New Hampshire Facts and Figures

1876 artwork by Henry Mitchell, via Wikipedia Commons

 New Hampshire ranks 48th among states and provinces with markers in this database. New Hampshire is a state in the United States of America located in the American Northeast. It is also in the New England region. New Hampshire is some 9 thousand square miles in size with a population of around 1.4 million people. The state is divided into ten counties and all of them have entries in this database. In New Hampshire we have discovered historical markers in 114 cities and towns lying in 108 different ZIP Codes.

How many historical markers are there in New Hampshire? There are least 427 of them, by our count. We have cataloged 412 historical markers and 106 war memorials—each individually presented on 502 illustrated, annotated, and searchable pages of the Historical Marker Database. In addition, we are reasonably certain of another 15 historical markers in New Hampshire that we don’t yet have, and instead show on our Want List. Our correspondents have been finding and adding hundreds of markers a month to the database from all over the world, so next time you visit this page you will probably find that the numbers here have changed.

The first New Hampshire marker in the database, Uncle Sam’s House, was added January 15, 2008. It was photographed near Mason in Hillsborough County and was erected in 2006. The last one added was submitted on October 29, 2019, and titled The Reuben Foster House. It is in Concord in Merrimack County. Keeping in mind that the erection date of many markers in the database is not known, the earliest historical marker we know of in New Hampshire was erected in 1867. It was this one: Washington NH Civil War Memorial, and one of our correspondents found it in Washington in Sullivan County on June 21, 2017.

New Hampshirites don’t want to forget their Industry and Commerce history. How do we know? Because there are more historical markers in the database from New Hampshire about Industry and Commerce—79 of them—than about any other historical category. It is followed by Colonial Era with 64 markers.

The first marker added to the database with the Industry and Commerce category was also Uncle Sam’s House, added January 15, 2008. It had been erected in 2006 near Mason in Hillsborough County. The last one submitted was submitted on October 22, 2019, and titled The Stanley Tavern. It had been erected in 2005 in Hopkinton in Merrimack County. The earliest marker erected with the Industry and Commerce category that we have listed was erected in 1965. It was Log Drives, found in Stratford in Coos County on July 23, 2014.

The New Hampshire county with the most historical markers listed in this database is Grafton County, with 124 of them. It is followed by Merrimack County with 110 markers. The Franconia area of Grafton County has the highest number of markers within its limits, 23. In Merrimack County the area with the most markers, 65, is Concord.

Checking the database for the city or town in New Hampshire with the most markers we again find Concord at the top of the list with 65 markers in or near it. It is followed by Portsmouth in Rockingham County with 49 markers. For the ZIP Code with the most markers it’s 03301 at the top of the list with 61 markers in its delivery area. (ZIP Code 03301 is assigned to Concord NH.) It is followed by ZIP Code 03801 with 50 markers. (03801 is assigned to Portsmouth NH including the Newington delivery area.)

Getting back to Grafton County, the first marker added to the database from there, The Ridge, was added June 21, 2010. It was erected in 1965 in Orford. The last one submitted was uploaded on July 29, 2019, and is titled Home Site of Nathaniel Berry and was erected in 2010, in Hebron. The earliest marker erected in Grafton County that we have listed was erected in 1912. It was Soldiers of Haverhill Memorial, found in North Haverhill on June 10, 2013.

By Douglas Finney, October 26, 2019

Latest Entry from New Hampshire
“The Reuben Foster House”

And finally the first, last, and oldest markers from Concord. The first: Franklin Pierce, was added July 29, 2009. The last: The Reuben Foster House added on October 29, 2019. The earliest marker erected was erected in 1899: On The Interval Below This Spot, added on February 9, 2019.

The New Hampshire Division of Historical Resources is currently in charge of the familiar green and white official historical markers found all over the state and the New Hampshire Department of Transportation typically installs and maintains those that are roadside. We have 127 of their markers in the database. Also, a number of counties have erected historical markers on their streets and roads and within their public areas, as have some cities and towns.

By Kevin Craft, October 23, 2017

A Division of Historical Resources Historical Marker

Then there are federal government agencies that put up historical markers, especially in national parks and other areas under their jurisdiction. And finally, there are the numerous public and private organizations and individuals that erect markers. Some do this as a continual endeavor, and others once in a while, to mark something, someone, or someplace they find important or interesting. When one of our correspondents comes across one that satisfies our criteria, we add it to the database.

New Hampshire offers both and there is plenty of history to check out. If you live in or are visiting New Hampshire, hit the road and check out places where something of interest once occured, or where famous or infamous people once stood. Our database can help you find some of these places. And perhaps you’ll find some we don’t know about and will take the time to photograph them and add them to the database. Happy Hunting!