Conway New Hampshire has a proud and interesting history. The region was once home to the Pequawket Indians, an Algonquian Abenaki tribe which summered here and spent winters at St. Francis, Quebec. Along the Saco River they fished, hunted or farmed, and lived in wigwams sheltered within stockades. In 1642, explorer Darby Field of Exeter paddled up the Saco in a canoe, and would report seeing "Pigwacket," an Indian community stretching from present-day Conway to Fryeburg, Maine. But when Europeans settled here in 1764, the Pequawket tribe had dwindled from disease, probably smallpox brought from abroad.
In 1765, Colonial Governor Benning Wentworth chartered sixty-five men to establish "Conway", named for Henry Seymour Conway, Commander in Chief of the British Army. To keep his land, a settler had to plant 5 acres (20,000 m2) for every fifty in his share, and to do it within five years. The first roads were built in 1766. Construction of the first meetinghouse began at Redstone. Never completed, it could only be used in summer, with services held whenever a minister visited. Eventually, the partly-finished meetinghouse was moved to Center Conway. In 1775, the town raised small sums to build two schoolhouses, one in North Conway. By 1849, however, the town had twenty school districts.
By the middle-1800s, artists had discovered the romantic beauties of the White Mountains, and "Artist Falls Brook" became a favorite setting for landscape paintings. King Edward VII would buy twelve White Mountain paintings to hang in Windsor Castle. Among the artists to work here were Asher B. Durand and Benjamin Champney, the latter known to paint Mount Washington while sitting in the middle of Main Street.
Tourism plays a major role in Conway's economy, with the town providing access to the White Mountains. There is one ski area, Cranmore Mountain Resort, in Conway and several others nearby. North Conway village is a major shopping destination with outlet and department stores. Hotels, bed and breakfasts, and inns can be found in every village, including the historic Eastern Slope Inn in North Conway.
In addition to tourism, the Mount Washington Valley Economic Council has been growing the technology industry through business parks and economic assistance.
As the largest town in Carroll County by population, Conway is the commercial center for the county and a large area of rural western Maine, with heavy development along the portion of U.S. Route 302 and New Hampshire Route 16 that are co-signed through town. In addition to the factory outlet stores, there are also big-box stores, supermarkets, restaurants, and hotels.
Never completed, it could only be used in summer, with services held whenever a minister visited. Eventually, the partly-finished meetinghouse was moved to Center Conway. In 1775, the town raised small sums to build two schoolhouses, one in North Conway. By 1849, however, the town had twenty school districts.
By the middle-1800s, artists had discovered the romantic beauties of the White Mountains, and "Artist Falls Brook" became a favorite setting for landscape paintings. King Edward VII would buy twelve White Mountain paintings to hang in Windsor Castle. Among the artists to work here were Asher B. Durand and Benjamin Champney, the latter known to paint Mount Washington while sitting in the middle of Main Street.
Tourism plays a major role in Conway's economy, with the town providing access to the White Mountains. There is one ski area, Cranmore Mountain Resort, in North Conway and several others nearby. North Conway village is a major shopping destination with outlet and department stores. Hotels, bed and breakfasts, and inns can be found in every village, including the historic Eastern Slope Inn in North Conway.
In addition to tourism, the Mount Washington Valley Economic Council has been growing the technology industry through business parks and economic assistance.
As the largest town in Carroll County by population, Conway is the commercial center for the county and a large area of rural western Maine, with heavy development along the portion of U.S. Route 302 and New Hampshire Route 16 that are co-signed through town. In addition to the factory outlet stores, there are also big-box stores, supermarkets, restaurants, and hotels.
