New Hampshire

                          



Capital: Concord

State abbreviation/Postal code: N.H./NH

U.S. Representatives: 2

Entered Union (rank): June 21, 1788 (9)

Present constitution adopted: 1784

Motto: Live free or die

State symbols:

flower purple lilac (1919)
tree white birch (1947)
animal white-tailed deer (1983)
insect ladybug (1977)
saltwater fish striped bass (1994)
freshwater fish brook trout (1995)
amphibian spotted newt (1985)
butterfly karner blue (1992)
bird purple finch (1957)
songs “Old New Hampshire” (1949) and “New Hampshire, My New Hampshire” (1963)
Nickname: Granite State

Origin of name: From the English county of Hampshire

10 largest cities (2012 est.): Manchester, 110,209; Nashua, 86,933; Concord , 42,630; Dover, 30,220; Rochester , 29,823; Salem, 29,396; Merrimack, 26,683; Keene, 23,272; Derry, 22,015; Portsmouth, 21,379

Land area:9,349 sq mi (24,214[5] km2)

Geographic center: In Belknap Co., 3 mi. E of Ashland

Number of counties: 10

Largest county by population and area: Hillsborough, 400,721 (2010); Coos, 1,801 sq mi.

State parks: 72

Residents: New Hampshirite

2016 resident population est.: 1,334,795


Some famous natives and residents:
Sherman Adams former governor and presidential advisor;
Salmon P. Chase jurist;
Charles Anderson Dana editor;
Mary Baker Eddy founder of the Christian Science Church;
Dustin Farnum actor;
Thomas Green Fessenden journalist and satirical poet;
Daniel Chester French sculptor;
Robert Frost poet;
Horace Greeley journalist and politician;
Sarah J. Hale editor;
John Irving writer;
Benjamin F. Keith theater entrepreneur;
Jackson Hall Kelly promoter of Oregon settlement;
John Langdon political leader;
Sharon Christa McAuliffe teacher and astronaut;
Franklin Pierce former president;
Augustus Saint-Gaudens sculptor;
Alan Shepard astronaut;
Harlan F. Stone jurist;
Daniel Webster statesman;
Henry Wilson politician and former vice president;
Noah Worcester clergyman and pacifist.

Popular Tourist Attractions

• Canobie Lake Park: Amusement park in Salem, New Hampshire.
• Mount Washington: Highest mountain peak in the Northeastern United States, located in Coos County, New Hampshire.
• Water Country: Water park in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.
• Lake Winnipesaukee: Lake in central New Hampshire.
• Loon Mountain: Mountain in Lincoln, New Hampshire.
• Mount Monadnock: Mountain in southern New Hampshire.
• Cannon Mountain: Mountain Peak in Lebanon, New Hampshire.
• Castle in the Clouds: Wedding venue in Moultonborough, New Hampshire.
• Pats Peak: Ski resort in Henniker, New Hampshire.
• Story Land: Theme park in Bartlett, New Hampshire.
• White Mountain National Forest: National forest in Lincoln, New Hampshire.
• Flume Gorge: Gorge in Franconia, New Hampshire.
• Franconia Notch State Park: State park in Franconia, New Hampshire.
• Kancamagus Highway: Highway through the White Mountain National Forest in northern New Hampshire.
• Mount Sunapee: Ski area in Newbury, New Hampshire.
• Mount Washington Observatory Weather Discovery Center: Observatory in North Conway, New Hampshire.
• Conway Scenic Railroad: Heritage railway in North Conway, New Hampshire.
• Lost River Gorge: Park in North Woodstock, New Hampshire.
• Tuckerman Ravine: Cirque in the White Mountains of New Hampshire.

New Hampshire Fun Facts

• New Hampshire was named by Captain John Mason after the southern English county of Hampshire.
• The first free public library supported by taxation in the United States was founded on April 9, 1833 in Peterborough, New Hampshire.
• The record for the highest wind speed over land in the United States was recorded on Mount Washington April 12, 1934. The wind gust clocked in at 231 miles per hour. This is also the second highest wind speed over land recorded in the world.
• Levi Hutchins of Concord, New Hampshire, invented the first alarm clock in 1787. It only rang at 4 a.m., the time he needed to wake up for his job.
• New Hampshire still uses its original state constitution, ratified in 1784. It’s the second-oldest continuously used constitution in the United States, after Massachusetts.
• For each presidential election cycle, New Hampshire holds the first primary election in the United States. New Hampshire state law stipulates that the primary shall be on the second Tuesday in March, though the Secretary of State can change the date to ensure that the New Hampshire primary will occur at least seven days before any other state holds a "similar election."
• New Hampshire is the only state in the United States that does not require adults to wear seat belts in their cars while traveling. Not coincidentally, New Hampshire has the lowest seat belt usage of any state in 2010.
• New Hampshire is the only state that saw the formal conclusion of a foreign war. In 1905, Portsmouth was the scene of the treaty ending the Russo-Japanese War.
• New Hampshire was the first state to offer lottery in the twentieth century United States in 1964.
• New Hampshire has the shortest ocean coastline of any U.S. coastal state, with a length of 13 miles.