Portsmouth, New Hampshire frequently features on lists of
top small cities in America to live in because of its lively downtown, cultural
scene, and attractive historic neighborhoods . So I’ve wanted to stop and check
it out on my last few trips to New England, but weather conditions were poor
when I was in the area on my summer 2012 and winter 2015 trips to New England
and I decided to skip it. On this trip checking out Portsmouth was a high priority,
though. It was really right on my way anyway since I was planning to spend the
weekend with my friends Bob and Susan in Durham, NM where Bob teaches at
University of New Hampshire.

From Cape Ann I drove north on backroads trying to stay as
close to the coast as possible, but north of the cape the road runs inland
because of the coastal Newbury Marshes depicted in many 19^th century
landscape paintings I’ve seen recently in museums and the Plum Island National
Wildlife Refuge. North of Newburyport, though, and along New Hampshire’s entire
13 mile coastline, it’s possible to stay close to the beach. And New Hampshire’s
coast is quite well developed with summer beach resorts, many of which don’t
look all that different from the Jersey Shore . The weather was nice enough for
some beaching and the still very cold water didn’t deter people from taking
advantage of it, but I doubt many people were in the water.

Portsmouth lies just inland but along the wide bay of the
Piscataqua River which makes up the border between southern New Hampshire and Maine.
That location made Portsmouth an important port (hence its name) during
colonial times and the early years of the American republic when it was one of
the most populous cities in the country. A great many of the homes from that
era are still preserved, and it seems like half the houses in town have historical
markers in front with their original name (early owner) and construction date.
One of those is the John Paul Jones House, home of the founder of the U.S.
Navy, an association that continues to the present with Portsmouth with the
nearby Portsmouth Naval Shipyard.

Portsmouth’s main attraction of touristic interest is the
Strawberry Banke Museum, an open air museum of about 20 old homes and other
buildings with interpreters in period costume . To be honest, places like
Williamsburg or Strawberry Banke or Plymouth Plantation with people dressed up
in costumes assuming the identities of people who lived two or three or four
centuries ago are really not my cup of tea. And the large number of school
buses parked near the entrance confirmed my suspicions and $20 admission fee
confirmed my suspicions, so I skipped it in favor of wandering the streets of
the living town and having a lobster roll along the waterfront.

Apparently numerous other historical houses in Portsmouth
offer tours that aren’t as corny as a living history museum, but as best I
could tell none were open for touring until June. I honestly didn’t see many
other people around town who looked like they were there as tourists.

I can sort of see how Portsmouth makes its way onto lists of
best small cities in America. For a town of only about 30,000 it seems to have
a vibrant downtown area in an era when centers of many small cities are still
struggling . The town has a particularly large number of good (or at least expensive)
and even an at least one all-important brewpub. I couldn’t resist making a stop
at the Portsmouth Brewery for a pint of their potent Belgian-style Wit beer.
Besides the many eating places and drinking holes along Market Street there are
also a bunch along the waterfront around Martingale Wharf that seemed unusually
busy for mid-afternoon on Thursday. As far as I know there’s no major
university in Portsmouth and University of New Hampshire is at least 10 miles
away in Durham, but the waterfront bars and restaurants looked hopping with a
20s-age crowd. Maybe one of the most appealing things about Portsmouth is that
much of the town is in walking distance of the center, which is why so many of
the eateries and other retail businesses are concentrated there. I was
certainly able to hoof it all around town after ditching my car at a free lot
on the center’s outskirts. And everywhere you go is quaint and pretty as well,
without any giant modernistic monstrosities. Even the new hotels and loft
condominium buildings are relatively lowrise and conform to the town’s general
architectural style . So I’d have to agree that Portsmouth is likely to be one
of the nicest small cities in the country to live in.