Four Homes, One Tax Bill, and Endless History

By Lorry Young, Radisson Hotel Class of 2006

The Woodman Institute Museum located in Dover, NH offers four buildings to explore ...Woodman Home Galleries, Hale House, Damm Garrison, and Keefe House and Carriage Barn. I found this to be a very entertaining, and educational way to spend two hours in New Hampshire. Below is a short synopsis of this very interesting tour to explore in NH.

The Damm Garrison is a well preserved 300 year old house that is now a museum with a collection of over 800 items. Period artifacts enable museum visitors to experience colonial Dover.

The Woodman Home is quite unique with an extensive collection of rocks and fossils, Indian Artifacts, Mammals and Marine Life, Birds and Butterflies, Snakes and Turtles, and a Doll lovers collection. The top floor is a Memorial Museum, including a saddle used by President Lincoln.


The Hale House has a collection of art and period furniture circa 1800. The furniture collection includes a desk used by Dover's first Mayor, Andrew Peirce, and a table used by Rev. Jeremy Belknap where he wrote "A History of New Hampshire".

The Keefe House has more than 7,000 historical and genealogical documents including wills dating back to 1741 - even a 1771 tax bill from King George.

The Museum is open to the public 12:30-4:30 P.M. Wednesday through Sunday, except holidays, and is closed December 1 through March 1.

Snug in Your Bed at the Historic Colonel Spencer Inn

Submitted by: Tony Fitzherbert (with help from Ann Verow) both graduated of the Common Man and Spa Class 2010

While I am a formal writer, and my "OMG" experiences are reserved for waterfalls, mountaintops, spectacular views from NH trails, exquisitely brewed, delightfully chilled beers at brewpubs, meals at the Mad River Tavern or Foster's Boiler Room, and other NH natural or positive sensory experiences (of which there are many), I offer my take on the Colonel Spencer Inn owned by, friends and fellow Granite State Ambassadors of mine, Mary Jo and Scott Stephens.

Located on a grassy knoll on Route 3, a country byway just south of the village of Campton NH, is the historic Colonel Spencer Inn, an unusually cozy, friendly bed and breakfast. Built in 1764, the Colonel Spencer mixes the charm and hospitality of a country inn with the modern comforts and amenities of today's living.  The Inn is conveniently located moments away from the vibrant, bustling New England town of Plymouth, home of Plymouth State University and the myriad year round activities and sporting events associated with the school. If relaxation or sightseeing is your preference, the Flume, Cannon Mountain Tramway, The Basin, Kancamagus Highway, and numerous mountains are a quick drive just up nearby I-93. The Colonel Spencer Inn is in many ways a typical yet unique New Hampshire hostelry, where a stay would be a memorable highlight of any visit to the White Mountains.

The Colonel Spencer experience begins with a cordial welcome from your hosts, innkeepers Mary Jo and Scott Stephens, and their friendly chocolate lab, Guinness. You will be shown to your spacious comfortable room where you may settle in and relax. When you are ready to explore the area, Mary Jo and Scott will be delighted to direct you to the attractions for which the region is renowned, or guide you to one of the many different outstanding restaurants in the immediate area for an enjoyable supper. In season, a number of nearby summer theater performances, concerts, plays, and other cultural activities can round out a pleasant evening.  Should you wish to spend the evening reading a good book or playing board games, you can do so by the warm glowing wood fire in the inn's large fireplaces in the living and dining areas.

In your snug bed, you will be lulled to slumber by the chirping crickets and other nocturnal sounds of the woods. When morning arrives, you start your day with a sumptuous farm fresh breakfast in the Inn's bright sunny dining area freshly prepared by Mary Jo and Scott.

The Inn is a mere half hour from world class skiing at Loon Mountain, Cannon Mountain, and Waterville Valley, while Bretton Woods, and Wildcat are not much further away. When the warmth of Spring and Summer spreads through the mountains, and the woods come to life, easy hiking trails along rushing brooks and through dark evergreen groves, or strenuous ones up rugged mountains to overlooks from which you can see for miles. These adventures await outdoors enthusiasts. Or you can fish, canoe or kayak on the countless ponds and lakes in the area, or golf on one of the many beautiful courses in the region.  In the crisp air of fall, some of the most beautiful foliage anywhere is just outside the Inn's doors! The cove pocketed wooded shore of Squam Lake, the setting for the 1981 film version of the Ernest Thompson play "On Golden Pond", which starred Katherine Hepburn, is only a few minutes away. Exploring in the other direction may take you to Newfound Lake, the second largest body of water - and deepest glacial lake -  within the New Hampshire borders. On its shore is found Wentworth State Park featuring gentle forested hiking trails, a boat launching area and a wide sandy beach which will please the entire family. Hebron, a quintessential New England village at the North end of Newfound Lake, features a typical general store, a white spired wooden church, and 18th century vintage colonial homes surrounding a shaded, gazebo - adorned town green . What a perfect place to step back in time and perhaps take some pictures. Something to please everyone awaits you here!

Regardless of the season, the Colonel Spencer Inn is an outstanding headquarters for any northern New Hampshire stay. Its welcoming homelike atmosphere, delicious breakfasts, and comfortable rooms will be a highlight in an experience which you will delight in sharing with your friends and relatives when you return home from a trip to the Granite State. The Inn's slogan truly reflects the spirit of the area where you "Arrive as a guest, leave as a friend!". And your first visit to our region will not be your last - "You will love it here".

Take a run across the border ...

A little New Hampshire stand-up for you, courtesy of New Hampshire comedian Juston Mckinney. This video was filmed at The Music Hall in Portsmouth, NH in 2005. Enjoy!



If you like Juston's perspective as much as we do, he is scheduled to perform at the Claremont Opera House on February 12th at 8:00pm. Tickets are on sale now ... maybe we'll see you there!

It's Just Like Old Hampshire ... but New

To start of the new year, here is a little ditty to remind you all about the Granite State of Mind ...