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John Stark is one of New Hampshire’s most famous military leaders. He was born in Londonderry. He was a farmer, hunter, and trapper. As a young man he was captured by Native Americans and spent about a year living with an Abenaki family in Canada, until he was sent back to New Hampshire. When fighting broke out between the patriots and the British in 1775, he raced to Massachusetts to defend the colonies. He fought in important battles like the Battle of Bunker Hill and the Battle of Trenton, where he helped George Washington. Stark was eventually promoted to general and in 1777 he led New Hampshire troops to victory at the Battle of Bennington. This victory helped save New England from a British invasion. Stark is still known as the “Hero of Bennington.” In 1809 he wrote a letter to some of the soldiers he had served with and used the phrase: “Live free or die; death is not the greatest of evils.” Those words, “Live free or die,” later became the state motto.

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John Sullivan was a well-known general from New Hampshire during the American Revolution. After America won its independence, Sullivan became an important political figure in New Hampshire. In fact, he helped convince the people of New Hampshire to ratify the U.S. Constitution in 1788. Sullivan was born in Somersworth and became a lawyer when he was a young man. When Americans grew unhappy with being ruled by Great Britain, Sullivan supported the patriots. He even led the raid on Fort William and Mary in 1774, when patriots took control of a British fort in Portsmouth. When America and Britain began fighting the American Revolution, Sullivan became a general in the American army. After the American Revolution was over, he became one of New Hampshire’s first governors. When the people of New Hampshire were deciding whether or not to support the new U.S. Constitution, Sullivan used all his influence to convince them that the Constitution created a good system of government for the new country.

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John Wentworth came from an old, wealthy New Hampshire family. His uncle, Benning Wentworth, was New Hampshire’s first royal governor. In 1767, John became New Hampshire’s second—and last—royal governor. He tried to keep the best interests of New Hampshire and its people in mind. But he was loyal to the king and tried to enforce the British laws, which made people angry. By the spring of 1775, New Hampshire patriots started ignoring Governor Wentworth, and he couldn’t do his job anymore. In the summer of 1775, he fled from Portsmouth with his wife and baby. He never returned to New Hampshire. During the war he lived in New York and then Canada, where he again was a royal governor.

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Josiah Bartlett was one of the three signers of the Declaration of Independence from New Hampshire. He was a doctor who lived in Kingston. Bartlett was a patriot and held secret meetings with other patriots in his attic. His house was even burned down once by people who opposed the patriots. He was on the N.H. Committee of Correspondence and was chosen to be in the Continental Congress. He was the second person to sign the Declaration of Independence. After the war, Bartlett continued to work as a doctor and even served as governor of New Hampshire at one point.

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Matthew Thornton was one of the three signers of the Declaration of Independence from New Hampshire. He was born in Ireland and immigrated with his parents to New England as a young child. He became a doctor and lived in Londonderry. He supported the patriots and was one of the first people to argue that America should not be a British colony. He helped write New Hampshire’s first constitution in January 1776 and was elected president of the New Hampshire Provincial Congress. In September 1776, he was chosen to be in the Continental Congress, and he signed the Declaration of Independence in November 1776. After the war, he was the first president of New Hampshire’s House of Representatives and a judge. He also operated a ferry, called Thorntons Ferry, that took people and goods across the Merrimack River.

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Nero Brewster was born in Africa. He was enslaved as a child and transported to New England. His enslaver was William Brewster, a tavern owner in Portsmouth who was involved in the patriot cause. It was common at that time for enslaved persons to use the last name of their owner. Nero Brewster was a leader in the African American community in Portsmouth, where he was known as “King Nero.” He was the leader of the group of enslaved men who sent a petition to New Hampshire’s government in 1779 asking for their freedom. When Brewster died in 1786, at the age of 75, he was a free man, but there is no record of when he was freed.

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Prince Whipple and his brother Cuffee were both born in Africa, enslaved as children, and sent to New England. Prince Whipple’s enslaver was William Whipple, a Portsmouth merchant who was a leader of the patriots in New Hampshire. It was common at that time for enslaved persons to use the last name of the slaveholder. Prince Whipple often traveled with William Whipple and was with him in Philadelphia when the Declaration of Independence was signed. He also fought alongside him during important battles of the Revolutionary War, like the Battle of Saratoga. He was one of the enslaved men who signed the freedom petition in 1779. In 1781, Prince Whipple married Dinah Chase, a free black woman, and in 1784, he was freed by William Whipple. Prince, his brother, and their wives Dinah and Rebecca lived in a house in Portsmouth where Dinah and Rebecca opened a school.

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Wentworth Cheswill (sometimes spelled Cheswell) was an important citizen of Newmarket, New Hampshire, and a patriot during the American Revolution. He is thought to be the first Black person elected to public office in America. He was elected town constable, similar to sheriff, in 1768. He went on to serve as town clerk, selectman, moderator, and representative. During the American Revolution, Cheswill was on the Committee of Safety and traveled to Exeter to bring news back to Newmarket. He also fought at the Battle of Saragota. Cheswill's grandfather, Richard Cheswill, was an enslaved Black man who purchased his own freedom and then became the first Black person to buy land in New Hampshire. 

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William Whipple was one of the three signers of the Declaration of Independence from New Hampshire. His father was a sea captain, and as a young man, Whipple went to sea as well, sailing back and forth between the Caribbean and New England, shipping wood, rum, and slaves. Later, he and his brother were successful merchants in Portsmouth. Whipple supported the patriots and was in the Continental Congress. He signed the Declaration of Independence in 1776. He was also a general in the New Hampshire militia and commanded troops at an important Revolutionary War battle, the Battle of Saratoga. After the war, he freed his slaves, including Prince Whipple. He also served in the New Hampshire legislature and on the Supreme Court of New Hampshire.

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This map shows the Charlestown peninsula, where the Battle of Bunker Hill took place. The American soldiers are where the blue lines are, and the British soldiers are coming ashore from the water. The New Hampshire troops commanded by General John Stark were along the long blue line and closest to the Mystic River. The British could not get past them.