Information here will help teachers and students study how the geography of our state has shaped us in
the past and how it continues to influence our thinking. Included are lesson plans and activities, a
slide show, and outline maps.
Documents are in PDF format unless otherwise specified. They require Adobe®
Acrobat® or the free utility
Adobe®
Reader®.
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Sir Ferdinando Gorges and Captain
John Mason study their 1622 grant. |
The Boundary Dispute between New Hampshire
and Massachusetts, 1677-1741
Using primary and secondary source material provided for this lesson, students trace the development of the
separation of New Hampshire from the overwhelming influence of the larger colony of Massachusetts.
[HTML Version]
From the Coast to the River Valleys:
New Hampshire in 1761
New Hampshire has not always looked the way it does today. With the help of a few leading questions to
guide their thinking and a current town outline map, students study part of a map made in 1761 by Joseph Blanchard and Samuel
Langdon. Their investigation should lead to an understanding of the purposes of the historical map and to an appreciation
of the changes that have taken place in New Hampshire over the centuries.
Map of New Hampshire (1739)
This high-resolution map delineates the long-standing border dispute with Massachusetts that was settled in 1741.
It is accompanied by several suggestions for student investigation and follow-up study.
Land Use in New Hampshire: Farming
This lesson structures a field trip to a local farm along with discussion of Marilyn Wyzga's Exploring the Land
We Call New Hampshire to discover ways the natural environment has affected how people live in their community.
[HTML Version]
Cemetery Study for New Hampshire
History
While it focuses on a field trip to Laconia's Meredith Bridge Cemetery, this lesson is applicable to any cemetery.
The lesson includes a survey the results of which form the basis of follow-up classroom discussion. [HTML Version]
Census Data and New Hampshire
History
In this lesson, students graph population growth in selected communities and hypothesize reasons for the growth
pattern in a given community and for differences among several communities.
[HTML Version]
Main Street
Students identify and analyze changes in their community
based on photographic evidence and research. Comparing historical and contemporary maps, students find locales
depicted in old photographs. Later, using disposable cameras, they recreate the photographs (by angle and position)
and discuss changes to the locale.
Maps and Local History
Through the use of both old and recent maps, students learn the history of the town they live in. They will
observe and make connections between geography and human activity over time; also, they will gain knowledge of changes
in borders and roads and the influence of individuals and families in local history.
[HTML Version]
New Hampshire and the Five Themes of
Geography
Students create and work with visual representations
of the state's landscape that exemplify the five themes of geography: location, place, human-environment interaction,
movement, and region. Other activities are suggested as well.
New Hampshire Town Outline Maps
Two maps are included, each showing the outlines of New Hampshire towns—one with identifications, the other
without.
New Hampshire Settlement in the 1700s
Maps showing New Hampshire towns in 1750 and in 1775 allow for a discussion of the causes of rapid development
during the intervening years. (The maps are also part of the slide presentation "Settling New Hampshire Towns.")
New Hampshire's Population, 1767-2002
(Excel®)
How did the population of a town rise and fall over the past 200 years? How do growth patterns differ from one
town to another? This file contains a table of town populations and a graph that allows a user to compare growth
patterns of up to three towns at a time.
A companion document, New
Hampshire Census Exercise, will help students discover
the power of the population tables as they chart historical changes in the rankings of the state's most populous
towns.
Note: the file requires the Microsoft® Excel® application. It is preferable to save the file to your hard drive and open it from your Excel® application.
In this way, you can adjust screen size, if necessary, so that the entire graph is visible at once.
New Hampshire Census Exercise
Students use the document New
Hampshire's Population, 1767-2002 to trace historical
changes in population rankings of the state's most populous towns. The exercise helps students discover patterns
of growth and decline and may serve as the basis for further study of New Hampshire towns. In addition, students
have the opportunity to explore the tables and charts of the Excel® document.
New Hampshire Land Areas (Excel®)
What is the largest town in the state—not in population, but in area? How much of a community's area is water?
This file contains a table of the areas of towns and places in the state and a graph that allows a user to compare
land and water areas of up to three towns at a time.
Note: the file requires the Microsoft® Excel® application. It is preferable to save the file to your hard drive and open it from your Excel® application.
In this way, you can adjust screen size, if necessary, so that the entire graph is visible at once.
Settling New Hampshire Towns (slides)
[READ ME: Information
about viewing slide shows.]
Watch New Hampshire develop from its original four towns in 1623 up to the last town to be recognized in 1966.
The graphic presentation should provoke some questions: What is the pattern of development? Why were certain periods
slow in growth while other eras showed rapid growth? Why are some areas "unsettled" even today? The show
traces development in five-year increments. (A custom show within the document abbreviates the presentation to
25-year increments if desired.) [<1 MB]
"Sim" Settlement: Make Your Own Town
Given a map and a list of potential colonial settlers, students decide how best to balance private interest
and public good in order to lay out a new town.
Where New Hampshire's People Come From: How Diverse Is Our
Population (slides)
READ ME: Information about viewing slide shows.]
How diverse is the population of New Hampshire? This slide presentation shows the heritage of each county’s
residents as indicated by the 2000 census. The top ten listed ancestries for each county are represented in
a pie chart. The presentation also lists for each county the top ten immigrant groups as represented by
the number of foreign-born residents. [1.4 MB]
Lesson: "Bound to Be New Hampshire"
This lesson from the New Hampshire History Curriculum, Book 1, explores the nature of boundaries,
both man-made and natural, and helps students understand how boundaries have changed over time.
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