Settled by the English in 1638 as a part of Salisbury and later as a part of Amesbury around the village of Merrimacport, it was known throughout the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries as an agricultural and fishing community, with a small amount of shipbuilding. When Amesbury separated from Salisbury in 1666, Merrimac was referred to as the West Parish of Amesbury, or simply West Amesbury, although it was unincorporated. When a border dispute between the Massachusetts and New Hampshire colonies was settled in 1741, the new border sliced off the parts of Amesbury that were further from the Merrimack River, with the area then associated with West Amesbury becoming the "new town" of Newton, New Hampshire.
In 1771, the West Parish of Amesbury (present-day Merrimac) had a population of at least four enslaved Africans. They were held in bondage by town residents Isaac Merrill, Benjamin Morse, and Wells Chase. At least one former enslaved African, "Forte," who was sold by an unknown West Newbury slaver to Christopher Sargent, became locally famous for his fiddling after the abolition of slavery in Massachusetts.
In the nineteenth century, benefiting from a manufacturing boom following the establishment of some of the first planned industrial cities in the United States, nearby Lawrence and Lowell, Merrimac came to be known worldwide for its horse-drawn carriage industry. During this period, the town proper of Merrimac, centered around Merrimac Square, expanded separately from the village of Merrimacport. In 1876, Merrimac, including Merrimacport, separated from Amesbury and officially incorporated itself as a town. It is believed that the town, as well as the river that runs along its southern border, are both named for the American Indian tribe that occupied the region. "Merrimac" (or Merrimack) means "swift water place" in the language of this tribe. This town center consists of the typical brick buildings and Victorian architecture of the late nineteenth century, and it is surrounded by much of the town's population. Interstate 495 now divides Merrimacport from Merrimac. At the beginning of the twentieth century, as with the rest of the New England, it went through a period of deindustrialization as the region's industry relocated to the Midwest. The communities of the Merrimack Valley, including Merrimac, were particularly affected by this long period of economic decline and have never fully recovered.
Today, Merrimac is a typical small New England community. It went through numerous growth spurts throughout the 1990s and the beginning of the twenty-first century as it was absorbed into the Lawrence metropolitan area.
Merrimac Square in 1911
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 8.8 square miles (22.9km2), of which 8.5 square miles (21.9km2) is land and 0.39 square miles (1.0km2), or 4.48%, is water. Merrimac is drained by the Merrimack River, whose north bank the town lies on. Located in the Merrimack River Valley and on the coastal plain of Massachusetts, Merrimac's land consists mainly of small, forested hills (before the twentieth century, it was mostly pasture). The town also has several ponds, streams and Lake Attitash (which is located partially in Merrimac, and partially in neighboring Amesbury).
Merrimac is roughly diamond-shaped, and is bordered by Amesbury and Lake Attitash to the northeast, West Newbury to the southeast, Haverhill to the southwest, Newton, New Hampshire, to the north and northwest, South Hampton, New Hampshire, to the far northeast, and Plaistow, New Hampshire, on the western corner. The town is 14 miles (23km) northeast of Lawrence, 30 miles (48km) southeast of Manchester, New Hampshire, and 34 miles (55km) north of Boston. Merrimac lies along Interstate 495, with Exit 115 (old exit 53) giving access to the town. Massachusetts Route 110 also passes through the town, just north of I-495. There are no bridges crossing the Merrimack directly into the town; the Rocks Village Bridge lies just to the south of town in Haverhill, and the nearest downstream crossing is the Whittier Memorial Bridge in Amesbury.
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 6,723 people residing in the town, up from 6,338 at the 2010 census. The population density was 791.0 inhabitants per square mile (305.4/km2), based on a land area of 8.50 square miles (22.0km2).
According to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2020–2024 American Community Survey estimates, there were 2,815 households in the town, with an average household size of 2.39 people. The population was 16.5% under the age of 18 and 26.7% age 65 or older. Females made up 45.7% of the population.
The racial makeup of the town was 93.3% White alone, 0.0% Black or African American alone, 0.0% Native American alone, 0.5% Asian alone, and 6.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race were 2.4% of the population, while non-Hispanic White residents were 91.3%.
For the period 2020–2024, the median income for a household in the town was $123,054, and the per capita income for the town was $57,070. About 9.4% of the population was below the poverty line.
Government
Merrimac is governed by the New England town meeting form of government, a kind of participatory direct democracy. Five residents are elected to the Select Board, the executive arm administering local government. But all major decisions, as well as many minor decisions, are handled during the town's annual town meeting, as well as special town meetings, if required. The Select Board of Merrimac has five seats as of May 2025, increased from three. The current Chair of the Board is Janet M. Bruno (2027), Robert L. Gustison II (2028) is the Clerk, and the other members-at-large are Gwen Lay Sabbagh (2028), Wayne Adams (2029), and Matt Passeri (2029).
Per the constitution of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, any resident of Merrimac may introduce legislation with the support of 10 registered voters.
↑"1950 Census of Population"(PDF). 1: Number of Inhabitants. Bureau of the Census. 1952. Section 6, Pages 21–10 and 21-11, Massachusetts Table 6. Population of Counties by Minor Civil Divisions: 1930 to 1950. Retrieved July 12, 2011. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
↑"1920 Census of Population"(PDF). Bureau of the Census. Number of Inhabitants, by Counties and Minor Civil Divisions. Pages 21–5 through 21-7. Massachusetts Table 2. Population of Counties by Minor Civil Divisions: 1920, 1910, and 1920. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
↑"1890 Census of the Population"(PDF). Department of the Interior, Census Office. Pages 179 through 182. Massachusetts Table 5. Population of States and Territories by Minor Civil Divisions: 1880 and 1890. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
1888 Merrimac article by William T. Davis on pages 1535–1556 in Volume II of the History of Essex County Massachusetts with Biographical Sketches, published by D. Hamilton Hurd in 1888.
1922 Merrimac article Chapter 30 on pages 313–318 of Volume I of the Municipal History of Essex County, edited by Benjamin F. Arrington, published 1922 by Lewis Historical Publishing.
