More than any other town in New Hampshire,
Derry has changed dramatically over the last
thirty years. Gone are the fields, the forests, and the
fine old homes, and in their place stand malls, modern
housing developments, and multi-lane highways.
It is difficult now to imagine the scene in 1719
when a small group of Scottish pioneers laid claim
to the New Hampshire wilderness, building a
meetinghouse close to a young oak tree. The town
of Derry grew up around this site, and for nearly ten
generations the oak stood as a respected presence
within the...

In 1719, sixteen families left Ireland for America and founded a community called Nutfield, which evolved into modern Derry. For centuries, Derry retained its small-town character, but the 1963 opening of Interstate 93 changed the town forever. Within a decade, its population doubled. Derry is now the state's most populous town. This charming collection of over two hundred photographs presents Derry in its quieter years, when trolleys crisscrossed the town, most of the men worked in shoe factories, and traffic on Broadway stopped each morning as the Hood cows crossed to their pasture. For...