New Hampton, New Hampshire

New Hampshire landscape marking a first visit to the state

New Hampshire · First Footfall · Field Note

Live Free or Die

School memories, Atlantic sea miles, and the first time setting foot on New Hampshire soil.

Open Original

Sunshine State. Empire State. Aloha State. Wimps compared with New Hampshire’s motto: Live Free or Die.

Ordinary World · New England

A Place Named After England

It was named after England, so it was the “New” England: Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Rhode Island, and Connecticut.

The Call · State Motto

No Soft Edges

Other states sell sunshine, empire, or aloha. New Hampshire reduces the proposition to four words: Live Free or Die.

Answer the Call · School Memory

The Bigger the Summer Vacation

The harder the fall. New Hampton School turns the trip from a state-line crossing into a return to an earlier chapter.

Foreign Land · First Arrival

First Time on the Ground

This is the first time I have been on land in New Hampshire. I am looking forward to seeing some amazing natural beauty.

Trials · The Long Route Back

The East Coast by Sea

The last time I was on the East Coast was April 2010, onboard the Costa Atlantica, on our way across the Atlantic. We hugged the shoreline up to Quebec City and then crossed over to Old England. The route included Norfolk, Virginia—the birthplace of Naval History—Washington, D.C.; Newport, Rhode Island; Boston, Massachusetts; and Bar Harbor, Maine.

Image Archive · New Hampshire and New England

Five Frames of Arrival and Return

Live Free or Die image from New Hampshire

The Motto

Live Free or Die: four words with no room for a softer interpretation.

New Hampton School campus in New Hampshire

New Hampton School

The Bigger the Summer Vacation, the Harder the Fall.

Travel photograph connected to the 2010 East Coast voyage

The 2010 Voyage

A memory from the East Coast journey aboard Costa Atlantica.

Harvard Yard memory from the earlier New England visit

Harvard Yard

Pahk the Kah in Harvard Yard.

The Elixir · What the Route Revealed

New Ground, Old Coordinates

The coastline had already been traced by ship. Boston, Newport, Bar Harbor, and Quebec City were part of the earlier map. New Hampshire was different. This time, the journey moved from seeing the region to standing inside it.

Sometimes the first real arrival happens years after the first passage.

Archive

Show more