Curtice Ave
Next door to my grandparent’s home on Curtice Ave stands a duplex built around 1900 – a house that reflects the next step in the growth of the North End of Concord.
If my grandparent’s house represents the beginning of a neighborhood, this house represents its expansion.
By the turn of the 20th century, the North End was no longer just a place where a few homes had been built, it was becoming a fully formed community. The duplex was designed to hold more than one family, and it reflects a practical shift: more people, more families and a neighborhood growing.
Duplexes like this were not unusual. They allowed extended families to live close together and working families to establish themselves in a stable, affordable way.
This house is not just part of a pattern it is where my parents made their life. They bought this house, right next door to my grandparents. And in this home, all five of us were born.
This is not just a two-family house from 1900. It is the place where our family began to take shape. This was the North End of my childhood. My maternal grandparents lived in 6 Curtice, my paternal grandmother lived at 8 Curtice and we lived at 10 Curtice. Not distance, but proximity. Not separation, but connection.
The houses themselves reflect that idea. They are close together, built without excess space, forming a street where life is shared. In this stretch of Curtice Ave, two houses hold the story of my family across generations.
Read More From Nancy
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 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 […]
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 […]
