In New England, you live in either a town or a city. There are no townships or being “out in the county,” as I’d known elsewhere. And the counties are relatively insignificant, at least politically; they’re largely for a court system, jails, and record-keeping.
Part of my confusion when I first moved to this corner of the country was an assumption that “city” and “town” both meant “urban,” with some population density and a central retail and commercial district. But that’s not always the case. In fact, some seem to be entirely rural.
Additional confusion can be caused by looking at maps and seeing dots representing settlement and then assuming they’re towns. Gilmanton and Gilmanton Iron Works appear, for instance, but they’re both in the town of Gilmanton and are separated by miles of forest. The community of Groveton is in the town of Northumberland. The city of Laconia includes the enclaves of Weirs Beach and Lakeport. A city or town may have a number of distinct neighborhoods or villages, sometimes with separate post offices or Zip codes. And so on.
Our cities and towns are geographical spaces differentiated by their form of government. Cities are managed by a mayor and board of aldermen, while a town relies on a three-person board of selectmen. Population? Some of New Hampshire’s 13 cities are quite small, while a handful of its 221 towns rank among the largest localities. The form of government is a local choice.
Except for the towns that have opted for a ballot-based alternative known as SB 2, the residents of New Hampshire’s towns gather on the second Tuesday in March for Town Meeting Day, a celebrated exercise in democracy where everyone gets a say, at least if the moderator’s on top of his or her game. They’ll tackle the warrant articles – the agenda published in advance, including town and school budgets and bonding – and also elect new officials.
In a few towns, the entire event’s wrapped up in a half-hour, while others stretch on for hours or even demand additional sessions. The ones that get quite heated may explain why Town Meeting Day’s held in winter.
~*~
To see more of the region’s unique character and calendar, click here.
Jnana's Red Barn 
You have just cleared up a longtime confusion about cities and towns in New England! Very informative and well written post!
For folks who want to know what they look like, you’ve certainly posted some fine photos — especially with the city of Lawrence and its imposing mills.
I’m from one of those towns, Randolph NH. Population today is 321 and a total area of 42 square miles. We also boast of having the largest town forest in the state, 10,000 acres. Great Post.
You must have a wonderfully short town meeting session!
Hope you’re getting some of the taste of spring and melting we’re finally getting down here below the Notches.
I live at the highest point in Randolph with sweeping blueberry fields meaning all that wind this year, piles of it here. The 1/10 mile driveway still has 12 foot drifts after 3 warm days. Spring is coming. But first, MUD SEASON! Happy days coming, enjoy!
We’ve had some warm days but not today. Ah, the see-saw weather of March through June. I do love it here. I’m from mid-west and live in Randolph by choice. One of the best ones made to date.
It’s safe to say there’s nothing in the Midwest like our North Country. And the Midwest has far more variety than most people realize, even within each state. Alas, though, it could really use some mountains and more (restored) forests.
When I first moved from Indiana to Connecticut, I was baffled to find that the people who lived on the next street were in a wholly separate town! I’d come from a place where there were several miles (at least) of cornfields between towns. New England was a whole different animal, but I grew to like it so that I miss it now that I no longer live there.
As a native Buckeye who also lived in Indiana and Iowa, I had trouble understanding townships, which were neither cities nor incorporated villages. So I share your initial bafflement and new perspective.