Nashua

City and administrative headquarters of Hillsborough County, south New Hampshire, USA; population (2000) 86,600. It is situated 29 km/18 mi south of Manchester, on the Nashua River, where it meets the Merrimack River, just north of the Massachusetts state border. A textile manufacturer until after World War II, Nashua now produces shoes, asbestos, electronics, chemicals, office equipment, plastics, metals, machines, glass, toys, greeting cards, and textiles. The Federal Aviation Agency Center controlling New England and upstate New York air traffic, New England Aeronautical Institute, Rivier College (1933), Daniel Webster College (1965), and a federal fish hatchery are all in the city.

Originally a fur trading post, Nashua was settled in 1655 as part of Massachusetts, and successfully claimed by New Hampshire in 1741. Two settlements on opposite sides of the river, one an American Indian village, were joined in 1837 and incorporated in 1853.