Rollinsford is a town located in the Southeastern corner of New Hampshire in the Seacoast region of the state. It is situated in the Eastern part of Strafford County and encompasses a total area of 7.5 square miles, all but .2 of which is land. As of the 2010 United States Census, Rollinsford was home to 2,527 people.
Before it was settled by Europeans, the area now known as Rollinsford was inhabited by Newichawannock Indians, a sub-tribe of the Abenaki. They built a village in the area that is now Salmon Fall Village, using the nearby waterfalls for fishing and catching game. In 1630, settlers began to come to the area. At that point in time, the land of Rollinsford was called Sligo and was considered a part of Dover. In 1729, Sligo was established as its own parish and renamed Somersworth. In 1754, Governor Benning Wentworth incorporated the town and, in the 1820s, developed two distinct settlements ? one at Great Falls and one at Salmon Falls. The two settlements were separated in 1849, with the Great Falls area staying Somersworth, and the Salmon Falls area being incorporated as Rollinsford. The town gets its name from the Rollins family, after one of the area’s earliest settlers.
Though Rollinsford only has .2 square miles of water, it includes parts of a number of bodies of water, including Salmon Falls River, Cochecho River, Rollins Brook, Twombly Brook and Salmon Falls. The town’s highest point lies at Garrison Hill, where the elevation reaches 290 feet above sea level. Over the years, many notable people have called Rollinsford home, including folk singer Dave Guard, wrestler Dan Marsh, U.S. Congressman Edward H. Rollins and singer-songwriter Bill Staines.
The town of Rollinsford is governed by an elected Board of Selectmen. It boasts a full- and part-time police department, a volunteer fire department and volunteer emergency medical services. The town’s biggest employers include Janco Inc., MFB Holding LLC and Janco Electronics. Children in the area attend Rollinsford Grade School for grades kindergarten through fifth. For other grades, they schools in nearby Somersworth, Somersworth Middle School and Somersworth High School.