The Town of Strafford is host to numerous summer getaways primarily centered on Bow Lake. In a similar fashion to their neighbors, the Abenaki land that would become today’s Barrington and Strafford was organized by the Massachusetts colony in the early 18th century. However, Strafford elected to detach from Barrington in 1820 due to the amount of time required for residents to travel to Barrington’s town hall. The community retained a small agriculture-based economy. The town of Strafford grew rapidly during the second half of the 20th century due in part to increased accessibility to both Concord and the Seacoast. Strafford has an extensive network of trails including the Isinglass River Conservation Reserve, and trails within the Strafford Town Forest.