Join our Curator for a Guided Tour of “Revolutionary Portsmouth”
Step into a house that witnessed the American Revolution and may have housed important Revolutionary Figures. Join our Curator, Gerry Ward, as he walks through this exhibition examining the choices of everyday citizens in Portsmouth during the 1760s and 1770s. Democracy or monarchy? Patriot or a Loyalist. What did the Revolution actually mean for local African Americans, Native Americans, or women? What was life on the homefront like? What did the town look like at this time, in terms of its architecture and material life?
Tours happen at 12:00 and 5:30 pm. This is a free tour, no registration required.
Join our Curator for a Guided Tour of “Revolutionary Portsmouth”
Step into a house that witnessed the American Revolution and may have housed important Revolutionary Figures. Join our Curator, Gerry Ward, as he walks through this exhibition examining the choices of everyday citizens in Portsmouth during the 1760s and 1770s. Democracy or monarchy? Patriot or a Loyalist. What did the Revolution actually mean for local African Americans, Native Americans, or women? What was life on the homefront like? What did the town look like at this time, in terms of its architecture and material life?
Tours happen at 12:00 and 5:30 pm. This is a free tour, no registration required.
In the 1760s and 1770s, residents of the American colonies, including Portsmouth, were forced to make a serious choice between democracy or monarchy, between being a Patriot or a Loyalist. Despite the Patriot’s emphasis on asserting longstanding English liberties, what did the Revolution actually mean for local African Americans, Native Americans, or women? What was life on the homefront like? What did the town look like at this time, in terms of its architecture and material life?
Eulabee Dix (1878-1961) Miniature of Sara (Mrs. Woodbury) Langdon (after John Singleton Copley), 1936. Watercolor, mounted in brass candle shields. Gift of Mrs. William Gorham Rice (1703). Photo by Ralph Morang.
The exhibition will conclude with a brief look at how the Revolution was remembered and portrayed at time of the U.S. Centennial in 1876 and during the Bicentennial era of the 1970s. How have perspectives changed on our “heroes” such as John Paul Jones, who visited Portsmouth twice during the Revolution as he was becoming the founder of the U.S. Navy?
In particular, the show will highlight striking and dramatic parallels between the 1760s-70s and today, when the survival of our democracy and longstanding Constitutional rights are once again in the balance and at the forefront of public discussion.
Exhibition Themes
Liberty
Liberty in the 1770s was an important concept. New Hampshire was the first colony to have its own constitution, signed on January 5, 1776. It referenced “our natural and constitutional rights and privileges” that were being (in their minds) taken away. However, these “rights and privileges” did not apply to all. Over time, many Americans have worked hard to make “liberty and justice for all” a more meaningful and inclusive phrase, but the struggle is ongoing.
Loyalist or Patriot?
After the Patriot raid in 1774 at Fort William and Mary in New Castle, the Seacoast area was not directly involved as a battlefield in the Revolution, although it was threatened by English sea power. Nevertheless, Seacoast residents had to make their choice: remain loyal to King and Parliament or support Revolutionary efforts. Several Patriots and Loyalists will be profiled in the show.
The Look of Portsmouth in 1776
Locally owned objects from the period, some stylish and others not so much, illustrate the choices residents made depending on their socio-economic status. These will demonstrate Portsmouth’s role in worldwide trade and also suggest how wealthy merchants and politicians viewed themselves in the 1760s and 1770s.
Major Figures: From Wentworth to Washington
Key figures of the period, including materials associated with George Washington, the Marquis de Lafayette, members of the Langdon family, as well as George III and Loyalist Gov. John Wentworth and his family. John Paul Jones, generally acknowledged as the founder of the American Navy, visited Portsmouth twice in the Revolutionary era to oversee the building of warships. He may have rented rooms in the Georgian house built in 1758 now known as the John Paul Jones House that has been maintained as a museum by the Historical Society since 1920.
Remembering the Revolution
Some works in the exhibition will indicate how the Revolutionary period was remembered and commemorated in the 1870s at the time of the American Centennial and again in the 1970s during the Bicentennial era. These modern examples of popular culture often shape our collective memories as much as academic, scholarly works. The Historical Society has a large collection of popular culture items, mainly from the collection of the late Dr. James C. Bradford, referencing John Paul Jones and modern perceptions of this complex figure.
Join us on Thursday, May 21 as we open the John Paul Jones House for the 2026 season. Open Thursday-Monday, 10am–4pm. View the special exhibition "Revolutionary Portsmouth" to learn about life during the American Revolution.
Join our Curator for a tour through this exhibition examining the choices of everyday citizens in Portsmouth leading up to and during the American Revolution.
Join our Curator for a tour through this exhibition examining the choices of everyday citizens in Portsmouth leading up to and during the American Revolution.
Semi-Monthly at 2:30 pm First and third Fridays of the month This 90-minute walking tour traces the path of Portsmouth during the 1770s. From a hub of British loyalty a series of events in the 1770s fanned the flames of independence and turned Portsmouth into a hotbed of Patriotism.
