Template:Wp-Henniker, New Hampshire-History

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The area was first known as "Number Six" in a line of settlements running between the Merrimack and Connecticut rivers. In 1752, the Masonian Proprietors granted the land to Andrew Todd, who called it "Todd's Town". Settled in 1761 by James Peter, it was dubbed "New Marlborough" by others from Marlboro, Massachusetts. Incorporated in 1768 by Governor John Wentworth, the town was named for Sir John Henniker, a London merchant of leather and fur, with shipping interests in Boston and Portsmouth.

In the 19th century Henniker had a high rate of congenital deafness, and its own sign language, which may have played a significant role in the emergence of American Sign Language.

Farmers found the town's surface relatively even, with fertile soil. Various mills operated by water power on the Contoocook River, including a woolen factory. By 1859, the population was 1,688.^[1] But the mills in Henniker were closed in 1959 by the Hopkinton-Everett Lakes Flood Control Project.

The Edna Dean Proctor Bridge, a stone double-arch bridge spanning the Contoocook, was built in 1835. A building for Henniker Academy was constructed of split granite in 1836.

Beginning in the late 1800s, the river's scenic beauty attracted tourism.

The game of paintball originated in Henniker in 1981.