during the deadly1911 heat wave.
Climate data for Nashua, New Hampshire (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1885–present)
Nashua, New Hampshire – Racial and ethnic composition Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.
As of thecensus of 2010,[40] there were 86,494 people, 35,044 households, and 21,876 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,719.9 inhabitants per square mile (1,050.2/km2). There were 37,168 housing units at an average density of 1,202.8 per square mile (464.4/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 83.4%White, 2.7%African American, 0.3%Native American, 6.5%Asian, 0.03%Pacific Islander, 4.6% fromsome other race, and 2.5% from two or more races.Hispanic orLatino of any race were 9.8% of the population.
There were 35,044 households, out of which 28.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.9% weremarried couples living together, 11.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.6% were non-families. 29.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 3.01.
In the city the population was spread out, with 22.1% under the age of 18, 9.3% from 18 to 24, 28.0% from 25 to 44, 27.8% from 45 to 64, and 12.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38.5 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.8 males.
In 2011 the estimated median income for a household in the city was $60,923, and the median income for a family was $76,612. Male full-time workers had a median income of $60,365 versus $43,212 for females. Theper capita income for the city was $30,937. About 4.6% of families and 9.3% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 11.4% of those under age 18 and 5.9% of those age 65 or over.[41]
Nashua has three main commercial districts. Centered on Main Street near the geographic center of the city, Downtown Nashua is the oldest of the commercial districts, featuring commercial, entertainment, and dining venues, near historic commercial buildings and homes as well. Recent plans have incorporated theNashua River into the design of a pedestrian-friendly walkway. The downtown Nashua Riverwalk is a large, public/private venture funded through the use oftax increment financing (TIF). Amherst Street (Route 101A) is in the northwestern part of the city and is a large thoroughfare with commercial centers along both sides. The South Nashua Commercial District, centered onDaniel Webster Highway near the Massachusetts border, is anchored by thePheasant Lane Mall, attracting many people fromMassachusetts taking advantage of the lack ofsales tax in New Hampshire.
The city is home to a number of technical firms, includingNashua Corporation, which took its name from the city and river. Nashua Corp. was a leading producer offloppy disks through the early 1990s, making the Nashua name well known in the world ofpersonal computers.
Nashua has had a series of amateur, semi-professional, and professional baseball teams. TheNashua Silver Knights, part of the Futures Collegiate Baseball League of New England (FCBL), is the city's current team. TheNashua Pride, aCan-Am minor league baseball team, played atHolman Stadium from 1998 through 2008, then changed to the American Defenders of New Hampshire in the 2009 season. The Defenders were evicted from the venue in August 2009, however, because of non-payment of rent, and moved toPittsfield, Massachusetts to become thePittsfield Colonials. Before the Pride, Holman was the home stadium for the independent Nashua Hawks; the AANashua Pirates; the AA Nashua Angels; and the ANashua Dodgers, the first racially integrated professional baseball team in the 20th century.[44] After minor league baseball began in Nashua in 1885, the team hosted theNashua Millionaires franchise, with the team playing in theNew England League from 1901 to 1933.[45]
The city's government is headed by amayor and fifteenaldermen: six at-large aldermen elected three at a time every four years, and nine ward aldermen, one for each ward in the city, elected every two years.
In theNew Hampshire General Court, Nashua is represented in the House by Hillsborough County's 3rd (Ward 4), 4th (Ward 2), 5th (Ward 1), 6th (Ward 3), 7th (Ward 7), 8th (Ward 6), 9th (Ward 5), 10th (Ward 9), and 11th (Ward 8) districts and in the Senate by District 12 (Wards 1, 2, and 5, shared withHollis,Mason,Brookline,Greenville,New Ipswich, andRindge) and District 13 (Wards 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, and 9).
At the presidential level, Nashua leans strongly towards Democrats.George H. W. Bush was the last Republican presidential nominee to win Nashua, in1988.
One television station is licensed to Nashua.WBTS-CD (channel 15) is owned byNBC Owned Television Stations, and serves as theNBC owned-and-operated station for the Boston market. The station moved from its own transmitter to a channel share withPBS member stationWGBX-TV from theirNeedham, Massachusetts tower in 2018 upon NBC's assumption of ownership, letting it broadcast the "NBC Boston" service (previously carried bya low-power station in Boston and subchannels of other stations) across the entire market. As WYCN-CD, it formerly carried a number of smaller networks, along with local programming and community calendar information of interest to Nashuans, until the sale to NBC.
TheEverett Turnpike is the major highway running through the city.U.S. Route 3 follows the turnpike from the Massachusetts border north to Exit 7E, where it branches to the northeast along the two-lane Henri A. Burque Highway to Concord Street and then heads north into the town of Merrimack. Other New Hampshire state highways in the city include:
NH 101A, which enters the city from the northwest and follows Amherst Street to its terminus at Main Street.
NH 111, which enters the city from the southwest and follows Hollis Street to the city's eastern border at theMerrimack River, crossing intoHudson on the twin-span Taylor Falls/Veterans Memorial bridges.
NH 111A, which enters the city from the southwest and follows Groton Road to Main Dunstable Road to its terminus at Hollis Street.
NH 130, which enters the city from the west and follows Broad Street to its terminus at Amherst Street.
Maps of the Nashua area often show a stretch of freeway forming a circumferential highway through Nashua and the neighboring town ofHudson. Only a small section of the south end of this highway (Exit 2 offU.S. Route 3) has been built, and it is unclear whether the highway will ever be completed. If finished, theNashua-Hudson Circumferential Highway would be part of the Everett Turnpike, and would rejoin the mainline highway at a hypothetical Exit 9 in northern Nashua.
In 2015, after four years of construction, the city completed the Broad Street Parkway,[50] which connects Exit 6 of the Everett Turnpike to the city's downtown area ("Tree Streets" neighborhood), with the goal of easing traffic congestion and opening up Nashua's old mill-yard as part of the city's economic development.[51] The new parkway provides a third crossing of theNashua River and a way for traffic to avoid Library Hill, a busy downtown intersection. The idea of a road connecting Broad Street with Hollis Street within the city had been discussed since the 1960s.[52]
Historically, Nashua was a hub for thetrolley system in New Hampshire. Trolleys could be taken south toBoston, as well as north intoManchester and to locations as far east asHampton, New Hampshire. The trolley also connected different areas of the city, with the Nashua line ending at the city dance hall. The trolley system decreased in popularity in the 20th century, finally closing in 1932.[54]
Efforts are being made to extend theMBTA Commuter Rail'sLowell Line fromLowell to Manchester, stopping at Nashua along the way. The state legislature created theNew Hampshire Rail Transit Authority (NHRTA) in 2007 with the goal of overseeing the development of commuter rail in the state. The proposed line would connectLowell, Massachusetts, toBedford, New Hampshire, with the end station being near theManchester–Boston Regional Airport.[55][56] As of November, 2022, an ongoing study byAECOM and the State of New Hampshire for design and financing is due to be completed by early 2023, and the project is awaiting federal funding.[57] Nashua is proposed to have two station stops on the line,South Nashua, which would be located behind thePheasant Lane Mall just north of the state line, and Nashua, which would be located in a rail yard near Crown Street in downtown Nashua and would utilize the existing Crown Street park-and-ride lot.[58]
Separately on October 11, 2017 the Nashua Board of Aldermen signed a memorandum of understanding with the now bankruptBoston Surface Railroad Company for the creation of a rail line.
The fire department of Nashua, Nashua Fire, has 176 full-time members and is responsible for 31.9 square miles (83 km2), protecting a population of 91,322. In the city, there are six stations. There is one fire chief, one assistant chief, and four deputy chiefs. The department has six engines, three ladder trucks, one haz-mat/rescue truck (known as Special Hazards 1), two brush trucks, two spare engines, and one spare ladder truck.[59] Nashua uses a private ambulance service, American Medical Response. The department has five fire commissioners. The commission has overall responsibility for the policy decisions, promotions, discipline, hiring and terminations. The fire chief reports directly to the commission. Their responsibility is to also work with fire administration with planning and prioritizing the department budget.[60]
Russian dressing was created in Nashua by James E. Colburn, likely in the 1910s.[62]
In the American version ofThe Office, a branch of the fictional paper company Dunder Mifflin is located in Nashua and features in several episodes.[63]
^Foner, Philip Sheldon; Foner, Philip Sheldon (1991).History of the labor movement in the United States. 9: The T.U.E.L. to the end of the Gompers era. New York: Intl Publ. pp. 19–31.ISBN978-0-7178-0674-4.
^Gray, Kevin (October 6, 2005)."Don Newcombe diversity dinner speaker Jan. 16". New Hampshire Cultural Diversity Awareness Council. Archived fromthe original on October 17, 2007. RetrievedOctober 20, 2007.As members of the Nashua Dodgers, Campanella and Newcombe were the first professional, African-American baseball players to compete on a racially integrated U.S. team in the 20th century.
Core cities are metropolitan core cities of at least a million people. The other areas are urban areas of cities that have an urban area of 150,000+ or of a metropolitan area of at least 250,000+. Satellite cities are in italics.
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