Downtown Concord Historic District - Concord, NH
Posted by: 
silverquill
N 43° 12.041 W 071° 32.181
19T E 293936 N 4786224
The Historic Downtown District of Concord reflects 270 years of history, including the State Capitol, Eagle Square, banks, store, hotels, theaters, homes, churches and a diversity of businesses. (Coordinates are for Eagle Square).
Waymark Code: WM1Q8P
Location: New Hampshire, United States
Date Posted: 06/22/2007
Views: 34
The land which Concord now occupies along the banks of the Merrimack River was settled thousands of years ago by Native Americans. The broad sweeps of the river valley, good soil for farming, and easy transportation on the Merrimack made the site of Concord equally inviting to English-speaking settlers in the eighteenth century.
Settled by immigrants from Massachusetts in 1725, the community grew in prominence during the eighteenth century. Some of Concord's earliest houses remain today at the north end of Main Street.
NEW HAMPSHIRE STATE CAPITOL - CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the years following the American Revolution, the City's central location made it a logical choice for the state capital, and in 1808 Concord was named the official seat of state government. Today the 1819 State House is the oldest state capitol in which the legislative branches meet in their original chambers.
Concord's location also made it a hub for inland trade and commerce. One of the city's best-known industries was carriage manufacturing, and here world famous Concord coaches were built throughout the nineteenth century. A fine example of these coaches can be seen at the Museum of New Hampshire History.
Furniture making and granite quarrying were also major local industries. The granite for the library of Congress in Washington, D.C. came from nearby Rattlesnake Hill, which to this day remains a major granite quarry. Because of Concord's central location, it became the northern hub of the railroad industry. For more than a century, scores of trains, headed in every direction, passed through the city daily.
PHENIX THEATRE - CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE
Abraham Lincoln spoke at Phenix Hall in 1860; Theodore Roosevelt spoke here in 1912.
Concord was also the home of the nation's fourteenth President, Franklin Pierce, and the Pierce Manse at the north end of Main Street is open to the public.
Concord was also the home of teacher-astronaut Christa McAuliffe. She is memorialized at the Christa McAuliffe Planetarium, the nation's most technologically sophisticated planetarium.
MERRIMACK COUNTY SAVINGS BANK - CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE
In addition to being the state capital, Concord is a center for health care in Northern New England and home to several major insurance companies. Its neighborhoods and its main street reflect almost 270 years of history.