Eaton, New Hampshire

History

Eaton was incorporated in 1766 by colonial Governor Benning Wentworth, and named for Governor Theophilus Eaton of Connecticut, a generous contributor to the funds needed to settle Massachusetts in 1630. He later formed a colony at New Haven, Connecticut, along with Reverend John Davenport and David Yale, great-grandfather of Yale University's founder, Elihu Yale.

The "Little White Church" is a town landmark. The village of Snowville is named for the Snow family, who started a sawmill there in 1825. Waukeela, a summer camp for girls, has been in Eaton for 90 years as of 2011. It occupies 45 acre on Crystal Lake.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 66.3 sqkm, of which 62.9 sqkm are land and 3.4 sqkm are water, comprising 5.07% of the town. Conway Lake is on the northern boundary, and Crystal Lake is in the center. Eaton lies fully within the Saco River watershed. The highest point in town is 1730 ft above sea level on its southern boundary, just north of the 1806 ft summit of Cragged Mountain. Eaton is bounded on the east by the Maine state line.

Adjacent municipalities

• Conway (north)
• Brownfield, Maine (east)
• Porter, Maine (southeast)
• Freedom (south)
• Madison (west)

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 375 people, 157 households, and 111 families residing in the town. The population density was 15.4 PD/sqmi. There were 239 housing units at an average density of 9.8 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the town was 98.67% White, 0.27% African American, 0.27% Asian, and 0.80% from two or more races.

There were 157 households, out of which 29.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.1% were married couples living together, 7.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.7% were non-families. 23.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 2.85.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 23.5% under the age of 18, 4.0% from 18 to 24, 21.6% from 25 to 44, 38.9% from 45 to 64, and 12.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.6 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $46,429, and the median income for a family was $53,750. Males had a median income of $31,458 versus $23,750 for females. The per capita income for the town was $21,122. About 3.6% of families and 7.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.6% of those under age 18 and 15.9% of those age 65 or over.

References

References

1. "2021 U.S. Gazetteer Files – New Hampshire". United States Census Bureau.
2. "Eaton town, Carroll County, New Hampshire: 2020 DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171)". U.S. Census Bureau.
3. Stackpole, Everett. "History of New Hampshire vol. 2".
4. Foster, Debra H.. (1995). "Water Use in New Hampshire: An Activities Guide for Teachers". U.S. Department of the Interior and U.S. Geological Survey.
5. "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov.
6. (1907). ""Heads of Families at the First Census of the United States Taken in the Year 1790: New Hampshire". [United States] Government Printing Office.
7. "U.S. Census website". [[United States Census Bureau]].