Census Data for Pelham

Population ...

The most recent Census Estimate<1> was for 2019 and it gave Pelham a population of 14,237 people.

The last Decennial Census<2> was in 2010, which gave Pelham a population of 12,897 people.

The community of Pelham is located in Hillsborough County. The 2010 Census gave Hillsborough County; a population of 401,055 people. This means that Pelham had 3.22% of the county's total population, making it Hillsborough's 8th most populous community.

At the same time, New Hampshire had a population of 1,316,470 people, meaning that Pelham had 0.98% of the total population of New Hampshire - making it the state's 24th most populous community.

Area ...

The 2010 Census shows that the sampling area for Pelham has a total area of 26.93 square miles [69.8 km²]. Of this total, 26.37 square miles [68.3 km²] is land, with the balance (2.09%) being water (0.56 square miles [1.5 km²]).

Hillsborough County has a land area of 876 square miles [2,269.2 km²]. At 26.37 square miles [68.3 km²], Pelham has 3.01% of the county's total land area.

• Continue Reading ...
  • When the Census Bureau conducts a census for a community like Pelham, they draw a boundary around the area in which they are going to conduct their count - this defines the sampling area (usually a polygon). The shape of the sampling area can be quite complex and it's important to keep in mind that the boundaries of the sampling area may or may not match the recognized boundaries of the community.
  • Things like population, area and housing for Pelham reflect the sampling area. Since the shape of the sampling area and the actual boundaries of Pelham might be different, it's best to check with the U.S. Census Bureau to resolve any difference between the two.
  • Not only does the sampling area define boundaries, it also has a GPS location (latitude & longitude) that indicates a point within the sampling area (usually the center of the polygon, known as the centroid). At the time of the 2010 Census, the sampling area was located at:
  • Lat:   42° 43' 51"   (or 42.73°)
  • Lon:   -71° 20' 13"   (or -71.34°)
  • More information on this topic and the changes between the 2000 Census and the 2010 Census can be found in the section for our Census-to-Census Observations ... (see below).

Housing Units ...

At the time of the 2010 Census, Pelham had 4,598 Housing Units<3> and with its population of 12,897 people, this averages 2.8 people per Housing Unit.

• Continue Reading ...
  • The 2010 Census shows Pelham had a land area of 26.37 square miles [68.3 km²]. This translates to 170.7 Housing Units per square mile [65.9 housing units/km²].
  • From the Census of 2000: Pelham had 3,740 Housing Units, a population of 10,914 people and a land area of 26.43 square miles [68.5 km²]. This gives a density of 2.92 people per Housing Unit and 138.7 Housing Units per square mile [53.6 housing units/km²].
  • Note: Repeating the caution above (under Population Density), be aware that when comparing Housing Units between the 2010 Census and the 2000 Census, there were changes in the sampling area for Pelham and you need to be careful when comparing values between the censuses. More information about these differences can be found in the section called Census-to-Census Observations ... (see below).

Hillsborough County ...

Pelham is located in Hillsborough County<4>.

The county had a population of 401,055 people at the 2010 Census. With it's population of 12,897 people, Pelham represented 3.22% of the county's total.

For more information, please visit our Census Page for Hillsborough County.

Census-to-Census Observations ...

Introduction ...

When the Census Bureau takes a census count (or enumeration) for Pelham, they start by specifying the boundaries of the area to be counted. This area (or sampling area) is a polygon and its shape can be quite complex - it may or may not match the geographical boundaries of Pelham. It's important to note that from one Census to the next, the shape and location of the polygon can change.

• Continue Reading ...
  • Although we don't have specific information about the shape of the polygon for Pelham or how it changed has over time, there is some information that can give us some hints. For example, since the shape of the sampling area is directly related to the shape of the polygon, any change to area probably indicates a new shape for the polygon.
  • If you need precision or details about the methodology of the Census, you should visit the U.S. Census Bureau for a definitive answer.

Location ...

While generally coinciding with the GPS location (latitude/longitude) of Pelham, the latitude and longitude given by the Census Bureau actually indicates the GPS location of the polygon for Pelham.

• Continue Reading ...
  • For the 2010 Census, the location was given as:
  • Lat:   42.730992°   (or 42°43'51" N)
  • Lon:   -71.337073°   (or -71°20'13" W)
  • For the 2000 Census, the location given was:
  • Lat:   42.734182°   (or 42°44'3" N)
  • Lon:   -71.323598°   (or -71°19'24" W)
  • The difference indicates that the U.S. Census Bureau moved the location of the polygon for the 2010 Census 3,791 feet to the west<5> of the location that was used in the 2000 Census.
  • The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the U.S. Board on Geographic Names (BGN) have assigned a unique GNIS identifier (#873695) to Pelham. This identifier also marks a GPS point on the map, and that point lies within the boundaries of Pelham. The GNIS point has been mapped to the latitude/longitude:
  • Lat:   42.734534°   (or 42°44'4" N)
  • Lon:   -71.324507°   (or -71°19'28" W)
  • The GPS location given for the 2010 Census lies 3,604 feet to the west<6> of the point given by the GNIS for Pelham. For more information about this and the relationship of the various Federal Codes, please visit our Misc Page for Pelham.

Miscellaneous Information for Pelham ...

The Federal government has assigned various identifying codes to each community, county and state. At one time or another, the US Census Bureau has used one (or more) of the following identifiers when referring to either Hillsborough County or the community of Pelham:

• The GNIS Codes ...
  • The current system of identification is called the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). The following GNIS codes relate to Pelham:
  • GNIS ID for Pelham: 873695
  • GNIS ID for Hillsborough County: 873179
  • GNIS ID for State of New Hampshire: 1779794

• The FIPS Codes ...
  • An earlier (and largely obsolete) identification method was called the Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS):
  • State Code: 33 (New Hampshire)
  • County Code: 011 (Hillsborough County)
  • Place Code: 59860 (Pelham)
  • State & County Code: 33/011 (New Hampshire / Hillsborough County)
  • State & Place Code: 33/59860 (New Hampshire / Pelham)

• Misc. Census Codes ...
  • Pelham is located in Census Region #1 (the Northeast Region) and Division #1 (the New England Division).

• The US Postal Service ZIP Code ...
  • While some people have used a ZIP code to identify a community, the purpose of the ZIP code was to make mail delivery more efficient by grouping addresses together. Although the ZIP Code doesn't specifically identify a community like Pelham, it does identify addresses that are in (or near) Pelham. It's important to remember that the boundaries of a ZIP Code can be changed, re-assigned or overlapped with other ZIP Codes.
  • The ZIP code for Pelham:03076<7>

• Census ZCTA Codes ...
  • The US Census Bureau created statistical entities that they call ZIP Code Tabulation Areas (ZCTAs) and these ZCTAs are frequently confused with the ZIP codes that come from the US Postal Service (USPS).
  • ZCTAs were first created for the 2000 Census and at that time, they were based upon the USPS ZIP codes. While largely covering the same areas, the boundaries of a ZCTA do not necessarily match the boundaries of a postal ZIP code with the same number. For example, while a postal ZIP code can cross a county or state line, a Census ZCTA can not. They should be treated as separate entities with no correlation between them.

For more information about the various Federal identification codes, please visit our Misc Page for Pelham.