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Business View Magazine
Rochester, New Hampshire
Slated for success
“The City of Rochester is very progressive for a small,
New England town,” says Karen Pollard, Rochester
New Hampshire’s Economic Development Manager.
“We’re not sleepy; we have a whole different energy
than many of the communities around us. We have a
real vision for the future as a center of commerce and
industry.”
Originally incorporated in 1722, Rochester was named
for Laurence Hyde, Earl of Rochester and brother-in-
law to King James II. Its first large business was lum-
bering, followed by mills and tanneries with power pro-
vided by the Cocheco River that runs through the city.
The production of woolen blankets came next, and by
the late 1880s, shoe manufacturing had surpassed
textiles as Rochester’s dominant industry. The shoe
industry thrived until the 1970s, when it finally suc-
cumbed to the flood of cheaper, foreign imports.
Today, Rochester is still a business-friendly community
with an entrepreneurial spirit. It’s high quality of life,
its skilled workforce, stable taxes, superior school sys-
tem, available real estate, and easy access to trans-
portation makes it a desirable place to launch new
