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Article: Portsmouth: History
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- Cities of the United States
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Portsmouth: History
Shipbuilding, Trading Establish Portsmouth
When English settlers migrating north from Massachusetts Bay Colony reached the site of modern Portsmouth, they encountered the Piscataquas, Native Americans who were part of the Algonquin Federation. The settlers adopted the name Piscataqua for their new town but soon changed the name to Strawbery Banke, a comment on the lush fruit carpeting the area. By 1633, the townsfolk had built a grist mill that used the waters of the Piscataqua River, and the Great House, a large community residence.
In 1653 the 60 families living in the town petitioned to change its name to Portsmouth. When New Hampshire was separated from ...