Historic Effingham, New Hampshire
Isaac Lord Mansion, Effingham, NH, 1908
Effingham is a charming historic town in Carroll County, New Hampshire, and includes the villages of Effingham
Falls, Effingham (Lord's Hill), Center Effingham (Drake's Corner), and South Effingham. Pine River State Forest is in the south. Much of the town has been untouched and retains the feel of long ago when you can imagine people traveling by horse and buggie to get to all the functions in town.
Today it is located near Rt 16 which connects
Portsmouth and the seacoast with The White Mountains. It is also within 20 minutes to Lake Ossipee, 40 minutes to Lake Winnipesaukee and all the natural beauty of New Hampshire’s Lakes Region.
According to the 2010 census, the town population was 1,465--and is not far from it population 100 years ago. The Leavitt family of Hampton settled the town, led by Cap-
Post Office, 1910
tain John Leavitt, a soldier whose father, Moses, was a successful Hampton tavern
keeper. The settlement first took the name Leavitt's Town In 1749, the land was granted by Governor Benning Wentworth, and renamed Effingham for the Howard family, who were Earls of Effingham and who were related to the Wentworths by marriage. The town was incorporated in 1778. North Effingham would be set off in 1831 and incorporated as Freedom.
By 1859, Effingham Falls had
developed into a small mill town, with a woolen factory, five sawmills, three gristmills, and a carriage factory.
Effingham was home to the first normal school in New Hampshire, established
in 1830 on the second floor of the Effingham Union Academy Building, erected in 1819. James W. Bradbury, later a Maine senator, took charge of the school only on condition that it should be for the "instruction and training of teachers."
First “Normal School”
Effingham, NH • Home to the first normal school in New Hampshire, established in 1830 normal school is a school created to train high school graduates to be teachers. Its purpose is to establish teaching standards or norms, hence its name. Most such schools are now called teachers' colleges.
which at the time was a unique idea.
Presented by Michael Travis, Prudential Spencer-Hughes. 22 S Main St, Wolfeboro NH 603-569--6060 , Direct 603-303-2599