First settled in 1760, the town was formed from parts of Hancock, Dublin, Roxbury, Nelson, and Marlborough. The town was first known as Twitchellville, after Abel Twitchell. His daughter Deborah married Bethuel Harris, who with his sons built and operated Harris Mills, one of the first woolen mills in New England. After the business was sold, the name was changed to Cheshire Mills. The town was incorporated in 1871 as Harrisville, at the suggestion of Milan Harris, one of Bethuel's sons and a member of the state senate from 1863-1865. The Harrisville Historic District is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

 Population change for Harrisville totaled 480 over 56 years, from 459 in 1960 to 939 in 2016. The largest decennial percent change was a 47 percent increase between 1970 and 1980; the second highest a 27 percent increase between 1960 and 1970. The 2016 Census estimate for Harrisville was 939 residents, which ranked 189th among New Hampshire's incorporated cities and towns. This town has 50.2 persons per square mile of land area.(info from NHES website)