| Dalton's first published Town Report |
| Dalton was originally a part of a larger area known as Chiswick, granted in 1764. Just a few years later in 1770, the town was regranted under the name of Apthorp. After this second group of proprietors failed to meet the conditions of their charter, Apthorp was divided into two towns, and on November 4, 1784, Littleton and Dalton were established. Dalton took it's name from Tristram Dalton, who, with his partner, Nathaniel Tracy, owned the tract at the time of it's incorporation. Tristram Dalton was a respected merchant in Newburyport, Massachusetts. A Harvard graduate at the age of seventeen, Dalton was acquainted with the first four presidents of this young country. It is not known if he ever actually set foot in the town bearing his name. A man named Moses Blake was made an offer by Dalton and Tracy to establish a road between Haverhill and Lancaster. Upon doing this, Blake was given two 160-acre lots of his choice, which he chose near the mouth of the John's River. Blake, with his wife Lucy and two small children, became Dalton's first settlers. Over time, the land in town proved to be well-suited for raising sheep. Settlers cleared the land of trees, and built stone walls to fence in their stock as well as mark their boundaries. Lumbering was also an enterprise that proved fruitful. Several mills, from lumber, to brick, to grist mills were established. Families came and went, and some came to stay, seemingly, forever. There are still descendants living here today, whose ancestors worked the land two hundred years ago. Dalton today is mostly forested, the trees having reclaimed their place where our early settlers cut them down. With each generation, the fields are becoming fewer, as brush takes over and nature takes it's course |
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DALTON HISTORICAL SOCIETY Dalton, New Hampshire
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A BRIEF HISTORY OF DALTON
