Durham

Durham, town (township), Strafford county, southeastern New Hampshire, U.S., on the Oyster River just southwest of Dover. Settled in 1635, it was known as the parish of Oyster River until it was incorporated in 1732 and named for Durham, England. A series of savage Indian attacks began in 1675; in 1694 the town was burned, and more than 100 residents were killed or captured. During the American Revolution a large supply of gunpowder and weapons seized from the British in New Castle was hidden in the Durham Meetinghouse; a tablet now marks the site. The town is an agricultural trade centre and the seat of the University of New Hampshire (founded 1866). The home (built c. 1740) of John Sullivan, Revolutionary general and the state’s chief executive in 1786, 1787, and 1789, still stands on the riverbank. Area 22 square miles (58 square km). Pop. (2000) 12,664; (2010) 14,638.