Editing Tilton, New Hampshire (section)

== History ==
Originally the southern part of [[Sanbornton, New Hampshire|Sanbornton]], the present area of Tilton was known as "Sanbornton Bridge" and "Bridge Village".<ref>{{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/n686 643]–644| url = https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_OcoMAAAAYAAJ| quote = coolidge mansfield history description new england 1859.}}</ref> These two names refer to the bridge, built in 1763, that crossed the [[Winnipesaukee River]] from [[Canterbury, New Hampshire|Canterbury]] to Sanbornton and onto what is now Main Street in Tilton.<ref>Brochure: Tilton-Northfield Historical Walking Tour, Northfield/Tilton Economic Development Corp., PO Box 659, Tilton, NH 03276</ref> In 1869, Sanbornton Bridge was set off and incorporated as Tilton, named in honor of Nathaniel Tilton (1726–1814),<ref name=Brown>{{cite web |url=https://www.cowhampshireblog.com/2006/08/02/new-hampshire-the-memorial-arch-of-tilton/ |title=New Hampshire: The Memorial Arch of Tilton |first=Janice |last=Brown |website=cowhampshireblog.com |date=August 2, 2006 |access-date=July 13, 2020}}</ref> whose great-grandson Charles E. Tilton (1827–1901)<ref name=Brown/><ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bLEVAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA312 |title=The Granite Monthly: A New Hampshire Magazine Devoted to History |publisher=The Granite Monthly Company |location=[[Concord, New Hampshire]] |volume=31 |page=312 |date=1901 |access-date=July 13, 2020 |via=[[Google Books]]}}</ref> was the owner of [[textile]] mills and the community's wealthiest citizen.{{efn|The town's website more generally states that in naming the town, Charles E. Tilton "asked that the name be given, not for himself, but for his ancestors."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tiltonnh.org/content/history.html |title=Town of Tilton History |website=tiltonnh.org |access-date=July 13, 2020}}</ref>}} Nathaniel Tilton established an [[iron]] [[foundry]] and the area's first hotel, the Dexter House. Charles E. Tilton donated many statues to the town, a unique feature, and his estate is now part of the [[Tilton School]]. Tilton Hall, his former mansion built in 1861, houses the [[Charles E. Tilton Mansion|Lucian Hunt Library]]. The attached carriage house was renovated in 1980 to become the Helene Grant Daly Art Center.

Charles E. Tilton also donated what is perhaps the most notable landmark in the area, the hilltop [[Memorial Arch of Tilton|Memorial Arch]], located in the neighboring town of [[Northfield, New Hampshire|Northfield]], across the [[Winnipesaukee River]] from the center of Tilton. The [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] [[triumphal arch|arch]] replica was built in the late 1800s as a memorial to his ancestors. It is built of [[Concord, New Hampshire|Concord]] [[granite]], {{convert|50|ft}} high and {{convert|40|ft}} wide.

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Image:View of Main Street, Tilton, NH.jpg|Main Street in 1909
Image:Winnipesaukee River, Tilton, NH.jpg|Tilton Island Park {{circa|1908}}
Image:View on the Winnipesaukee, Tilton, NH.jpg|View of the mills in 1908
Image:View of Tilton, NH from Arch Hill.jpg|View from Arch Hill in 1906 
</gallery>