Merrimack River flows through southern New Hampshire and northeastern Massachusetts. The river is formed where the Winnepesaukee and Pemigewasset streams meet at Franklin, N.H. It empties into the Atlantic Ocean at Newburyport, Mass. Textile mills built along the river in the 1800’s contributed heavily to the early growth of the cities of Manchester and Nashua, N.H.; and Lawrence and Lowell, Mass. Merrimack is an Indian name meaning swift water.
