Walking Through History in Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Modern tugboats in Old Harbor

Portsmouth, New Hampshire, is a sea faring town. Sitting along the Piscataqua River, the numerous islands and inlets have offered a deep water harbor that is protected from the worst ocean weather. In fact, it has been home to a U.S. Navy base since 1800. A visit to Portsmouth is a walk back in time.

The European settlement of the area began in the early 17th century. The development of Portsmouth’s shipping and ship building industries made it a key part of the “Triangle Trade” and it profited both from the importation of enslaved Africans to the Americas, and the use of the enslaved in building its shipping and trade industries. In 2003, during a construction project, a burial ground of African Americans was discovered.

The historic center of Portsmouth is filled with homes and businesses in buildings that show off the city’s past. There are fine examples of colonial, Georgian, and Federalist architecture.

St. Johns Episcopal Church

Burial Crypts

You will also find some old houses of worship including the South Parish, built in 1825. Temple Israel, the oldest permanent Jewish congregation in New Hampshire, was founded in 1910, and its home is in a building that was constructed in 1828 as a Methodist Church.

South Parish

Temple Israel

No trip to Portsmouth would be complete without a boat trip along the Piscataqua River. Portsmouth Harbor Cruises offers a wonderful two-hour cruise from Old Harbor out to New Castle Island, at the mouth of the river, and back. Along the way, we passed historic buildings and two light Houses, the Whaleback Lighthouse and the Wood Island Life Saving Station.

Whaleback Lighthouse

The cruise also offers a great view of the Portsmouth Naval Station, which is actually in Kittery, Maine. The station was founded in 1800. Today, the shipyard is home to the Navy’s Atlantic Nuclear Submarine Fleet. The base was also home to the Portsmouth Naval Prison, known as the “Alcatraz of the East.” The naval base is named in two major Hollywood films. The prison is the destination of Randy Quaid in The Last Detail, and it is where the Soviet submarine is heading at the end of The Hunt for Red October.

Portsmouth is a small city with a long history. It is a great place to spend a weekend exploring the past.