HISTORY MATTERS

The metaphorical party hats were on and the imaginary cake all decorated for the 125^th birthday of the Portsmouth Herald. According to newspaper records, the Herald was born on September 23, 1886. Then the editor asked the darned historian to check the date. Sorry to spoil the party, folks. You got your own birth date wrong. (Continued below)

HISTORY MATTERS : We owe everything to Captain John Smith, but he rarely gets his due around here. You probably think he’s just the guy from Jamestown who played around with the Indian princess Pocahontas in 1607. But he was also the guy who toured the Atlantic Coast in 1614, created our first decent map, and coined the phrase “New England.”  Smith’s map and his thrilling tales enticed adventurers (including the Pilgrims) and investors who founded our region.

SPECIAL HISTORY REPORT:

Portsmouth’s North End is best remembered as the city’s “Little Italy” neighborhood razed by renewal in the 1970s. But 200 years earlier it was a vital colonial neighborhood. Portsmouth welcomed the modern Portwalk development there (hotel, shops, residences) but historians balked when developers told the EPA the land had no historic significance. Turns out it did – big time. Read our special investigative coverage. (Continued below)

HISTORY MATTERS

Henry Tufts was no common criminal. The 50 homes he robbed and 50 horses he stole barely scratch the surface. He was jailed regularly from Maine to Virginia, and he frequently escaped. He was nearly hanged in 1794 for stealing six silver spoons. A crowd of 3,000 reportedly gathered to watch him die, but Tufts was saved from the gallows by the intervention of his mistress Nabby. (Continued below)