Hinsdale

Hinsdale, located beside the Connecticut River, contains excellent farmland but has been a significant center of industry as well. It was here that the first settlement was made in what is now Cheshire County before the end of the 17th century. The town’s earliest history echoes with accounts of Indian assaults, raids and captivities.

Hinsdale received its N.H. charter in 1753. It was named for Col. Ebenezer Hinsdale, a respected early resident who built a fort and gristmill here in 1742.

Manufacturing has long been carried on here, and paper is one of this town’s important products. In a machine shop here, George A. Long built a self-propelled steam vehicle in 1875, for which he received one of the nation’s earliest automobile patents. Hinsdale Greyhound Park is the only one of its kind in the region.