Pelham, New Hampshire

Pelham is a town in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 12,897 at the 2010 census.

History
Pelham was split from Old Dunstable in 1741, when the border between Massachusetts and New Hampshire was settled. It was incorporated in 1746. The town is named after Thomas Pelham-Holles, 1st Duke of Newcastle.

Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 27.0 sqmi, of which 26.4 sqmi is land and 0.5 sqmi is water, comprising 1.93% of the town. The highest point in Pelham is Jeremy Hill, at 577 ft above sea level. The town contains the southernmost point in the state of New Hampshire, at 42.69694°N, -71.29444°W, as the northern boundary of Massachusetts runs slightly northwest from Pelham.

Demographics
The earliest census data shows the town of Pelham having a population of 543 residents in 1767.

As of the census of 2000, there were 10,914 people, 3,606 households, and 2,982 families residing in the town. The population density was 412.9 people per square mile (159.4/km²). There were 3,740 housing units at an average density of 141.5 per square mile (54.6/km²). The racial makeup of the town was:


 * 97.34% White (U.S. average: 75.1%)
 * 0.44% African American (U.S. average: 12.3%)
 * 0.22% Native American (U.S. average: 0.1%)
 * 1.04% Asian (U.S. average: 3.6%)
 * 0.25% from other races (U.S. average: 5.5%)
 * 0.71% from two or more races (U.S. average: 2.4%)

Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.96% of the population. (U.S. average: 12.5%)

In 2000, there were 3,606 households, with an average household size of 3.03 and an average family size of 3.33.
 * 43.6% of households had children under the age of 18 living with them. (U.S. average: 32.8%)
 * 71.8% were married couples living together. (U.S. average: 51.7%)
 * 7.5% had a female householder with no husband present. (U.S. average: 12.2%)
 * 17.3% were non-families. (U.S. average: 31.9%)
 * 12.9% of all households were made up of individuals. (U.S. average: 25.8%)
 * 5.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. (U.S. average: 9.2%)

In 2000, the town's population had a median age of 36 years (U.S. average: 35.3).
 * 28.9% under the age of 18
 * 6.1% from 18 to 24
 * 34.0% from 25 to 44
 * 23.2% from 45 to 64
 * 7.8% who were 65 years of age or older

For every 100 females there were 98.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.3 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $68,608. (U.S. average: $41,994). The median income for a family was $73,365. (U.S. average: $50,046). Males had a median income of $47,685 versus $33,375 for females. The per capita income for the town was $25,158. About 1.6% of families (U.S. average: 9.2%) and 3.0% of the population (U.S. average: 12.4%) were below the poverty line, including 3.1% of those under age 18 and 4.7% of those age 65 or over.

School system

 * Pelham Elementary School
 * Pelham Memorial School
 * Pelham High School
 * St. Patrick School (private)
 * E. G. Sherburne School (former elementary school)

Muldoon Park
The park is located northwest of the center of Pelham at 305 Mammoth Road (NH 128), just north of Nashua Road. The park's land area is surrounded by NH 128, two roads that branch off it, and a minor road which intersects NH 111A.

Muldoon Park offers many short walking trails, four variously sized baseball fields (ranging from t-ball to official), a soccer field, and a play area. Most of the trails lead to the park's two ponds, local roads and houses or to Beaver Brook, a small river. The town of Pelham completed an 18-hole disc golf course here, stretching over a quarter-mile, in September 2007.

The Pelham Parks and Recreation department has recently added two non-official sized baseball fields to the southwest corner of the park. Construction is complete on one field with the exception of dugouts, and the other field is still under construction, as of June 2008.

There is now an 18-hole disc golf course at this park. Many players from surrounding towns enjoy a round of disc golf set in the woods adjacent to the sport fields.

Notable people

 * Josiah Butler (1779–1854), US congressman
 * Sean Caisse (1986-), stock car driver
 * Ray Fox, crew chief and owner with NASCAR
 * Daniel Gage (1828–1901), the "Ice King of Lowell"; family for whom Gage Hill is named
 * Richard M. Linnehan, astronaut (NASA);graduate of Pelham High School (1975)