Jaffrey, New Hampshire

Jaffrey is a census-designated place (CDP) and the main village in the town of Jaffrey in Cheshire County, New Hampshire, United States. The population of the CDP was 3,058 at the 2020 census, out of 5,320 in the entire town of Jaffrey.

The Jaffrey Mills is a historic mill complex at 41 Main Street, in the central business district of Jaffrey, New Hampshire. It consists of a connected series of primarily brick buildings flanking the Contoocook River just north of Main Street. Its oldest buildings, the original mill and office building, are on the west side of the river. They were built in 1868, and feature mansard roofs and banded dentil brick cornices. The mill building has a tower that originally sported a cupola, but this was removed early in the 20th century. In 1872 the building on the east side was built, and the two sides joined by timber-frame bridges were added in 1897, at the same time the east building was extended northward. Later additions to the north of the east building include a storage area and a loading dock. The mill complex, the only 19th-century industrial complex of its type to be built in Jaffrey, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. It has been converted into residences. The oldest buildings in the complex were built by Alonzo Bascom, the local postmaster. He sold them, unused due to his ill health, in 1871 to Stone Brothers and Curtis. They built the east side mills, and began the manufacture of woven cotten fabric, also using the water power to support a grist mill and various woodworking operations. Their business was short-lived due to the post-Civil War economic downturn, and they closed in 1876. The White Brothers of Winchendon, Massachusetts next took over the property, again using for textile manufacture until 1939, when it closed due to the Great Depression. Before it was converted to housing, it saw a number of varied light industrial uses in the mid-20th century.

The East Jaffrey Historic District is a historic district running roughly along NH Route 124 (Main Street) through Jaffrey, New Hampshire. It encompasses what is now the economic and civic heart of the town, centered on the Jaffrey Mills and the crossing of the Contoocook River by Route 124. It extends as far west as St. Patrick's Church beyond Charlonne Street and as far east as the US Post Office building at Route 124 and Ellison Street. To the north it extends along Peterborough Street (United States Route 202) to Christian Court, and to the south it extends along River Street (also US 202) and School Street to their junction. The district includes early 19th-century residential structures, as well as industrial buildings and housing associated with the Jaffrey Mills which arose in the mid-19th century. The district was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2002.The town of Jaffrey was laid out in the 1740s, and incorporated in 1773. Its original town center, now the Jaffrey Center Historic District, was located near its geographic center. The village of East Jaffrey had its beginnings with the establishment of saw and grist mills on the Contoocook River in 1770 by John Boorland. The construction of a turnpike (now NH 124) near the mills in 1799 brought further economic activity. In 1814, the mill complex was replaced by a woolen mill, predecessor to the Jaffrey Mills buildings that now line the river north of the Main Street bridge. By the mid-19th century the area had seen significant growth, with a large number of Greek Revival houses, and a growing array of businesses and civic institutions. The arrival of the railroad in 1870 cemented the area's economic and civic importance.

Contoocook Lake ( (listen)) is a 344-acre (1.4 km2) water body located in Cheshire County in southwestern New Hampshire, United States, in the towns of Jaffrey and Rindge. The lake, along with Pool Pond, forms the headwaters of the Contoocook River, which flows north to the Merrimack River in Penacook, New Hampshire. The lake is classified as a warmwater fishery, with observed species including largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, white perch, yellow perch, black crappie, bluegill, pumpkinseed, chain pickerel, and horned pout.

The Jaffrey Center Historic District encompasses the traditional civic heart of the small town of Jaffrey, New Hampshire. The district lies to the west of the Jaffrey's main business district, extending along Main Street (New Hampshire Route 124) from Harkness Road to the Jaffrey Common, and along Thorndike Pond Road northward from Main Street. It includes the town's oldest civic buildings, and was its main center until the mills of East Jaffrey eclipsed it. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.

Franklin Pierce University is a private university in Rindge, New Hampshire. It was founded as Franklin Pierce College in 1962, combining a liberal arts foundation with coursework for professional preparation. The school gained university status in 2007 and is accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC). It has an enrollment of 1,400 students and overlooks Pearly Pond, a few miles from Mount Monadnock. The campus covers approximately 1,200 acres (4.9 km2). Kim Mooney has been president of Franklin Pierce University since 2016. The school also operates the College of Graduate and Professional Studies with campuses in Manchester, New Hampshire and Lebanon, New Hampshire, and Goodyear, Arizona. The college at Rindge houses three institutes: the Marlin Fitzwater Center for Communication; the Monadnock Institute of Nature, Place, and Culture; and the New England Center for Civic Life.

WFPC-LP (105.3 FM) is a radio station licensed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to Franklin Pierce University. The station makes its home inside the Marlin Fitzwater Center for Communication in Rindge, New Hampshire. This is a low power radio station run by students. WFPC-LP is a member of the Pierce Media Group.

The Gridley River is a 6.3-mile-long (10.1 km) river in southern New Hampshire in the United States. It is a tributary of the Contoocook River, part of the Merrimack River watershed. Most of the river's length is within the town of Sharon. The Gridley River begins in the northwestern corner of New Ipswich, New Hampshire, on the western slopes of Kidder Mountain in the Wapack Range. The small stream flows west into Tophet Swamp, where it picks up a tributary from the northeast. The river soon enters the town of Sharon and heads north through wetlands and intervening steep patches, reaching the Contoocook River just within the southwestern corner of Peterborough.

Cathedral of the Pines is an open-air complex in Rindge, New Hampshire, that was built as a memorial to the American war dead. It incorporates a multi-denominational sanctuary, other sacred spaces, and a number of burial grounds. The Cathedral, which commands a scenic view of forested land and Mount Monadnock, is run as a nonprofit corporation.

Pearly Lake or Pearly Pond is a 192-acre (0.8 km2) water body in the town of Rindge, Cheshire County, southwestern New Hampshire, United States. Formerly known as Tarbell Pond, named for Revolutionary War Minuteman Lieut. Samuel Tarbell (1744-1828) who settled here, the lake is one of the headwaters of Tarbell Brook, a tributary of the Millers River, which flows southwest to the Connecticut River at Millers Falls, Massachusetts.The undergraduate campus of Franklin Pierce University is located on the northeast shore of the lake. The lake is classified as a warmwater fishery, with observed species including largemouth bass, chain pickerel, yellow perch, bluegill, horned pout, American eel, and green sunfish.

Thorndike Pond is a 252-acre (1.02 km2) water body located in Cheshire County in southwestern New Hampshire, United States, in the towns of Jaffrey and Dublin. The pond is located at the base of Mount Monadnock. Water from Thorndike Pond flows north via Stanley Brook, then east via Nubanusit Brook to the Contoocook River, a tributary of the Merrimack River. Whittemore Island is centrally located on the lake and contains a looping walking trail that is maintained by The Nature Conservancy. The lake is classified as a warmwater fishery, with observed species including smallmouth and largemouth bass, chain pickerel, horned pout, and bluegill.

Monadnock State Park in Jaffrey, New Hampshire, United States, is a 1,017-acre (4.12 km2) state park located on and around 3,165-foot (965 m) Mount Monadnock. The park is surrounded by thousands of acres of protected highlands.The park is open to hiking, picnicking, camping, backpacking, snowshoeing and cross country skiing. Backcountry skiing is possible on some of the lower trails. There are two campgrounds. A per-person fee is charged (in season) to park at the Old Toll Road and State Park Headquarters trailheads. There are no roads to the summit, and the Old Toll Road, which leads to the Halfway House site, is closed to vehicles. In 1987, Mount Monadnock was designated a National Natural Landmark.