Editing Chesterfield, New Hampshire (section)

==History==
Granted in 1735 by Governor [[Jonathan Belcher]] of [[Massachusetts]], this town was the site of Fort Number 1, first in the line of forts bordering the [[Connecticut River]]. After the border between Massachusetts and [[New Hampshire]] was fixed, the town was incorporated on February 11, 1752<ref name="1875Chesterfield">Article in [http://gedcomindex.com/Reference/New_Hampshire_1875/094.html ''Statistics and Gazetteer of New-Hampshire'' (1875)]</ref> by Governor [[Benning Wentworth]] as Chesterfield, named for [[Philip Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield|Philip Stanhope]], [[Earl of Chesterfield|4th Earl of Chesterfield]]. The first settlers were Moses Smith and William Thomas, who, with their families, came up the Connecticut in canoes, in the fall of 1761. Their chief subsistence through the winter and spring of their first year in the wilderness consisted of [[Atlantic salmon|salmon]] and [[shad]], of which there was a great abundance in the river, and deer, which were numerous in the forests.<ref name="1875Chesterfield" /> The town contains some of the finest farmland in Cheshire County, yet once was also home to small manufacturing, notably [[spinning wheel]] parts and hand tools.<ref name=Coolidge>{{Cite book  | last = Coolidge  | first = Austin J.|author2=John B. Mansfield  | title = A History and Description of New England| publisher = A.J. Coolidge  | year = 1859| location = Boston, Massachusetts| pages = [https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_OcoMAAAAYAAJ/page/n482 444]–445| url = https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_OcoMAAAAYAAJ| quote = coolidge mansfield history description new england 1859.  }}</ref>

In 1772, [[Philip Embury]] conducted the first [[Methodist]] religious services in New Hampshire at the James Robertson farm in Chesterfield, and in 1803, [[Francis Asbury]] preached here. [[Asbury United Methodist Church (Chesterfield, New Hampshire)|Asbury Church]] is listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]] and is recognized for its historic [[puritan]] design. Asbury Church is considered the "Mother Church of Methodism" in New Hampshire, and is the oldest Methodist church in the state. The town has had continual Methodist Sunday services for over 225 years.<ref>[http://www.chesterfieldumc.org/templates/System/default.asp?id=41494 History of Asbury United Methodist Church] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100113173445/http://www.chesterfieldumc.org/templates/System/default.asp?id=41494 |date=January 13, 2010 }}</ref>

Chesterfield Academy, established in 1794, was for decades one of the most celebrated in the state.<ref>[http://www.nh.searchroots.com/documents/History_Chesterfield_NH.txt History of Chesterfield, Cheshire County, New Hampshire]</ref> [[Spofford Lake]] is one of the region's largest and oldest resorts.

<gallery>
Image:Granite Cottage, Spofford Lake, Chesterfield, NH.jpg|Granite Cottage in 1907, Spofford Lake
Image:Old Cabin Home & Fairview Cottage.jpg|Summer cottages on Spofford Lake in 1917
Image:Pine Grove Springs Hotel, Spofford Lake, Chesterfield, NH.jpg|Pine Grove Springs Hotel, Spofford Lake in 1913
</gallery>