Issues → May/June 2008 → Interact → 10 Things to Do →

A Sampler of New England's Prettiest Towns

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(page 3 of 5)

All that rocking and watching nothing in particular works up an appetite. The inn has a pretty greenhouse setting for its lunch guests, housed in the rustically renovated barn and furnished with a herd of Windsor chairs. The only other hub of action in town is the General Store, which stocks Vermont goods as well as the local Grafton Cheese Company cheddar, the basis for any successful picnic. Which, I suppose, you could have in a rocking chair, if you really wanted.

Hancock, New Hampshire

In the brilliance of autumn, half the world is climbing Mount Monadnock and the other half is visiting nearby Hancock. Established in 1779, the town was named for John Hancock, who owned a lot of it but neither visited nor, according to the weighty History of Hancock, "appeared to have in the least interested himself in its welfare." Despite that, Hancock (the town) turned into a charming village with a pretty Victorian bandstand, handsome houses set back modestly from the street, and a Congregational church that dates to 1820, its bell cast in Paul Revere's foundry two years after his death. Stroll the main street, have lunch at the gourmet deli, Fiddleheads, and check into the Hancock Inn for dinner and a good night's sleep (as travelers have been doing at this inn for more than 200 years).

Harrisville, New Hampshire

From Hancock take Route 137 south, and in a little over three miles look for Hancock Road on your right. This will take you past Lake Skatutakee and into the tiny town of Harrisville. This is perhaps my favorite of all. Here tidy brick buildings and a large granite mill are strung along the millstream that once powered a woolen mill. On the hill sits a long boardinghouse. The buildings are fully restored, thanks to a nonprofit group that leases them out to various businesses, including the internationally known Harrisville Designs, makers of looms and yarns for handweavers and knitters. If you turn right at Harrisville Designs and cross the bridge, you'll find a group of five millworkers' houses called "Peanut Row." Beyond these is Sunset Beach, the town's private little beach and a nice spot for a picnic. Harrisville is the village most painted by artists (even more than Hancock) and is one of the oldest existing textile communities in the country, a National Historic Landmark village.

Sugar Hill, New Hampshire

This is Sugar Hill: a bend on Route 117, a curve, and a hill. A beautiful spread of barn and fields called Iris Farm that's best seen in morning mists, a small inn called Hilltop Inn, and a restaurant devoted to flapjacks called Polly's Pancake Parlor. It doesn't sound like much, but trust me, it is.

Old Deerfield, Massachusetts

Time and Route 5 may have passed Old Deerfield by, but history lovers do not. Along this historic town's wide mile-long Main Street, a dozen of the houses are preserved as museums. At first glance, it's not easy to tell which are house museums and which are private homes -- all are immaculately restored and maintained. Twice sacked by Indian raids, Old Deerfield is preserved from modernity's raid by Historic Deerfield, which runs many of the house museums. The fascinating (and compact) Memorial Hall Museum is run by the Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association.