Hampshire - as old as the hills, the heart of England, and more people in it than…
New Hampshire - first settled by English colonists 1623, many times the size, and…what?
Just for fun, or curiosities, but what do we know that the original and the cheap knock-off have in common or contrast? 
Well for starters they both have a city of Winchester and Portsmouth.
Portsmouth for both is a seacoast port city.
Every state in New England is littered with place names lifted from the old country. Most of them are shared by most of the states.
I live quite near the coast of Hampshire, but I’ve only driven up the coast of New Hampshire.
I’ve shopped in Portsmouth, Hampshire (and climbed around on the Victory) as it’s only a few miles up the M27, but never been to/stopped in Portsmouth, NH.
I work in Winchester, Hants, but never been to the one in NH.
It’s probably going to piss some people off, but New Hampshire always wins the informal “what is the least notable state?” debates I have had. It’s geographically small, but not small enough to be notable. A small population, but not small enough to be interesting. It’s new England, but not as New Englandy as some others. There is really no generally recognized crop, prepared food, or product associated with New Hampshire, nor industry. If you ask random people to come up with a motto for New Hampshire you usually get something along the lines of "New Hampshire:…umm…well… It’s a state.
Hurricanes hardly happen.
I thought it was “Live free, or die.”
Which, in my opinion beats “The Land of Opportunity” and “The Natural State”.
And also ……
Years ago they shared the same Monarch a certain King George.
New Hampshire had the sense to disengage from him long ago. Remains to be seen if the good people of Hampshire will do the same.
New Hampshire spends much more of the year coated with ice than does Old Hampshire.
It probably has fewer black people, too.
It was a big reason why the British bothered to fight for the colonies. The tall straight pine trees from New Hampshire were perfect for ship masts and were not available anywhere in Britain. The Royal Navy needed a lot of ships masts. See: Pine Tree Riot
I was born in Portsmouth (UK) and spent my first 17 years in old Hampshire - despite some nice countryside I’d say it’s pretty bland too really. It’s probably okay if you can afford a large country pile - but then, where isn’t?
Really? In a competition with Delaware, Rhode Island, North and South Dakota and Oklahoma, you’d pick New Hampshire? At least New Hampshire has skiing and a mountain lots of people die on.
Does New Hampshire produce watercress?
Well, did the UKian Hampshire ever have one of its most famous natural landmarks fall apart?
And a record breaking wind speed.
I’m trying to come up with a “record wind-breaking” joke, but nothing is coming to mind.
I wonder if posts 16 and 15 are related.
:dubious:
It wasn’t me, it was the dog.
Ah, of course.
:dubious:
I always think of New Hampshire as the first state to host a primary for the presidential elections. I always assumed it was because they had nothing else going for them.