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Map of New Hampshire dated 1799. The map shows mountains, waterways, towns, and cities.

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State governments and the national government are divided into three branches: the executive, legislative, and judicial branches. Each branch has specific powers and responsibilities that the other branches do not have. Each branch can also check the other branches, which keeps any one branch from becoming too powerful. All three branches are supposed to work for the common good of the people.

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This map shows when each of the 13 original states ratified the U.S. Constitution.

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Josiah Bartlett was one of the three signers of the Declaration of Independence from New Hampshire. He was a doctor who lived in Kingston. Bartlett was a patriot and held secret meetings with other patriots in his attic. His house was even burned down once by people who opposed the patriots. He was on the N.H. Committee of Correspondence and was chosen to be in the Continental Congress. He was the second person to sign the Declaration of Independence. After the war, Bartlett continued to work as a doctor and even served as governor of New Hampshire at one point.

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William Whipple was one of the three signers of the Declaration of Independence from New Hampshire. His father was a sea captain, and as a young man, Whipple went to sea as well, sailing back and forth between the Caribbean and New England, shipping wood, rum, and slaves. Later, he and his brother were successful merchants in Portsmouth. Whipple supported the patriots and was in the Continental Congress. He signed the Declaration of Independence in 1776. He was also a general in the New Hampshire militia and commanded troops at an important Revolutionary War battle, the Battle of Saratoga. After the war, he freed his slaves, including Prince Whipple. He also served in the New Hampshire legislature and on the Supreme Court of New Hampshire.

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John Sullivan was a well-known general from New Hampshire during the American Revolution. After America won its independence, Sullivan became an important political figure in New Hampshire. In fact, he helped convince the people of New Hampshire to ratify the U.S. Constitution in 1788. Sullivan was born in Somersworth and became a lawyer when he was a young man. When Americans grew unhappy with being ruled by Great Britain, Sullivan supported the patriots. He even led the raid on Fort William and Mary in 1774, when patriots took control of a British fort in Portsmouth. When America and Britain began fighting the American Revolution, Sullivan became a general in the American army. After the American Revolution was over, he became one of New Hampshire’s first governors. When the people of New Hampshire were deciding whether or not to support the new U.S. Constitution, Sullivan used all his influence to convince them that the Constitution created a good system of government for the new country.

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Meshech Weare was New Hampshire’s first governor. He is also sometimes called the “father of New Hampshire” because he played such an important role in creating the state government. When New Hampshire was an English colony, he represented the town of Hampton Falls in the colonial assembly. He supported American independence from the British Empire and helped write the N.H. Constitution of 1776 that declared New Hampshire’s independence from Great Britain. During the American Revolution, Weare was chief justice of New Hampshire’s highest court and the head of the Committee of Safety, which governed the state during the war. After the N.H. Constitution of 1784 was ratified, Weare was elected the first governor, which was then called “president.”  The town of Weare is named after him.

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John Langdon was an American Founding Father and an important political leader from New Hampshire. He was an early supporter of independence from Great Britain. He served in the Continental Congress and led troops at an important American victory, the Battle of Saratoga. After the American Revolution, he was the second person to be elected governor of New Hampshire , which was then called “president.” Langdon was one of New Hampshire’s delegates to the Constitutional Convention in 1787. He supported a strong central government and campaigned in favor of ratification in New Hampshire. His efforts helped New Hampshire become the ninth and deciding state to ratify the U.S. Constitution. He was one of New Hampshire’s first U.S. senators, serving from 1789 to 1801. Later he was elected to the New Hampshire House of Representatives and again as New Hampshire’s governor.

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Nicholas Gilman was one of New Hampshire’s delegates to the Constitutional Convention and a signer of the U.S. Constitution. He came from a prominent family in Exeter. He and his father were both early supporters of American independence from Great Britain. Gilman fought in the American Revolution and also served as New Hampshire’s treasurer during the war. In 1787, he was chosen to represent New Hampshire at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. He supported a strong central government and helped convince New Hampshire’s state convention to support the Constitution. In the first federal elections, Gilman was elected to represent New Hampshire in the U.S. House of Representatives. He served four terms and was later elected to the U.S. Senate.