East Street Gets New-Old Name

The Concord City Council approved changing the name of East Street in Penacook to Canal Street this week.

The change was proposed to honor the village’s mill history, according to At-Large City Councilor Steve Shurtleff.

Shurtleff, who also sits on the Heritage Commission, said that in 1846, the Penacook Mill, also known as the Penacook Tannery, was constructed. A canal was built alongside the mill area in conjunction with the Contoocook River and the street beside it was named Canal Street. A new road was constructed on the west side of Village Street and it was named West Canal Street. The east side was renamed East Canal Street, he said.

However, in the 1940s, the owner of a local hardware store petitioned the mayor and Board of Aldermen (now the city council) to change the two street names to East Street and West Street. The business owner testified that it was “detrimental” to have Canal Street as a mailing address because it created the myth that your business was located in a mill town, Shurtleff said. The man testified that there was a stereotype that anything connected with a mill was inferior, he said.

Changing the name back to the original name will remind residents where they came from and would honor those involved in the past, he said, including immigrants from Canada and Ireland who came to America to build a better life for their families.

“It’s a simple way of honoring the men and women and boys and girls who worked in the mills in Penacook,” he said.

Shurtleff said a number of Penacook organizations were supporting the change and there would be no expense to the taxpayers.

“Penacook is going through a transition,” Shurtleff noted. “It’s becoming one of the premiere neighborhoods in the city of Concord, having all the advantages that living in the city of Concord offers, while maintaining its warmth and friendliness of a small village.”

According to City Manager Tom Aspell, state law did not require that the city have a public hearing about street name changes. However, the council has always historically held public hearings before changing street names. Aspell said the hearing was to gauge council response to the proposal after some opposition arose to the name change.

At-Large City Councilor Mark Coen asked how many property owners were contacted.

Assistant City Manager Carlos Baia stated that officials this year and last year reached out to property owners and tenants on the street, sending 19 letters. Of the 19, only an owner of an apartment building expressed concern about the change. Last year, city officials expressed concern about changing the name before all the grants for the tannery project could be settled, since a name change could create delays in approvals, he said.

No one from the public commented on the name change and the council approved it unanimously.