Hollis, New Hampshire

Town name

According to Samuel T. Worcester's history^[5] which was commissioned by the town selectmen in 1878, the town was incorporated in the province of New Hampshire on April 3, 1746, "to have continence forever by the name of Holles..."^[5]

Worcester argues that, at the time of the charter, Governor Benning Wentworth was indebted to Thomas Pelham-Holles, 1st Duke of Newcastle, for his appointment as governor. According to Worcester, it was "very much the custom with Gov. Wentworth" to name towns in honor of his friends and patrons. Thus in the same year, the towns of Pelham and Holles were incorporated, and named after the duke. Worcester cites a Mr. Bancroft who,

"...in his history, says of him (Newcastle) that he was of so feeble a head, and so treacherous a heart that Sir Robert Walpole called his name 'Perfidy'; that Lord Halifax used to revile him as a knave and fool, and that he was so ignorant of this continent, that it was said of him, that he addressed his letters to the 'Island of New England.'"

Thomas Hollis (1659–1731) was a major benefactor of Harvard College. According to Worcester, about the year 1775, town records started appearing with the town's name spelled as "Hollis", after Thomas Hollis. Both spellings were used until about 1815, after which only the name "Hollis" appears, "...while Holles, the name of the Duke of Newcastle, has passed into merited oblivion."

First settlers

Captain Peter Powers (1707–1757), his wife Anna Keyes (1708–1798), and their two children Peter (1729–1800) and Stephen (born 1729) were the first settlers of Hollis, in 1731. In 1732, the Powers birthed the first child in Hollis, a daughter, also named Anna.^{[6]: 230, 249} According to Spaulding's history,^[7]: 5 Powers "became a noted backwoodsman and colonial land surveyor," and eventually accrued approximately 1,500 acres (610 ha) in the north part of Hollis. Powers was also a militia officer in the French and Indian Wars and was commissioned captain by Governor Wentworth.^[7]: 5

The younger Peter was the first college graduate from Hollis, matriculating from Harvard in 1754. He served as pastor of churches throughout New England and died at the age of 71 in Deer Island, Maine.^[5]: 287

Notable events

• From its charter in 1746 until about 1763, Hollis was engaged in a running border dispute with Dunstable (now Nashua, New Hampshire) over a small settlement at "One Pine Hill", near Flint Pond. The General Court eventually resolved the dispute in favor of Hollis.^{[5]: 74–80}
• In 1769, a strip one and a quarter miles wide on the western border of Hollis was incorporated into the new town of Raby. In 1785, the General Court granted a petition of Raby to annex an additional three-quarters of a mile of the western Hollis border. In 1796, the name of Raby was changed to Brookline^{[5]: 89–92}
• In 1770, by act of the General Court, Hollis annexed a portion of the town of Monson when its charter was repealed by its own request.^[5]: 89
• In 1773, Hollis acquired some 500 acres (200 ha) more land from Dunstable in a dispute over the building and upkeep of a bridge over the Nashua River.^{[5]: 80–84}
• In 1794, the town of Milford was incorporated, subsuming an area of 1,000 to 1,500 acres (400 to 610 ha) from the northwest corner of Hollis, resulting in a total size, by an 1806 survey, of some 30.67 square miles (79.4 km²).

Notable facts

The following is from Worcester's History of Hollis:

• When Hollis was incorporated, the town tax list comprised 54 families.
• By 1760, that number had risen to over 105 families.^[5]: 100
• In 1767, two of the 384 slaves in New Hampshire resided in Hollis. In 1775, four of the 656 slaves in New Hampshire resided in Hollis.^[5]: 116
• The first trial for murder in Hillsborough County was of Israel Wilkins Jr, of Hollis, for the murder of his father, Israel Wilkins Sr., on November 2, 1772.^[8] The elder Wilkins died of "a blow upon the head...of the length three inches and the depth of one inch." Wilkins Jr. was found guilty of man-slaughter, pleaded benefit of clergy, and was subsequently branded upon the thumb with the letter "T", and forced to forfeit all his goods to the King.^[5]: 125
• Two-thirds of the grantees of the charter for the town of Plymouth, New Hampshire, were from Hollis, causing Worcester to refer to it as "A Hollis Colony".^[5]
• Eight Hollis residents were killed at the Battle of Bunker Hill.^[5]: 154
• 125 Hollis men were in the army in whole or in part during the year 1776, approximately one tenth of the population.^[5]: 167
  • There is a large stone and a plaque near the center of town memorializing the Nevins brothers.  They were moving the boulder out of a road when they heard about the British marching on Lexington and Concord and they left the stone where it was to join the minutemen.  Youngest brother Phineas Nevins was later killed at the battle of Bunker Hill.^[9]
• 22 Hollis men died while in the army during the Revolutionary War.^[5]: 202
• In 1820, Hollis had five grain mills, six saw mills, one clothing mill, two taverns and four stores. By 1878, it had one grain mill, no saw or clothing mills, no taverns, and one store.^[5]: 266

Railroad

Hollis was a station stop on the Worcester & Nashua Railroad, which built its line through the town in 1848 as part of a through route between Worcester, Massachusetts and Portland, Maine. The line was later acquired in 1886 by the Boston & Maine Railroad. The WN&P from Hollis to Nashua, New Hampshire, was abandoned in 1941, and the B&M subsequently renamed the remaining line south to Ayer, Massachusetts the Hollis Branch. The B&M continued to provide freight service until the Hollis Branch was abandoned in 1982, with a fuel dealer being the last rail customer in town.^[10]

Adjacent municipalities

• Amherst (north)
• Merrimack (northeast)
• Nashua (east)
• Pepperell, Massachusetts (south)
• Brookline (west)
• Milford (northwest)

Climate

Hollis is in USDA plant hardiness zone 5A.^[12] The closest NOAA climate station is in Nashua. The nearby table shows applicable temperature and precipitation data by month.

Historical population change

The table and chart, taken primarily from historical data from the U.S. Census Bureau,^[19] shows the population of Hollis from 1767 through 2010.^{[20] [21] [22] [23] [24] [25] [26] [27] [28] [29] [30] [31] [32] [33] [34] [35] [36] [37]}

After nearly doubling in population over the last 33 years of the 18th century, Hollis' population consistently declined (excepting only the decade of the 1850s and the first decade of the 20th century) for 120 years, not returning to the levels of 1800 until sometime during the 1950s. Since 1930, Hollis' population has consistently grown, particularly during the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s.

Old Home Days

Hollis Old Home Days is "an annual weekend celebration of the days of 'Hollis Past'."^[38] Old Home Days were originally established in New Hampshire in 1899, by then Governor Frank West Rollins, in an attempt to draw people back to New Hampshire towns. Hollis Old Home Days was reestablished in 1996 in commemoration of the town's 250th anniversary.^[39] The 2010 event included "amusement rides, parade, barbecue, silent auction, booths, fireworks, live music, balloon rides, pet parade, heritage craft demonstrations" and various other activities.^[40] It is generally held over the second weekend in September at Nichols Field in downtown Hollis.^[41]

Hollis Strawberry Festival

The annual Strawberry Festival each June comprises a concert by the town band accompanied by a variety of strawberry-based treats for sale including strawberry shortcake, pie and ice cream made from locally grown strawberries.^[42]

Hollis Apple Festival

The Hollis Apple Festival is held each year in October and includes a concert by the Hollis Town Band.^[43][44] The festival previously included the Applefest Half Marathon, which was first run in 1983.^[45] In 2008, it was named "Race of the Year" by New England Runner.^[46] The Applefest was co-hosted by the Hollis Women's Club.^[43]