Deerfield is a town located in the Southeastern corner of New Hampshire in the Merrimack Valley region of the state. It is situated in the Northern part of Rockingham County and encompasses a total area of 52.3 square miles, 1.4 of which is water. As of the 2010 United States Census, Deerfield was home to 4,280 people.
In the beginning, Deerfield was originally considered a part of Nottingham. Residents of the area petitioned for it to become a separate parish in 1756, but their request was ultimately denied. It wasn’t until 1765 that, after a second petition had been filed and Governor Benning Wentworth was presented with a deer from local residents, that the area?s separation was approved. It was incorporated as a town in 1766, taking on the name Deerfield, in honor of the town’s gift to the governor.
Less than 3 percent of Deerfield’s total area is made up of water. The town includes parts of Lamprey River and North Branch River, and it lies within both the Piscataqua River watershed and the Merrimack River watershed. Its highest point is located at Nottingham Mountain, where elevation reaches 1,345 feet above sea level. A portion of the Pawtuckaway Mountain range runs through the Eastern part of town.
Deerfield is governed by an elected Board of Selectmen. The town boasts a full-time police department, a volunteer fire department and volunteer emergency medical services. Children in the area attend the Deerfield Community School for grades kindergarten through eighth. For grades nine through 12, they attend Concord High School, located in the nearby town of Concord. For recreation and entertainment, residents of Deerfield can take advantage of the town’s municipal parks, tennis courts, youth organizations, sports leagues, fishing and hunting areas, boating marinas and bicycle trails. The town also boasts its own parks and recreation department, which hosts a number of community events and programming for all ages.