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This map of the town of Ossipee shows how the settlement was divided up into plots for different families. The settlers had to fulfill certain requirements before they could get an official town charter. For example, they had to build houses with chimneys and clear a certain amount of land for farming. They also had to build a meeting house and a sawmill. Once they fulfilled these requirements, the settlers could keep the land and set up a town government.

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This map of the town of Ossipee shows how the settlement was divided up into plots for different families. The settlers had to fulfill certain requirements before they could get an official town charter. For example, they had to build houses with chimneys and clear a certain amount of land for farming. They also had to build a meeting house and a sawmill. Once they fulfilled these requirements, the settlers could keep the land and set up a town government.

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This map of the town of Peterborough shows how the settlement was divided up into plots for different families. The settlers had to fulfill certain requirements before they could get an official town charter. For example, they had to build houses with chimneys and clear a certain amount of land for farming. They also had to build a meeting house and a sawmill. Once they fulfilled these requirements, the settlers could keep the land and set up a town government.

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This map of the town of New Ipswich shows how the settlement was divided up into plots for different families. The settlers had to fulfill certain requirements before they could get an official town charter. For example, they had to build houses with chimneys and clear a certain amount of land for farming. They also had to build a meeting house and a sawmill. Once they fulfilled these requirements, the settlers could keep the land and set up a town government.

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This map of the town of New London shows how the settlement was divided up into plots for different families. The settlers had to fulfill certain requirements before they could get an official town charter. For example, they had to build houses with chimneys and clear a certain amount of land for farming. They also had to build a meeting house and a sawmill. Once they fulfilled these requirements, the settlers could keep the land and set up a town government.

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This map of the town of Ossipee shows how the settlement was divided up into plots for different families. The settlers had to fulfill certain requirements before they could get an official town charter. For example, they had to build houses with chimneys and clear a certain amount of land for farming. They also had to build a meeting house and a sawmill. Once they fulfilled these requirements, the settlers could keep the land and set up a town government.

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Many merchants in Portsmouth and all throughout the British North American colonies participated in the triangle trade. These were trading routes in the 1600s–1800s that linked Africa, Europe, and the Americas. Raw materials, manufactured goods, food stuffs, and enslaved people were traded between the three continents. It is called the triangle trade because it involved an exchange of goods between three continents, and there are three sides to a triangle.

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In the early 18th century, the Merrimack Valley was settled by the Scots-Irish. These people were originally from Scotland, which is part of Great Britain. In the 1600s, they moved to Ireland, which was a British colony at that time. That's why they were called Scots-Irish. Then in the 1700s, many of them moved to Britain's colonies in North America, including New Hampshire.

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This was the first printed map of New Hampshire. It was made around the time of the French and Indian War. This detail, or small part, of the map shows the Merrimack Valley. Many of the towns in this region were founded by Scots-Irish settlers. Others were founded by people who moved from Massachusetts in search of more land. Note that the town marked "Penacook or Rumford" is known as Concord today, and the town marked "Dunstable," near the border with Massachusetts, is known as Nashua today.

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This plan of the town of Goffstown, New Hampshire, shows how the land was divided up into different plots owned by the townspeople. When the town was founded, in 1761, each settler was randomly assigned three lots. The lots could be anywhere—next to each other, across town from each other, even in the middle of a pond! Then they had to trade with each other if they wanted their lots to be close together. If you look closely at the names in the plots, you will see that some people were not able to do that!

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This map shows all of the New Hampshire towns founded by settlers up to 1770, just before the American Revolution. It also shows the five counties in New Hampshire at that time. As the population grew, more counties were added. Today there are 10 counties in New Hampshire.

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This map shows European colonies in North America in 1754, before the French and Indian War began, and in 1763, once the war had ended. The British and Americans defeated the French in this war. Notice how the map changes. Which country or countries gained territory? Which country or countries lost territory?

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New Hampshire was an English colony. There were lots of other English colonies in North America in the 18th century. Other European countries, like France and Spain, had colonies in North America too. When these countries fought wars with each other, the wars spilled over into North America.

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John Stark is one of New Hampshire’s most famous military leaders. He was born in Londonderry. He was a farmer, hunter, and trapper. As a young man he was captured by Native Americans and spent about a year living with an Abenaki family in Canada, until he was sent back to New Hampshire. When fighting broke out between the patriots and the British in 1775, he raced to Massachusetts to defend the colonies. He fought in important battles like the Battle of Bunker Hill and the Battle of Trenton, where he helped George Washington. Stark was eventually promoted to general and in 1777 he led New Hampshire troops to victory at the Battle of Bennington. This victory helped save New England from a British invasion. Stark is still known as the “Hero of Bennington.” In 1809 he wrote a letter to some of the soldiers he had served with and used the phrase: “Live free or die; death is not the greatest of evils.” Those words, “Live free or die,” later became the state motto.

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Nero Brewster was born in Africa. He was enslaved as a child and transported to New England. His enslaver was William Brewster, a tavern owner in Portsmouth who was involved in the patriot cause. It was common at that time for enslaved persons to use the last name of their owner. Nero Brewster was a leader in the African American community in Portsmouth, where he was known as “King Nero.” He was the leader of the group of enslaved men who sent a petition to New Hampshire’s government in 1779 asking for their freedom. When Brewster died in 1786, at the age of 75, he was a free man, but there is no record of when he was freed.

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Benning Wentworth was New Hampshire’s first colonial governor. His family were wealthy merchants who lived in Portsmouth and were also political leaders. In 1740, the king of England decided that New Hampshire should have its own governor. Up until then, New Hampshire shared a governor with Massachusetts. The king chose Benning Wentworth to be New Hampshire’s governor. While he was governor, Wentworth helped to establish a lot of towns in New Hampshire. He made money by selling land throughout New Hampshire, and he gave a lot of land and government jobs to his relatives. But he also helped to make sure that the new towns were self-sufficient and governed themselves through town meetings. Eventually, the colonists in New Hampshire got tired of how Benning Wentworth and his family kept getting richer and more powerful. He also got in trouble for selling land that actually belonged to New York, so he had to resign. His nephew, John Wentworth, became the next colonial governor.

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Robert Rogers was New Hampshire’s most famous soldier during the French and Indian War. He commanded a group of New Hampshire men called Rogers’ Rangers. These soldiers were familiar with the forests and mountains of New Hampshire. They could blend into their surroundings without anyone hearing or seeing them. They also were good at surviving in the wilderness during all kinds of bad weather. Rogers’ Rangers even fought battles on snowshoes and ice skates. Robert Rogers wrote a book about these military strategies. Parts of this book are still used today by the U.S. Army Rangers, which are named after Rogers’ Rangers.