Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Profile:

The first known European to visit the area that became Portsmouth, New Hampshire, was Martin Pring in 1603. Later named Strawbery Banke, the town was incorporated as Portsmouth in 1653 in honor of the colony’s founder, John Mason, captain of the port of Portsmouth, England.

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Located on the estuary of the Piscataqua River, Portsmouth has New Hampshire’s only deep-water port, and so formed a key link in trade between the interior and overseas. As a busy port and shipbuilding city, Portsmouth’s wealth was expressed in fine architecture, and its Colonial, Georgian, and Federal buildings now draw tourists and artists to the city.

The Industrial Revolution caused other New England cities to outstrip Portsmouth as a manufacturing center, but the city now invites modern service and high-tech businesses to facilities like the Tradeport at the rebuilt Pease Air Force Base. As a further inducement for business, in New Hampshire there is no sales tax, no income tax, capital gains tax, and no higher assessments for commercial or industrial real estate.

Population:

City population: 21,000 in 2005 (estimated)
Metro area: 199,000 (Portsmouth-Rochester VT, NH portion)
Change in Portsmouth’s population in the 1990s: –5,468 (–20.8%)

Interesting Facts:

Elevation: 21 feet
Median value of a Portsmouth house/condo in 2005: $317,500
Median real estate property taxes paid for housing units with mortgages in 2005: $3,392
Number of single-family new-home construction permits issued in 2005: 36 buildings, average cost: $202,600
In 1774, Paul Revere rode to the town warning that the British were coming.
Portsmouth was a refuge for exiles from Puritan Massachusetts

Demographic:

The racial makeup of Portsmouth:
- White (92.7%)
- Black (2.1%)
- Two or more races (1.4%)
- Hispanic (1.3%)
- Asian Indian (0.7%)
- American Indian (0.6%)
- Chinese (0.5%)
Median age: 38.5
Ancestries: Irish (21.7%), English (19.3%), German (10.0%), Italian (9.3%), French (8.5%), French Canadian (5.9%)
Among people in Portsmouth age 25 and above, 41.9% have a college degree
Average household size: 2.04

Avg. Family Income:

Median household income in 2005: $51,400

Transportation:

Portsmouth is served by Pease International Airport, a former military base converted into a civilian airport
The port has a 66-foot wharf (33–35-foot water depth), 310-foot barge pier (22-foot water depth), two warehouse structures, and container port operations