Monday, February 11, 2019

John Hatch Park at Wiswall Falls Dam, Durham

Not a trail, just a spot to visit

Directions: From Durham, take Route 108 south towards Newmarket.  Turn right on Bennett Road.  At the end of Bennett Road, turn right on Packer's Falls Road and go 0.3 mile.  Turn left onto Wiswall Road and go 0.4 mile.

From Stratham/Newfields/Exeter, take Route 108 north towards Durham.  Just before downtown Newmarket, turn left onto Gerry Avenue, then left onto South Main Street. Go 0.1 mile, then turn right onto Packer's Falls Road and go 2.4 mile.  Turn left onto Wiswall Road and go 0.4 mile.


From Lamprey River website above - "To a visitor unfamiliar with this site, the park seems quiet and unhurried. A closer look will reveal many clues about a much different past. Granite foundations abound and a human-made canal offer evidence of activity far beyond today's fishermen and recreationists. In the 1800s, this site was a bustling center of industry, home to a sawmill, paper mill, and other smaller mills. The bridge nearby has been rebuilt several times, most recently in 2009. The dam, originally built of wood and stone, was most recently upgraded in 2011. The fish ladder was built in 2011. All this activity has taken place on a site listed on both the New Hampshire and federal Registers of Historic Places.  The historic area actually extends far beyond the park itself, to include houses on Wiswall Road that once belonged to the mill owner, Thomas Wiswall, and his workers."

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