Concord, NH
This is the city where I was born, where my earliest memories were formed, and where so much of who I became quietly began to take shape. The older I get, the more I realize how deeply a hometown stays with you. It shapes the way you see the world, what feels familiar, and even what feels like home no matter how far away life may take you.
Concord is more than just the capital city of New Hampshire to me. It is a place filled with layers of history, quiet streets, old neighborhoods, churches, memorials, cemeteries, historic buildings, and stories woven together across generations. It is a New England town where history is not locked away in museums, but lives quietly beside everyday life.
Some of my memories are connected to the well-known places throughout the city. Others come from the smaller moments that never make the history books but become part of your life just the same — walking downtown, school events, seasonal traditions, familiar neighborhoods, and the simple routines that helped shape childhood.
As I look back through photographs and memories, I want to share both the history that makes Concord special and my own personal journey through this city. Not only the landmarks and historic sites, but also the quieter details that helped define what “home” truly meant to me.
Welcome to Concord, New Hampshire — the place where my story began.
Recent Posts
New Hampshire’s Centennial Shield
A shield decorated with stars, stripes, and a maritime scene preserves New Hampshire’s participation in the nation’s hundredth anniversary. Painted in 1876, it hung inside the New Hampshire Building at the Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia. Now in the New Hampshire Historical Society’s collection, it survives as an artifact of how the state presented itself during […]
An Early State House Seal
A painted wooden sign in the New Hampshire Historical Society’s collection preserves a connection to the beginnings of the State House in Concord. Made in 1819 by John S. Blunt, it was intended to hang inside the newly completed building. Its circular center bears New Hampshire’s state seal, while a tablet below reads “Built 1816”. […]
The Flume by Samuel Gerry
Samuel L. Gerry’s The Flume draws the viewer into one of New Hampshire’s most dramatic natural passages. The tall, narrow canvas follows the shape of the gorge itself, with steep walls of granite rising on both sides and leaving only a small opening to the forest and sky above. Water descends through the center, winding […]
The Marquis de Lafayette
This bronze bust at the New Hampshire Historical Society portrays the Marquis de Lafayette, the young French aristocrat who became one of America’s most enduring allies. Born Gilbert du Motier in 1757, Lafayette was only nineteen when he decided to support the colonies in their struggle for independence. Lafayette traveled to America at his own […]
The J. Stickney Tavern Sign
While exploring the New Hampshire Historical Society in Concord, I noticed this colorful wooden tavern sign. Like so many objects I encounter in museums, I photographed it because it caught my attention before I knew its story. The sign came from the Stickney Tavern, opened by William Stickney in 1791 near the corner of North […]
Morrill Brothers Building
Walking along North Main Street in Concord, the name high on this building immediately caught my attention: Morrill Bros. Just beneath it is the date 1876, while the lettering across the façade tells us exactly what customers once came here to purchase—watches, clocks, jewelry and solid silverware. The building dates to 1876 and was designed […]
E&P Hotel
I grew up in Concord, and like so many who called the city home, I spent countless hours walking up and down Main Street. Downtown was where we shopped, met friends, and enjoyed special outings. The storefronts changed over the years, but the buildings themselves seemed permanent. As a child, I rarely looked above the […]
The Merrimack County Bank Building
Walking along North Main Street in Concord, this stately brick building immediately caught my attention. Its elegant Federal architecture, tall windows, and classical entrance suggest that it has witnessed much of the city’s history. As I discovered, it certainly has. Completed in 1826, the building was constructed as the home of the Merrimack County Bank, […]
Campaign Banner from the Election of 1860
One of the exhibits that caught my attention was this colorful campaign banner from the presidential election of 1860. While political campaigns often seem like a modern phenomenon, Americans have been using banners, posters, and political imagery to influence voters for generations. This banner was created by members of the Republican Party in New Hampshire […]
John Gilbert Winant
Walking around the New Hampshire State House, I noticed a bronze statue standing quietly beside a simple granite bench. There was no dramatic pose, no military horse, no grand pedestal. Instead, John Gilbert Winant appears to be greeting visitors as though he had simply stopped to talk. It is a fitting tribute because humility was […]
The Eagle Hotel
Growing up in Concord, the Eagle Hotel was simply part of the downtown landscape. By the time I was old enough to notice it, however, its days as a grand hotel were already over. The Eagle Hotel closed its doors in 1961, when I was just a child, so I never had the opportunity to […]
New Hampshire State House
This is the New Hampshire State House in Concord, one of the most historically significant and enduring capitol buildings in the United States. Built between 1816 and 1819, it holds a unique distinction. It is the oldest state capitol in the country where the legislature still meets in its original chambers. This is not just a […]
