Is there a worst time of year to visit New Hampshire? March, with the snow already melting into mud and cold drizzle. No glowing foliage, no frosted mountaintops, no sparkling summer lakes. Yet it was early March when Abraham Lincoln made his first and only trip to New Hampshire in 1860. It rained for much of his visit. Let's hope the weather did not sour his impression of the place.

Lincoln's four-city speaking tour of New Hampshire helped jumpstart his campaign for the presidency and left strong impressions on those who heard him. The event is being commemorated with events and exhibits in the communities he visited. And former Monitor editor Mike Pride has edited an updated version of a book originally published in 1929 that details Lincoln's visit: Elwin Page's Abraham Lincoln in New Hampshire.

Page's research was exhaustive. He tracked down old-timers who attended Lincoln's New Hampshire speeches. He analyzed old train schedules to gauge Lincoln's itinerary. And he traced Lincoln's exact paths through the cities he visited.

A traveler today can likewise re-create Lincoln's journey across New Hampshire with little trouble. While some of the sites associated with Lincoln's Granite State tour have changed beyond recognition, many others remain. And a handful of artifacts from that tour have also survived the decades, many of which are on display at local museums in celebration of the approaching anniversary of Lincoln's visit. Together, they give a glimpse of Lincoln before he became the chiseled monument in the history books, when he was an ambitious politician who also hoped to spend some private time with his son.

For those looking to follow in Lincoln's footsteps in New Hampshire, here's a guide on what to look for.

Concord

According to Pride and Page, Lincoln's New Hampshire tour was no minor political junket. Though not yet a candidate for the presidency, Lincoln already enjoyed a reputation as an up-and-comer by the time he arrived here, thanks to his campaign two years earlier against Stephen Douglas for the U.S. Senate. And two days before Lincoln arrived in the state, he delivered a well-received speech at Cooper Union in New York outlining his views on slavery. The New Hampshire visit gave Lincoln important contacts with Republican leaders in the Northeast and established support that would prove crucial in his nomination for the White House a few months later.

His first stop in New Hampshire, via train from Massachusetts, was in Exeter, where he picked up his son, Robert, then a student at Phillips Exeter Academy, and one of Robert's friends. Lincoln's visit was originally planned as a chance to spend some time with his son. But

as news of his visit got around, local Republican leaders raced to book Lincoln for a speech in their town.

His first appearance was scheduled for Concord. Unfortunately, the state capital today has perhaps the fewest existing connections to Lincoln's visit. And he spent only five hours or so in the city, the one leg of his trip where he didn't spend the night.

Lincoln arrived in Concord about 10:30 a.m. on March 1 at the old train station, where the Storrs Street shopping plaza now stands. The city's last station was torn down in 1960. Lincoln's guide in Concord was Frederick Smyth, a leader in state Republican circles who would later become governor.

Lincoln, Smyth and the two boys probably went straight from the station to the Phenix Hotel, where Lincoln stowed his belongings during his speech. The hotel was on North Main Street, where the CVS now stands. The hotel's location was convenient, next door to Phenix Hall, where Lincoln was scheduled to speak that afternoon.

Lincoln then traveled up Main Street to the county courthouse. The building was less than five years old at the time of Lincoln's visit and has been significantly remodeled since then, according to James Garvin, the state's architectural historian. A trial was under way as Lincoln entered the courtroom. But Lincoln's appearance impressed the presiding judge enough that he called a recess and chatted with the Illinoisan and his son.

Lincoln likely stopped back at the Phenix Hotel for lunch before his 1:30 p.m. speaking engagement. A pelting rain fell that day, so Lincoln's trip along Main Street must have been a muddy one, especially since the road was unpaved at the time. And Main Street is much changed since 1860. The State House has since been renovated beyond recognition, and many of the brick structures that line the street today replaced the shorter wooden storefronts of Lincoln's time.

The building where he spoke, old Phenix Hall, burned in the 1890s. It was replaced by the current Phenix Hall, which resembles the older hall. Both were tall, square brick buildings with large windows and auditoriums on their top floors.

Single page