America at 250: New Hampshire: The Granite State
As the site of some of the earliest acts of independence in the Thirteen Colonies, New Hampshire takes pride in its history and keeps its spirit alive for the 250th.
New Hampshire’s identity has been shaped by both its rugged landscape and its independent streak. Indigenous peoples made their homes among its mountains, forests, rivers, and coast for thousands of years before European settlement. From early acts of resistance against British rule to generations of farmers, craftspeople, industrial workers, and artists, the people of the Granite State have left a distinctive mark on the American story.
America at 250: New Hampshire: The Granite State
New Hampshire has been inhabited for thousands of years. Archaeological evidence of Paleoindians dates back at least 12,000 years, including tools, animal bones, and traces of structures. By the time European colonists started exploring the region in the early 1600s, the Androscoggin, Cowasuck, and Pennacook nations, all Abenaki peoples, had established villages and were farming, fishing, and hunting.
English colonist John Mason was granted land between the Piscataqua and Merrimack Rivers, which he named New Hampshire, after the county where he had a home, in 1629. The Province of New Hampshire was established in 1679 with a royal charter by King Charles II. In 1686, it became part of the Dominion of New England, which lasted until 1689. New Hampshire’s position on the southern border of New France made it the site of many conflicts throughout the 17th and 18th centuries. Its English colonists spent years battling the Abenaki or the colonists of New France. Yet more conflicts arose in the 18th century as the colonists began to rebel against their English rulers.
New Hampshire residents are proud that some of the earliest actions leading directly to the Revolutionary War took place in their state. In 1772, a group of New Hampshire loggers were charged fines for cutting down trees reserved for the Royal Navy without permits from the British government. Instead, they attacked the sheriff and deputy sent to collect the fines, an event that became known as the Pine Tree Riot. In 1774, New Hampshire citizens, warned by Paul Revere of approaching British troops, raided Fort William and Mary, located at the mouth of the Piscataqua River. There were no casualties, but the shots the British fired at the rebels are considered among the first shots of the American Revolution.
On January 5, 1776, New Hampshire became the first of the thirteen North American colonies to establish an independent government with its own state constitution. During the Revolutionary War, the state raised three regiments for the Continental Army, sent many militia units, and was the site where significant ships were built for the Continental Navy. The state’s motto, “Live Free or Die,” comes from John Stark, who led New Hampshire soldiers in the Battle of Bunker Hill and the Battle of Bennington. He closed a letter written in 1809 to his fellow Bennington veterans with “Live free or die: Death is not the worst of evils.”
Despite this revolutionary spirit, it is important to remember that not all New Hampshire residents were free yet. The Petition of 1779 to the New Hampshire Government, in which 19 enslaved African men requested their freedom, was unsuccessful. Although the state had a growing abolitionist movement, it did not outlaw slavery until 1857, by which time the practice had already died out in New Hampshire. New Hampshire soldiers enthusiastically served the Union during the Civil War, with the 5th New Hampshire Volunteer Infantry, nicknamed the “Fighting Fifth,” regarded as one of the best in the army.
After the Civil War, New Hampshire industrialized rapidly, with textiles and paper among its most important products. However, as in most states, its manufacturing industries declined in the mid-20th century, with service, real estate, and transportation growing to replace them. Tourism is another significant industry; New Hampshire’s coast, waterways, forests, and mountains provide some of the nation’s best settings for outdoor sports and create stunning scenery. New Hampshire’s mountains are especially beloved; after all, it is known as the “Granite State.” Notable landmarks include the White Mountains, whose Mount Washington is the highest peak in the Northeastern United States, and, before it collapsed in 2003, the Old Man of the Mountain rock formation, which became a cultural icon and was made part of the Emblem of New Hampshire in 1945.
Honoring the 250th: New Hampshire’s Role in America’s Celebration
New Hampshire is marking the nation’s Semiquincentennial with events celebrating the state’s key role in the nation’s founding, history, and current culture. Educational and civic institutions, museums, and historical societies throughout the state are teaching, celebrating, and inspiring residents and visitors all year with exhibitions, events, historic site tours, talks, and more through 2026 and beyond.
The state’s revolutionary spirit is at the forefront of these celebrations, from the raid on Fort William and Mary to John Stark signing off to his fellow veterans with “Live Free or Die.” New Hampshire institutions like the American Independence Center and living history museum The Fort at No. 4 ensure that the events of the Revolutionary War and beyond are remembered and continue to influence American culture. The NH Heritage Museum Trail has shared “25 Stories for 250 Years” online, highlighting events, people, and places in New Hampshire that helped shape American history and encouraging visits to the museums and sites that commemorate them.
Another New Hampshire connection to American history comes from Augustus Saint-Gaudens (1848–1907), a sculptor who was born in Ireland and whose family immigrated to the United States during his infancy. He created some of the most celebrated American monuments of the 19th century and, at the request of President Theodore Roosevelt, designed the $10 eagle and $20 double eagle gold coins for the U.S. Mint. Saint-Gaudens and his family started spending their summers in Cornish, New Hampshire, in 1885, where they helped inspire the Cornish Art Colony. Today, his New Hampshire home is part of the Saint-Gaudens National Historical Park and hosts numerous exhibitions of historic and contemporary art.
Collecting New Hampshire
As one of the original thirteen colonies, New Hampshire was home to generations of farmers, artisans, and homemakers whose furniture, tools, crafts, products, and household items shaped the style of the Colonial and Federal periods in America.
New Hampshire’s natural resources have long been celebrated, from Paleoindians establishing fishing sites to English colonists sailing up the coast to today’s tourists making ski trips. Today, tourism is a growing industry in New Hampshire, with those natural resources providing plenty of opportunities for outdoor recreation. Sailing, fishing, and skiing are especially popular draws and are heavily promoted. This creates plenty of collectibles, from vintage sports equipment to travel posters promoting resorts and tours.
Sports and folk art come together in waterfowl decoys. These faux-feathered figures capture both the variety of species found in New Hampshire and the skill of the artists who live there or visit. George Boyd (1873–1941) is one of New Hampshire’s most famous decoy carvers, and his work can sell for high prices at auction.
Another art form with strong ties to New Hampshire is art pottery. James S. Taft, born in New Hampshire in 1844, founded Hampshire Pottery in Keene in 1871. It made pottery in the Arts & Crafts style and is known for its colorful matte glazes, particularly a green matte introduced in 1883. The pottery closed in 1923, but its wares continue to sell to art pottery collectors.
Two of New Hampshire’s most famous potters came long after the art pottery movement: Edwin and Mary Scheier. The self-taught couple came to the University of New Hampshire in 1940, where Edwin taught ceramics, and Mary served as artist-in-residence. They remained there for 20 years. Their travels, including time in Puerto Rico and Mexico, influenced their work, which often featured stylized sgraffito figures, faces, and animals.
Looking Ahead: New Hampshire’s America 250 Calendar Highlights
Throughout 2026 — America 250 Programming at the New Hampshire Historical Society, Concord
The New Hampshire Historical Society is hosting tours, exhibitions, lectures, and virtual events looking at local and national history from many angles, including famous figures, genealogy, Black history, and New Hampshire’s colonial history and role in the Revolutionary War. The Society’s 250th programming includes exhibitions, special publications, and public programs throughout 2026.
Throughout 2026 — “Stories That Shaped the Nation,” Strawbery Banke Museum, Portsmouth
Programs throughout 2026 explore more than 350 years of Portsmouth history with exhibitions, the Revolutionary Portsmouth lecture series in conjunction with the Portsmouth Historical Society, and tours of local historical sites.
Throughout 2026 — America 250 Exhibitions, Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth
Twelve co-curated exhibitions through 2026 and into 2027 explore the many ways art shapes American history and culture.
Sept. 18, Oct. 2 and 16, 2026 — “From Loyalist to Liberty” Walking Tour, Portsmouth Historical Society
Visit sites connected to the American Revolution and learn about life in a royal colony and how public sentiment shifted in the 1770s.
Oct. 17, 2026 — 250th Commemoration of Major Benjamin Whitcomb, Lisbon
The New Hampshire Society of the Sons of the American Revolution and Benjamin Whitcomb’s Independent Corps of Rangers will join local historical groups for a commemoration at Revolutionary War officer Benjamin Whitcomb’s gravesite at Salmon Hole Cemetery. The program includes a proclamation, historical drill, musket salute, and recognition of Revolutionary War soldiers buried there.
