Portsmouth, New Hampshire 9/29/1998

After I crossed the state line I stopped in Hampton for a piece of peanut butter fudge and a cup of coffee. As I drove through New Hampshire I noticed it was 69 degrees at 4:46 and also that the leaves were beginning to share yellows and reds with the eyes that were getting tired.


When I was driving through Portsmouth I noticed green signs with arrows toward Strawberry Banke. When the travelers on the Pied Cow disembarked on the west bank of the Piscataqua River in 1630 they found the ground covered with wild strawberries. This area later grew into the seaport town of 26,000. The area had been settled seven years earlier but the group had moved to other areas nearby. The name changed from Strawberry Banke to Portsmouth in 1653. Ten acres are included in the historic site which includes a museum. More than forty buildings from the period 1695-1955 are being restored. The narrow winding streets include colonial houses and large 19th century houses.