Vacation In Portsmouth New Hampshire

Portsmouth is located on New Hampshire’s southern coast, considered as one of the best vacation places in the United States. It is a city that holds quite a lot of history with much to experience and get involved with while in town.

Looking for a getaway destination that’s near the ocean and full of history? You need look no further than charming Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Portsmouth is located along the Piscataqua River, part of the border between Maine and New Hampshire.

Portsmouth is a seaport city in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, in the United States. The population was 21,233 at the 2010 census. Portsmouth is home to the International Marine Terminal and the Port of Portsmouth, one of the world’s largest cruise ship terminals. The marine terminal is served by a terminal railroad operated by Healy Rail Services, and by truck via Route 1A (the Cobb Island Road) from Maryland and Delaware.

Portsmouth is an historic seaport where generations of seafarers landed and set off to explore the world. The harbor still bustles with activity, but nowadays it’s sailboats and yachts, not ships of war that bring visitors to this New Hampshire coast city.

Portsmouth is a city in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. It is the state’s only city, with a population of 21,055 as of July 1, 2014. It is located at the mouth of the Piscataqua River on the Atlantic Ocean. The United States Census Bureau defines the town as a census-designated place.

Vacation In Portsmouth New Hampshire

Why not check out Portsmouth’s local attractions, such as Strawbery Banke, to start your vacation off with a bang? The Anchor Coffee & Books is a must-see for all book lovers. If you’d rather relax and unwind, be sure to set some time outside of your busy schedule to enjoy the weather in Portsmouth.

Growing from a tiny settlement in the 1600s, where mast trees were shipped to supply the King’s Navy, Portsmouth, New Hampshire quickly became one of the most important ports of the Colonial Era. Continuing to thrive as a shipbuilding center into the late 20th century, the city has a history of caring for its past, which makes it one of the most fascinating for tourists interested in American history. Few, if any, cities can claim so many Colonial and Federal homes in original condition that are open to the public.

An entire neighborhood of homes and businesses has been preserved in Strawbery Banke Museum, and almost a dozen more distinguished homes filled with original furnishings make fascinating places to visit. Portsmouth’s location makes it a good base for exploring the seacoast, and it is close enough to visit on a day trip from Boston.

Portsmouth has a lively arts and culture scene, much of it centering on music and live theater at The Music Hall. Dozens of restaurants, many owned by award-winning chefs and representing both New England classics and an array of world cuisines, have made Portsmouth a destination for foodies. Unique shops, the lively cultural calendar, and several options for cruises and boat tours add even more to this list of tourist attractions and things to do in Portsmouth.

Note: Some businesses may be temporarily closed due to recent global health and safety issues.

1. Strawbery Banke

The 10-acre Strawbery Banke Museum is named for the first settlement here on the bank of the Piscataqua River, at the mouth of Great Bay. From this 1623 foundation, Portsmouth grew into a major port, and the houses gathered here represent its four centuries of history.

Adding to the historical variety, Strawbery Banke varies the interpretation and focus: some houses are furnished and decorated according to their era; some concentrate on the families that lived there; others are preserved to show how they were constructed, with cutaway displays and exhibits of tools, materials, and decorative details. One is a duplex restored to two different centuries. Costumed interpreters and artisans demonstrate cooking, household skills, period crafts, and boat-building techniques.

Because Strawbery Banke represents the continuing story of the Puddle Dock neighborhood, some of the buildings and displays represent the mid-20th century, including a fully stocked neighborhood store and a 1950s home. Several houses have period gardens that, like the household furnishings, represent the social and economic status of the former owners.

Address: 454 Court Street, Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Official site: www.strawberybanke.org

2. Market Square

Just as Puddle Dock was the focus of 17th-century life in Portsmouth, Market Square is the center today. This broad open space is framed by the impressive North Church and distinguished brick buildings that include the venerable Portsmouth Athenaeum. More well-preserved mercantile blocks continue down Market Street toward Portsmouth’s active waterfront with its row of tugboats.

Market Street is a favorite for shopping. Boutiques, specialty shops, and galleries of fine arts and decorative works by local craftspeople fill the buildings, several of which have cast-iron storefronts that were added to “modernize” them in the 19th century.

3. Prescott Park

Along the banks of the Piscataqua River next to Strawbery Banke, Prescott Park includes beautiful gardens of perennial and annual flowers, a demonstration garden, performance space, and public docks, as well as a place to sit on a bench and enjoy the flowers and harbor views.

The park is known especially for its dazzling tulip displays in the spring, and in summer for its beds of brilliant annuals. The Prescott Park Arts Festival brings music and theater performances each summer.

At the far end of the park next to the flower gardens, you’ll find Point of Graves Burial Grounds, a small cemetery dating from 1671. Many of the oldest stones lie askew, having been knocked over by cows that grazed here in the cemetery’s early years.

Stones mark generations of prominent and not-so-prominent Portsmouth families, including the Wentworths and Lears, whose homes are now historic museum properties. The stones, the earliest of which dates from 1684, are fine examples of early grave markers carved with traditional early folk motifs, including skulls and cherubim.

Address: Marcy Street, Portsmouth, New Hampshire

4. Moffatt-Ladd House & Garden

Built in 1763 by a wealthy shipowner and merchant, the Moffatt-Ladd House still contains original furniture and retains many of its early interior detail and decorative features. It is counted as one of America’s finest Georgian mansions; two signers of the Declaration of Independence lived here.

Tours of its well-preserved interior begin in the Great Hall, with French scenic wallpaper dating from about 1820 and fine woodcarving. Because the original records of the house’s construction still survive, a great deal is known about its history and the local artists responsible for its exceptional decorative details. Original family furnishings include outstanding examples of Portsmouth-made and English furniture, and one of the family portraits is by Gilbert Stuart.

The garden behind the mansion dates from the late 1800s, laid out around a path bordered by formal flower beds and leading up grass-covered steps to a series of terraces. Like the house, the garden looks much as it did originally, thanks to meticulously detailed records kept by generations of the family.

Address: 154 Market Street, Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Official site: www.moffattladd.org

5. Warner House

Built in 1716 and the only surviving of the mansions that lined Daniel Street in colonial days, the Warner House is best known to art historians for the oldest painted murals in America that are still in their original place. The murals line the hall stairway, and throughout the house are exceptional examples of carved moldings and wood paneling.

Adding to its importance, the house also contains the first example of Queen Anne furniture known to have been made in America, a Sherburne high chest dating from 1733. This is part of an outstanding collection of early Portsmouth furniture and portraits. For 200 years, the Georgian brick house was the home of generations of the same family of merchants, ship captains, and one Royal Governor.

Address: 150 Daniel Street, Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Official site: http://www.warnerhouse.org

6. The Isles of Shoals & Cruises from Portsmouth Harbor

The best views of Portsmouth Harbor Lighthouse and historic Fort Constitution, which has guarded the entrance to Portsmouth Harbor since colonial times, are from the water. Harbor cruises begin at Portsmouth’s downtown docks near Market Street, where you can also board cruises to the Isles of Shoals, a small group of islands that are divided between New Hampshire and Maine.

While the islands are all privately owned, some cruises do allow landing on Star Island. Cruises to visit Celia Thaxter’s Island Garden on Appledore leave from New Castle, near Fort Constitution. On any of these, you’ll learn the fascinating history of the fort.

Harbor and river tours in a replica of the shallow drafted cargo sailing ships, called gundalows, which were used for local transport throughout the Colonial Era, depart from the Gundalow Docks at Prescott Park, on Marcy Street.