Editing Brookline, New Hampshire (section)

==History==
[[Image:Railroad Station, Brookline, NH.jpg|thumb|left|[[Boston & Maine Railroad]] station in 1907]]
First a part of [[Dunstable, Massachusetts]], then settled as [[Hollis, New Hampshire|West Hollis, New Hampshire]], the town was granted in 1769 as "Raby". Colonial [[Governor of New Hampshire|Governor]] [[Sir John Wentworth, 1st Baronet|John Wentworth]] named it after his cousin, the 4th [[Earl of Strafford]] and Baron of [[Raby Castle]].

The town was renamed in 1798 at the suggestion of a leading citizen in town originally from [[Brookline, Massachusetts]].<ref>{{cite web| url= http://www.epodunk.com/cgi-bin/genInfo.php?locIndex=18827|title=Profile for Brookline, New Hampshire, NH|publisher=ePodunk|access-date=July 19, 2012}}</ref> By 1859, when the population was 718, there were eight [[sawmill]]s and one [[gristmill]], as well as a [[window sash|sash]] and [[window shutter|blind]] shop. In the earlier days of the town, Brookline was known throughout southern New Hampshire for producing [[lumber]], [[charcoal]] and [[cask]]s.<ref name=Coolidge>{{Cite book| last = Coolidge| first = Austin J.| author2=John B. Mansfield| title = A History and Description of New England| year = 1859| location = Boston, Massachusetts| page = [https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_OcoMAAAAYAAJ/page/n468 430]| url = https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_OcoMAAAAYAAJ| quote = coolidge mansfield history description new england 1859.| publisher = A.J. Coolidge| isbn = 1-4369-8768-7}}</ref> The [[Boston and Maine Railroad]] eventually branched into Brookline in 1892. The train station that served Brookline during the railroad's tenure in the town has since been renovated into a private residential home.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/News/Brookline?info=1 |title=Brookline - NashuaTelegraph.com |website=www.nashuatelegraph.com |access-date=August 1, 2016}}</ref> A large fraction of the area that was once railroad track is now [[New Hampshire Route 13]].

The town received national attention in 1997, when people participating in the traditional ringing of the [[Congregational church]] bell at midnight on the [[Fourth of July]] were arrested. Several prominent members of the community were among those arrested, including Road Agent Clarence Farwell and his wife. The incident led to an investigation of the Brookline police department after questions of excessive force were raised following the arrests.<ref name="nytimes">{{Cite news |title= Fireworks of Sorts Afflict a New Hampshire Town |date=July 8, 1997 |access-date=September 23, 2007 |periodical=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C02EEDE1439F93BA35754C0A961958260 }}</ref>