New Hampshire Genealogy Facts
Under an English land grant, Capt. John Smith sent settlers to establish a fishing colony at the mouth of the Piscataqua River, near present-day Rye and Dover, in 1623. Capt. John Mason, who participated in the founding of Portsmouth in 1630, gave New Hampshire its name. After a 38-year period of union with Massachusetts, New Hampshire was made a separate royal colony in 1679.
- New Hampshire entered the union as the 9th state on June 21, 1788 .
- New Hampshire has 10 Counties.
- New Hampshire’s capital is Concord and the official state website is www.nh.gov.
- New Hampshire is bordered by Maine (east), Massachusetts (south), Vermont (west) and Canada (north).
- New Hampshire has a land area of 9,351 square miles making it the 46th largest state.
- New Hampshire’s 2010 population was 1,316,470 .
- New Hampshire largest cities (2010) are Manchester, 109,565; Nashua, 86,494; Concord , 42,695; Derry 33,109; Dover, 29,987; Rochester , 29,752; Salem, 28,776; Merrimack, 25,494; Hudson, 24,467; Londonderry, 24,129; Keene, 23,409.
- New Hampshire was named for Hampshire, England, by Captain John Mason .
- New Hampshire’s nickname is ” Granite State” .
- New Hampshire State Motto is ” Live Free or Die “.
New Hampshire County Genealogy
New Hampshire deeds and probates are recorded on the county level. An act forming counties was passed in 1769, but the Province continued to record deeds and probates until 1771. Strafford did not organize as quickly as the other original counties, beginning its functions in 1773. After 1771, deeds are located at the county registry of deeds and probate records are located at the county registry of probate. Both registries are located at the county seat.
Select a County Below
COUNTY PAGES UNDER CONSTRUCTION
New Hampshire has counties that no longer exist. They were established by the state, provincial, or territorial government. Most of these counties were created and disbanded in the 19th century; county boundaries have changed little since 1900 in the vast majority of states. These counties need to be looked at when doing genealogy research. Pay close attention where the courthouse records went to if the county was abolished or combined with another county.
- Norfolk County, Massachusetts Colony (1643–1679) – became Essex County, Massachusetts and the entire state of New Hampshire.
New Hampshire Genealogy Links
See New Hampshire County Genealogy for County Links. These genealogy links fall into 3 categories: Commercial Sites, Personal Sites or Organization Sites. Some are have free access some require a payment. This is just a list that has been collected or submitted. I do not endorse or promote one genealogy site above another. Feel free to submit your own favorite genealogy or family history related sites.
- New Hampshire General Website Links
- Family History Library (familysearch.org) – The largest collection of free family history, family tree and genealogy records in the world.
- New Hampshire Historical Records (ancestry.com) – Databases include Court, Land, Wills & Financial Records; Birth, Marriage & Death Records; Voter Lists & Census Records; Immigration & Emigration Records; Obituary Records; Military Records; Family Tree Records; Pictures; Stories, Memories & Histories; Directories & Member Lists.
- Search 60 Years Of Everton Data (familylink.com) – For the first time ever you can get access to more than 150,000 pedigree files and family group sheets from Evertons.
- New Hampshire Genealogy Network (facebook.com)
- Encyclopedia of New Hampshire (newhampshirepedia.com) – free, online resource on New Hampshire history, culture, geography, and natural environment.
- The New Hampshire Family Group Sheet Project (fgs-project.com)
- USGenweb – New Hampshire Genealogy (usroots.com)
- Free GenForum Message Boards – New Hampshire (genforum.genealogy.com)
- Free Rootsweb Message Boards – New Hampshire (boards.ancestry.com)
- Cyndis List New Hampshire Links (cyndislist.com)
- New Hampshire Mailing List (rootsweb.ancestry.com)
- New Hampshire American History and Genealogy Project (usgennet.org)
- New Hampshire Migrations Project (rootsweb.ancestry.com)
- New Hampshire (wikipedia.org)
- Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness (RAOGK) – New Hampshire (raogk.org)
- New Hampshire Genealogy Look Ups (geneasearch.com)
- USGenWeb Archives Project for New Hampshire (usgwarchives.org)
- Background Sources for New Hampshire (ancestry.com) from Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources.
- New Hampshire History Links Website Links
- History of New Hampshire Genealogy (ancestry.com) from Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources.
- New Hampshire US Genweb County Site Links
New Hampshire State History
New Hampshire, one of the six New England states and one of the smaller states of the United States. The state is bordered on the north by the Canadian province of Québec, on the east by Maine and the Atlantic Ocean, on the south by Massachusetts, and on the west by Vermont. Concord is the capital of New Hampshire. Manchester is the largest city.
Settled only three years after the landing of the Pilgrims at Plymouth, Massachusetts, New Hampshire was one of the original 13 colonies. As the ninth state to ratify the Constitution of the United States, New Hampshire cast the decisive vote on June 21, 1788, that put the Constitution into effect.
New Hampshire has within its boundaries the highest mountains in New England, countless lakes, hundreds of streams and brooks, and large areas of unspoiled woodlands. Tourists have flocked to New Hampshire since the late 1800s. Despite its rural appearance, New Hampshire has long been an industrial state. Two of its early industries, the manufacture of shoes and of textiles, started in the homes of the earliest settlers.
New Hampshire is known as the Granite State because of its extensive granite formations and deposits. The state was named by Captain John Mason, who in the early 17th century received one of the first land grants in what was to become New Hampshire. He named the area after the English county of Hampshire, where he had spent time as a youth.
