GRAFTON.    397

Rivers and Lakes. In the western section, it is watered by the
Connecticut and its tributaries, the largest of which are Lower and
Wild Ammonoosuc rivers, in the northern part, Mascomy in the
southern section. The Pemigewasset and its branches water the
central portions of the county. Part of Squam Lake, in the
south-eastern section, Newfound Lake in the southern section, and
Mascomy Lake in the south-western section of the county, are the
principal bodies of water. The streams furnish abundant water
power, while the lakes prove excellent reservoirs for a constant
supply of water through droughts. The improved horse water
power of the county is 11,640.

Boundaries. North by Coos County, east by Coos, Carroll, and
Belknap counties, south by Merrimack and Sullivan counties,
and west by Vermont. There are thirty-eight towns, of which
twenty-three were incorporated under the reign of George III.,
and fifteen under the State government. Incorporated March 19,
1771, and received its name in honor of Augustus Henry
Fitzroy, Duke of Grafton. Shire towns, Plymouth and Haverhill.

Agriculture. Grafton is the agricultural county of the State.
It contains 442,738 acres of improved land, and 230,300 acres of
wood land. Its farms are valued at over $ 12,100,000 ; farming
implements, $ 646,000. It has 12,748 cows, 6,685 working oxen,
14,562 other cattle, 7,135 horses, and 86,681 sheep. It annually
produces 57,800 bushels wheat, 198,165 bushels corn, 433,000 bush-
els oats and barley, 1,078,000 bushels potatoes, 140,000 tons hay ;

446,000 lbs. wool, 1,100,000 lbs. butter, 190,000 lbs. cheese, 650,
000 lbs. maple sugar; value of orchard productions, $115,000; val-
ue of slaughtered animals, $ 600,000, and total value of all agri-
cultural productions annually raised, $ 4,034,900. Some of the
finest farming country in the United States, is to be found in the
Connecticut valley, in this county.

Manufactories. Its manufactures are varied and important, hut
not as extensive as in some of the southern counties in the State.
There are annually produced, furniture, doors, sash, blinds and oth-
er wood work to the value of $ 1,000,000; woolen goods, $ 694,
000 ; paper, $330,000; men’s and women’s hose, $ 213,000; lumber,
$ 948,800 ; flour and meal, $ 583,000; leather, $ 319,000; starch,
$ 150,000 ; buck and leather gloves and mittens, $ 140,000 ; be-
sides, machine shop work, and other manufactures too numerous to
mention. There are 658 manufactories, of all kinds, representing