University of New Hampshire Welcome to Carsey Institute


Welcome to the Socioeconomic Indicators of the North Country site at the Carsey Institute

Essex
Carroll
Coos
Grafton
Oxford
The North Country of New Hampshire and adjacent counties in Vermont and Maine are undergoing sweeping demographic, social and economic change. Families and communities in this region are struggling with economic and social stresses and changes that have complex origins and far reaching effects. The mainly rural communities in the region must cope with the impact of globalization, new land use patterns, changing demographics – including new patterns of in and out-migration – and challenging issues such as higher poverty rates and more limited access to essential services and infrastructure than other regions in each State.

With support from the Neil and Louise Tillotson Fund, the Carsey Institute has undertaken this benchmark and indicator work to provide North Country leaders with the information they need to understand and guide the change taking place in the region as they endeavor to move from managing decline to building a sustainable future that attracts and retains young people.

How the data are presented. For each category listed there are selected indicators with information presented in several ways. At the top of each indicator page is a map of the five North Country counties with the most up-to-date information available. These data serve as the 2007 baseline for monitoring change in the years to come. Below each map is a graph that illustrates the indicator information over time and a table containing the actual time series data.

What sources did we use? Data presented at the Indicator Website come from a wide range of public sources. At the federal level, these sources include the U.S. Census Bureau, Department of Labor, and Bureau of Economic Analysis, to name just a few. Some of our indicators – such as teen birth rates and mothers who receive late or no prenatal care – come from state sources. Specific sources for each indicator are listed at the bottom of each indicator page.