Posts by Nancy-Ann Feren
We started our tour of the White Mountains at Franconia’s Stone Iron Furnace. I never realized that New Hampshire had mined iron ore and I was interested to read that this furnace is “New Hampshire’s sole surviving example of a post-Revolutionary furnace for smelting iron ore.
Continuing our explorations in the Lakes Region, we headed to Rochester. In addition to seeing all the roadside historical markers, we were also taking part in the Five Hikes Challenge sponsored by the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests. One of the hikes was in Champlin Forest in Rochester. It was nice to take a peaceful walk in the woods, followed by a socially distanced visit with friends, in between drives to markers.
So much to see in the Lakes Region, the tour of roadside markers will be a two-part series. Here’s part 1.
Exploring historic markers in the Dartmouth/Sunapee region turned up a rich chapter of regional NH history, from churches and bridges, to baseball.
Markers for cemeteries, meeting houses, mills, and civil rights activists can all be found in the Monadnock Region.
My husband and I are both New Hampshire natives but as we traveled throughout the state we continued to be amazed by how much we didn’t know. From the sign in Newmarket we learned that Wentworth Cheswill (1746-1817) was “among Newmarket’s best-educated and most prosperous citizens.” He is considered the first African-American citizen elected to public office in America; his grandfather was the first African-American to have owned land in New Hampshire. We discovered so many examples of New Hampshire citizens who were the first to do something; of bridges that were unique; of historic events that took place here. At the end of each day trip, we found ourselves anxious to learn more.