Ethan Allen Crawford

Spaulding's "Giant Mountaineer"...

NH Constitution Article 10: RightΒ of Revolution.

"The people MAY and of right OUGHT TO..."

NH Constitution Article 9: No Hereditary Office or Place

Free elections, not family dynasties!

NH Constitution Article 8: Accountability of Magistrates & Officers; Public’s Right to Know.

Open, accessible government, for the people...

NH Constitution Article 7: State Sovereignty.

State's rights, reserved for the people of NH...

NH Constitution Article 2: Natural Rights

Life, liberty, property, happiness... This article has it all.

NH Constitution Article 1: Equality of People; Origin & Object of Government

"All [people] are born equally FREE and INDEPENDENT..."

Clean Living

The musical history of NH's famous Singing Hutchinsons runs deep... and complicated:

Early Amusements (Peterborough, c.1750)

Some examples of "early amusements" from Smith's History of Peterborough (1876):

First Clock in Town (Peterborough) (GUEST POST)

Guest artist Chris depicts the arrival of new technology around 1765-1770, thanks to the efforts of Mrs. William Smith:

An Interview with the Devil (Peterborough) (GUEST POST)

Guest artist Malcolm (of Dublin, NH) dramatizes of an old supernatural fiddler legend from Peterborough...

Fake Raid (Peterborough, 1754) (GUEST POST)

Peterborough resident Liam draws a practical joke from the French-Indian War era:

“No Doing Things on a Sunday” (Peterborough, 1700s) (GUEST POST)

Peterborough resident Daniel portrays the strictΒ sabbath laws of the town's early settlers, as related inΒ Kinscella’sΒ Chronicles of Peterborough: NEXT: One practical joke from 1754 >>

Upper Crust of Keene

Guest cartoonist Bea Reel drew this page from Griffin's History of Keene, NH during our recent FAMILY COMICS WORKSHOP at Keene Public Library:

Bridge Up, Money Down (Henniker)

1780: How much rum does it take to build a bridge during a Revolution?

Henniker 1861 School Committee Report (Part 2)

1861: In its official report, the Henniker School Committee proceeds to excoriate parents & dispense vocational advice:

Bear Ferry (Chesterfield)

A color splash page based on that old Chesterfield story, "Fishing for Bear":

The Bear & Boorn’s Buttons (Richmond)

Just when you thought you'd heard every variation on these bear hunting stories... Jacob Bump to the rescue!

Mrs. Peters Shoots a Bear (Henniker)

GUN SAFETY IN THE 1770s: If you come to visit, DON'T take that shortcut through the cornfield...

NH Constitution Article 83 (Part 1): Encouragement of Literature, &c.

Important roles of education, literacy, & the arts in democracy:

Plummer’s Willow (Henniker)

We all start small and grow from there... This story makes me look differently at all the giant trees around me. They're living connections with the days of our great-great-grandparents! Cogswell says Joseph Plummer Sr. and his wife Jane "moved to this town immediately after the close of the Revolution..." [which would've been the early … Continue reading Plummer’s Willow (Henniker)

The Old Bear (Dublin)

No sense complaining about the food... << BEFORE: Fox chase! NEXT: Bears in the cornfield >>

Fox Chase (Weare)

This snowy tale from Little's history falls somewhere between "hunting story" and "dream"... << BEFORE: Chasing moose NEXT: Nice Bear >> As with so many of his hunting tales, Little supplies no specific date for this anecdote; we'll file it under 1700-1799 because it's included in hunting stories from the "early times". 13 February 1767

Moose Chase (Weare)

If I've learned one thing from reading old hunting stories, it's this: These guys were HUNGRY. << BEFORE: Wolves around a fire NEXT: Fox chase >> This has the flavor of a tall tale that grew a bit in the telling, but who can say for certain? Β Such are the delights of collecting oral history … Continue reading Moose Chase (Weare)