Colony of New Hampshire,
Was for many years a dependent of
Massachusetts.
Its short line of sea-coast was probably first discovered by
Martin Pring in 1603.
It was visited by
Capt. John Smith in 1614.
The enterprising
Sir Ferdinando Gorges, who had been engaged in colonizing projects many years as one of the most active members of the
Plymouth
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379]
Company, projected a settlement farther eastward than any yet established, and for that purpose he became associated with
John Mason, a merchant (afterwards a naval commander, and secretary of the Plymouth Council of New England), and others.
Mason was a man of action, and well acquainted with all matters pertaining to settlements.
He and
Gorges obtained a grant of land (Aug. 10, 1622) extending from the
Merrimac to the
Kennebec, and inland to the
St. Lawrence They named the territory the Province of
Laconia; and to forestall the
French settlements in the east, and secure the country to the Protestants,
Gorges secured a grant from
Sir William Alexander of the whole mainland eastward of the St Croix River, excepting a small part of
Acadia.
Mason had already obtained a grant of land (March 2, 1621) extending from
Salem to the mouth of the
Merrimac, which he called
Mariana; and the same year a colony of fishermen seated themselves at
Little Harbor, on the
Piscataqua, just below the site of
Portsmouth.
Other fishermen settled on the site of
Dover (1623), and there were soon several fishing-stations, but no permanent settlement until 1629, when
Mason built a house near the mouth of the
Piscataqua, and called the place
Portsmouth.
He and
Gorges had agreed to divide their domain at the
Piscataqua, and
Mason, obtaining a patent for his portion of the territory, named it
New Hampshire.
He had been governor of
Portsmouth, in Hampshire,
England, and these names were given in commemoration of the fact.
In the same year (1629),
Rev. Mr. Wheelwright, brother of the notable
Anne Hutchinson, purchased from the Indians the
Wilderness, the
Merrimac, and the
Piscataqua, and founded
Exeter.
Mason died in 1633, and his domain passed into the hands of his retainers in payment for past services.
The scattered settlements in
New Hampshire finally coalesced with the
Massachusetts Colony (1641), and the former colony remained a dependent of the latter until 1680, when
New Hampshire became a separate royal province, ruled by a governor and council, and a House of Representatives elected by the people.
The settlements in
New Hampshire gradually extended westward, and until 1764 it was supposed the territory now
Vermont was included in that of
New Hampshire, and grants of land were made there by the authorities of the latter province.
The people of
New Hampshire engaged earnestly in the disputes between
Great Britain and her American colonies, and they were the first to form an independent State government (Jan. 5, 1776). It was temporary, intended to last only during the war; a permanent State government was not established until June 4, 1784 During the
Revolutionary War the people of
New Hampshire took an active part Their men were engaged in many important battles, from that of
Bunker Hill to
that at
Yorktown; and were particularly distinguished for their bravery in the battles of
Bennington, Bemis's Heights,
Saratoga, and
Monmouth.
The first seal of
New Hampshire as an independent State is represented in the engraving.
The tree and fish indicate the productions of the
State.
Shortly after the treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1748), settlements in
New Hampshire began to extend westward of the
Connecticut River.
The territory of
New Hampshire had been reckoned to extend, according to the terms of
Mason's grant, only “60 miles in the interior” ; the commission of
Benning Wentworth, then (1741-67) governor of
New Hampshire, included all the territory “to the boundaries of his Majesty's other provinces,” and in 1752 he began to issue grants of lands to settlers west of the
Connecticut, in what is now the
State of Vermont
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380]
New York, by virtue of the duke's patent in 1664, claimed the
Connecticut River as its eastern boundary.
A mild dispute then arose.
New York had relinquished its claim so far east as against
Connecticut, and against
Massachusetts it was not then seriously insisted upon.
Arguing that his province ought to have an extent which would equal that of the western boundary of
Massachusetts,
Governor Wentworth granted fifteen townships adjoining the recent
Massachusetts settlements on the Hoosic.
One township was called
Bennington, which was in compliment to the governor.
Emigrants from
Connecticut and
Massachusetts began to settle on the domain, when they were checked by the
French and Indian War. Afterwards, violent disputes with New York about these grants ensued.
See
State of Vermont.
