[4] The central village in town, where 5,283 people resided at the 2020 census, is defined as the Hooksett census-designated place and is located at a bridge crossing of the Merrimack River.

First known as "Chester Woods" and "Rowe's Corner", the community was called "Hooksett" for nearly fifty years before being incorporated.

The name may have come from a hook-shaped island in the Merrimack or from early fishermen, who called the area "Hookline Falls".

Rocky ledges flank the Merrimack River, and there were several cross-river ferries located here, as well as lumber mills and a brick-making establishment powered by the falls.

The first settlement in the area was Martins Ferry near the Merrimack River and what is today's Southern New Hampshire University.

In 1794, the lottery-funded Hooksett Canal became part of the transportation facilities of the Amoskeag cotton mills in Manchester.

[1] The highest point in Hooksett is Quimby Mountain, at 902 feet (275 m) above sea level, near the town's western border.

On the town's eastern border, a ridge ascending towards Hall Mountain in neighboring Candia reaches 900 feet (270 m) above sea level.

Hooksett is part of School Administrative Unit 15, along with the neighboring towns of Auburn and Candia.