Portsmouth, NH

August 2, 2016  Portsmouth, NH

Haven Park was donated to the city by a lady named Eliza Haven after her death.

Civil War General Fitz-John Porter.  He was a Portsmouth native and at first, he was a successful Union General. He was accused of disobeying orders and later was relieved of his command.  Grover Cleveland pardoned him in 1886 and he was reinstated into the army.  

Pleasant Street is the site of the third oldest burial ground in Portsmouth.  Established in 1754, it contains the remains of wealthy merchant and seafaring families.  Some of the graves contain only the wives and it is thought that the husbands were lost at sea.

This is a little marina we came upon

The Wentworth-Gardner House  A nice wedding present given by the wealthy merchant family Wentworth to their son Thomas.

The Naval Shipyard

Prescot Park  This area dates back to the 1700s and originally included warehouses, piers, saloons, boarding houses and brothels.  By the 1930s, it had become very rundown.  The Prescot sisters, using a multi million dollar inheritance, purchased the property, tore down the buildings and created this park. Today it is owned by the city and they use a trust fund to maintain it.  There were people weeding and trimming on the day we were there.

Across the street from the park if the Point of Graves Burial site.  This is the oldest cemetery in Portsmouth, established in 1671

What was once The Red Light District is now a large area that includes Prescot Park.

The Liberty Pole. These Poles were erected before and after the Revolutionary war as a symbol of dissent against England.  Portsmouths Liberty pole was erected in 1766 by the Sons of Liberty after the passage of the Stamp Act.  On the pole was a flag with the words "Liberty, Property, No Stamp"  This is not the original pole.