Manchester is the largest city in the U.S. state of New Hampshire and the largest city in northern New England, an area comprising the states of Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. It is in Hillsborough County along the banks of the Merrimack River. As of the 2000 census, the city had a population of 107,219. The estimated population in 2007 was 108,580. Manchester is near the northern end of the northeast megalopolis. As of the 2007 population estimate referred to above, Manchester is the most populous New England city north of Boston (including other Massachusetts cities).
In 2009 CNNMoney.com rated Manchester 13th in a list of the 100 best cities to live and launch a business in the United States. In addition, Kiplinger voted Manchester the second most tax friendly city in the United States, second only to Anchorage, Alaska. Also in 2009, Forbes magazine ranked the Manchester region first on its list of "America's 100 Cheapest Places to Live."
History
Pennacook Indians called it Namoskeag, meaning "good fishing place"—a reference to the Amoskeag Falls in the Merrimack River. In 1722, John Goffe settled beside Cohas Brook, later building a dam and sawmill at what was dubbed Old Harry's Town. It was granted by Massachusetts in 1727 as Tyngstown to veterans of Queen Anne's War who served in 1703 under Captain William Tyng. But at New Hampshire's 1741 separation from Massachusetts, the grant was ruled invalid and substituted with Wilton, Maine, so Governor Benning Wentworth rechartered the town in 1751 as Derryfield .
In 1807, Samuel Blodget opened a canal and lock system to allow vessels passage around the falls. He envisioned here a great industrial center, "the Manchester of America", like the Industrial Revolution's Manchester in England, the first industrialized city in the world. Sure enough, in 1809, Benjamin Prichard and others built a cotton spinning mill operated by water power on the western bank of the Merrimack. Following Blodgett's suggestion, Derryfield was renamed Manchester in 1810, the year the mill was incorporated as the Amoskeag Cotton & Woolen Manufacturing Company. It would be purchased in 1825 by entrepreneurs from Massachusetts, expanded to 3 mills in 1826, and then incorporated in 1831 as the Amoskeag Manufacturing Company.
On the eastern bank, Amoskeag engineers and architects planned a model company town, founded in 1838 with Elm Street as its main thoroughfare. Incorporated as a city in 1846, Manchester would become home to the largest cotton mill in the world—Mill No. 11, stretching 900 feet (270 m) long by 103 feet (31 m) wide, and containing 4,000 looms. Other products made in the community included shoes, cigars, and paper. The Amoskeag foundry made rifles, sewing machines, textile machinery, fire engines, and locomotives in a division called the Amoskeag Locomotive Works (later, the Manchester Locomotive Works). The rapid growth of the mills demanded a large influx of workers, resulting in a flood of immigrants, particularly French Canadians. Many current residents descend from these workers. The Amoskeag Manufacturing Company went out of business in 1935, although its red brick mills have been renovated for other uses. Indeed, the mill town's 19th century affluence left behind some of the finest Victorian commercial, municipal, and residential architecture in the state.
Manchester is nicknamed the Queen City. More recent nicknames for the city are ManchVegas, Funchester, ManchHattan, and simply "Manch". In 1998, Manchester was named the "Number One Small City in the East" by Money magazine. The Mall of New Hampshire, on Manchester's southern fringe near the intersection of Interstates 93 and 293, is the city's main retail center. In 2001, the Verizon Wireless Arena, a venue seating more than 10,000, opened for major concerts and sporting events, enhancing the city's downtown revitalization efforts with a major hotel and convention center already in place directly across the street from the arena.
Geography and climate
Manchester is located at 42°59′11″N 71°27′6″W / 42.98639°N 71.45167°W / 42.98639; -71.45167 (42.986284, -71.451560).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 34.9 square miles (90 km 2 ), of which 33.0 sq mi (85 km 2 ) is land and 1.9 sq mi (4.9 km 2 ) is water, comprising 5.44% of the city. Manchester is drained by the Merrimack River, the Piscataquog River and Cohas Brook. Massabesic Lake is on the eastern border. The highest point in Manchester is its extreme northwest corner, where the elevation reaches 560 feet (170 m) above sea level.
Government
Manchester is incorporated as a city under the laws of the State of New Hampshire, and operates under a strong mayor form of government. The mayor serves as chairman of the fourteen-member Board of Mayor and Aldermen, the city's legislative body. Each of Manchester's twelve wards elects a single alderman, and two additional at-large members are elected citywide.
The mayor also serves as the chair of the board of school committee. Like the board of aldermen, the school board is has twelve members elected by ward and two at-large members. The School Board is not a City Department; rather, it is a School District which obtains financing from the Board of Mayor & Aldermen.
Demographics
Manchester's estimated 2007 population of 108,580 is greater than that of Burlington, Vermont and Portland, Maine—the most populous cities in their respective states—combined. Manchester is the center of the Manchester, NH, New England City and Town Metropolitan Area (NECTA MA), with a population in 2000 of 176,663. This is less than the population of either the Portland-South Portland-Biddeford NECTA or the Burlington-South Burlington NECTA, but both of these encompass considerably larger geographical areas than the Manchester NECTA.
As of the census of 2000, there were 107,219 people, 44,247 households, and 26,105 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,241.4 people per square mile (1,251.6/km²). There were 45,892 housing units at an average density of 1,390.2/sq mi (536.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 91.75% White, 2.10% African American, 0.30% Native American, 2.32% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 1.76% from other races, and 1.73% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.62% of the population.
As of the 2005-2007 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau, White Americans made up 90.0% of Manchester's population; of which 85.3% were non-Hispanic whites. Blacks or African Americans made up 3.8% of Manchester's population; of which 3.7% were non-Hispanic blacks. American Indians made up 0.3% of the city's population. Asian Americans made up 2.4% of the city's population. Pacific Islander Americans made up less than 0.1% of the city's population. Individuals from some other race made up 2.3% of the city's population; of which less than 0.1% were non-Hispanic. Individuals from two or more races made up 1.2% of the city's population; of which 1.0% were non-Hispanic. In addition, Hispanics and Latinos made up 7.3% of Manchester's population.
The largest ancestry groups within the city's population are: French (22.1%), Irish (20.2%), English (10.3%), German (7.4%), and Italian (7.9%).
There were 44,247 households out of which 29.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.6% were married couples living together, 11.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.0% were non-families. 31.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 3.00.
In the city the population was spread out with 23.7% under the age of 18, 9.5% from 18 to 24, 33.4% from 25 to 44, 20.5% from 45 to 64, and 12.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 95.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.3 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $40,774, and the median income for a family was $50,039. Males had a median income of $34,287 versus $26,584 for females. The per capita income for the city was $21,244. 10.6% of the population and 7.7% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 14.6% are under the age of 18 and 11.7% are 6
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