As America prepares to celebrate its 250th anniversary, one New Hampshire museum is showing off its collection of historic artifacts — centuries in the making. Here's a sample of what’s on display that might teach you something surprising about New Hampshire and American history.
A capital before Concord
Concord may be New Hampshire’s current state capital, but during the colonial period, Portsmouth served as the seat of the British colony of New Hampshire.
Then, in 1775, rebel leaders ousted the British Governor Benning Wentworth, leaving the colony without a center of government. The local patriots then moved the capital to Exeter, where it remained for the course of the Revolution.
As part of creating a new, non-royal government, the patriot leaders in Exeter had to write a constitution.
“It’s the first written constitution in what would become the United States, a full six months before the Declaration of Independence," said Joe Pace, Executive Director of the American Independence Center.
A copy of this original document is on display at the Center.
“What I love most about it is its thoroughly apologetic tone,” Pace said. “This is at a time when there was still hope that the troubles would pass and we would all get back together again. It reads very much like a man who’s been thrown out of the house who thinks his wife is going to take him back.”
The government eventually moved to Concord in 1808, but only after Exeter served as the state’s capital for over 30 years.
Colony-specific currency
The Center today occupies the Ladd-Gilman House, which was an important site of state business back when Exeter served as the state capital. It housed the office of the state treasurer, Col. Nicholas Gilman, which meant it saw plenty of cash flow through its doors.
“All of the money would have come in and out of this building,” explained Kali Kraemer, curator and manager of the American Independence Center. “If you’re going overseas, you had to exchange currency from different colonies.”
Several pieces of authentic colonial currency are on display at the museum, dating from 1773 to 1785. The currency is made of ink printed on parchment, with each piece having a unique, intricate design.
“Each state was minting their own currency during the Revolution and in the years after,” Pace explained.
He described the currency’s appearance as “baseball cards, if they’d been done by Tolkien."
According to Pace, the individual state currencies resulted in different exchange rates between each state, leading to some dollars valuing less in other states. This was one of the reasons the post-Revolution Articles of Confederation failed and the U.S. Constitution was drafted to tie state economies together.
A document from the first Independence Day
When the Founding Fathers adopted the hand-written Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, they asked Philadelphia printer John Dunlap to print 200 copies that same night to distribute to the colonies and around the world, advertising their independence from Britain. These documents are now referred to as the “Dunlap Broadsides.”
At least one Dunlap Broadside was sent to the colony of New Hampshire in 1776, but the document disappeared from the historical record, lost to time.
Over the years, about 25 of these original 200 printings of the Declaration surfaced in varied conditions, often fragmented, torn, or stained.
In 1985, the Ladd-Gilman House was having repair work done in its attic, when someone happened upon an old box.
“Inside that box was an absolutely pristine, authentic Dunlap Broadside — a first printing of the Declaration of Independence,” recounted Pace.
The discovery eventually led to the foundation of the American Independence Center. The museum today displays a replica of that document inside the museum, as the original version is stored off-site in a climate-controlled location. However, that original document will be available for public viewing this summer at the center’s American Independence Festival.
The forerunner to the ‘Purple Heart’
The Purple Heart is one of the oldest awards for members of the U.S. military. Servicemembers receive the award if they have been wounded or killed in action or later died of wounds received while serving in action.
The award’s origins can be directly traced to George Washington, who created the “Badge of Military Merit,” awarded for an act of valor or merit, according to Kraemer. She said that Washington created the badge so that ordinary soldiers could have the opportunity to wear an award, as other military honors were strictly for officers.
The American Independence Center has a Badge of Military Merit on display, a small purple cloth in the shape of a heart. It’s one of only two known to still exist.
Breakfast with Washington, and a parade that never happened
Taverns were the heart of colonial-era life, serving drinks and meals and offering a place for visitors to stay overnight. But they also held meetings and gatherings of all sizes, from business deals to balls to revolution planning. The Sons of Liberty regularly met in taverns when planning the original protests leading to the American Revolution, Pace said.
The American Independence Center also owns Exeter’s Folsom Tavern, built in 1775, which briefly hosted President George Washington on November 4 1789. According to Kraemer, sources record Washington stopping in Exeter during his tour of New Hampshire, and he had his breakfast in the tavern’s large parlor.
Washington “went to Portsmouth, and they had a big celebration there. He came here just on his way south and had a brief stop for breakfast,” Pace said. “They were going to have a parade here in Exeter, but he had his horse saddled up and was out of town before the organizers could make it happen because he was kind of tired of parades at that point.”
Despite his swift exit from Exeter, Washington’s visit is still honored at the tavern. His portrait hangs in the parlor, commemorating his brief breakfast more than 200 years ago.
