| Contoocook River | |
| Pushpin Map: | New Hampshire#USA |
| Pushpin Map Size: | 250 px |
| Subdivision Type1: | Country |
| Subdivision Name1: | United States |
| Subdivision Type2: | State |
| Subdivision Name2: | New Hampshire |
| Subdivision Type3: | Counties |
| Subdivision Name3: | Cheshire, Hillsborough, Merrimack |
| Subdivision Type4: | Towns |
| Subdivision Name4: | Jaffrey, Peterborough, Bennington, Antrim, Hillsborough, Henniker, West Hopkinton, Contoocook, Penacook |
| Length: | 71miles |
| Source1: | Contoocook Lake |
| Source1 Location: | Jaffrey |
| Source1 Coordinates: | 42.8011°N -72.0272°W |
| Source1 Elevation: | 307order=flipNaNorder=flip |
| Mouth: | Merrimack River |
| Mouth Location: | Penacook |
| Mouth Coordinates: | 43.2864°N -71.5897°W |
| Mouth Elevation: | 242feet |
| Tributaries Left: | Nubanusit Brook, North Branch, Warner River, Blackwater River |
| Tributaries Right: | Gridley River |
The Contoocook River is a 71adj=midNaNadj=mid[1] river in New Hampshire. It flows from Contoocook Lake on the Jaffrey/Rindge border to Penacook (just north of Concord), where it empties into the Merrimack River. It is one of only a few rivers in New Hampshire that flow in a predominantly northward direction. Four covered bridges span the river, one in the town of Henniker, one on the Hancock-Greenfield line, and two in the town of Hopkinton, New Hampshire with one being in the village of Contoocook, and the other in the populated place of West Hopkinton. Residents and tourists have made the Contoocook popular for fishing and whitewater boating.
The name Contoocook came from the Pennacook tribe of Native Americans and perhaps means "place of the river near pines". Other variations of the name include the Abenaki meaning "nut trees river" or Natick language meaning "small plantation at the river."[2] [3]
The river gives its name to Contoocook, New Hampshire, a census-designated place (CDP) within the town of Hopkinton.
From south to north: