People

Portsmouth merchant and shipbuilder who served as Continental Navy agent, supervising construction of the Ranger. He personally financed New Hampshire's Saratoga campaign contribution and later served as governor and U.S. Senator.

New Hampshire lawyer and general who led the December 14, 1774 raid on Fort William and Mary — the first organized seizure of British military property by American colonists. He commanded Continental forces at Long Island, Brandywine, and the 1779 Sullivan-Clinton Campaign against the Iroquois.

Boston silversmith and patriot courier who rode to Portsmouth in December 1774 to warn local leaders that the British were about to reinforce Fort William and Mary. His warning triggered the two raids that seized the fort's powder and cannon — four months before his more famous Lexington ride.

Younger brother of John Langdon and Portsmouth merchant who served as a Continental Congress delegate and later as a Superior Court justice. He represented the merchant-patriot class that navigated Portsmouth's complex loyalties during the Revolution.

Portsmouth merchant who signed the Declaration of Independence and commanded NH forces at Saratoga. He later freed his enslaved manservant Prince Whipple, reportedly moved by the contradiction between fighting for liberty while holding another man in bondage.

The last royal governor of New Hampshire, whose family had governed the colony for three generations. His inability to prevent the Fort William and Mary raids and his subsequent flight to HMS Scarborough in August 1775 marked the end of British authority in New Hampshire.

Scottish-born naval officer who commanded the sloop Ranger, built in Portsmouth's shipyards, on the first American naval raid on British soil at Whitehaven in April 1778. His subsequent capture of HMS Drake made him an international hero. His famous "I have not yet begun to fight" came later aboard Bonhomme Richard.

Portsmouth-born sea captain who commanded the Continental frigate Raleigh, one of the original thirteen frigates authorized by Congress. A product of Portsmouth's maritime culture, he represented the deep connection between the town's shipbuilding tradition and the Continental Navy's early operations.