The smallest town in Cheshire County, Roxbury was incorporated in 1812 from portions of Nelson, Marlborough, and Keene. By then, settlers had established agriculture among the rolling hillsides in the area, and a community center had developed at what is now called Roxbury Center. It was a "hill farm" community with some scattered small mills. Roxbury's granitequarries, among the most extensive in the Granite State at the time, provided some of the stone for the capitol building of New York in Albany. Much of Roxbury was abandoned in the Civil War, as a very high percentage of its male population was killed in battle. Other residents left after the Civil War to seek a better life in local mill villages or in the American Midwest. Otter Brook Lake, constructed by the Army Corps of Engineers in 1956-58 to control flooding in the Ashuelot and Connecticut River valleys, occupies part of the town's western boundary.
At the 2000 census, there were 237 people, 89 households and 66 families residing in the town. The population density was 19.9 per square mile. There were 90 housing units at an average density of 7.6 per square mile. The racial makeup of the town was 98.73% White, 0.42% Asian, and 0.84% from two or more races. There were 89 households of which 32.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 67.4% were married couplesliving together, 6.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.8% were non-families. 20.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 3.12. 25.3% of the population were under the age of 18, 3.8% from 18 to 24, 28.7% from 25 to 44, 32.9% from 45 to 64, and 9.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.3 males. The median household income was $49,375 and the median family income was $56,875. Males had a median income of $33,984 and females $23,750. The per capita income for the town was $21,124. None of the families and 0.9% of the population were living below the poverty line.
Notable people
Joseph Alexander Ames, artist
Nathan Ames, patent solicitor
Breed Batcheller, major early landowner and settler, and later in hiding at Batcheller's Cave
Maynard T. Parker, Wisconsin jurist and legislator
