NEW HAMPSHIRE 



4156 



NEW HAMPSHIRE 



East of the White Mountains, from which they 

 are separated by the valley of the Peabody 

 River, are a number of isolated peaks, thr 

 highest of which is Carter Dome, with an alti- 

 tude of 4380 feet. 



In the north the hills are rounded, the val- 

 leys wide and rolling and much of the timber- 

 land is cleared and devoted to farms. The only 

 large estuary is at the mouth of the Piscataqua, 

 where Portland Harbor lies half in New Hamp- 

 shire and half in Maine. Beyond this bay, 



>EWJHAMPSHIRE 



OUTLINE MAP OF NEW HAMPSHIRE 

 Showing boundaries, principal rivers, chief 

 cities, mining and quarrying centers, and the 

 highest point of land in the state. 



nine miles from shore, lies a group of bleak 

 rocky islets, the Isles of Shoals. 



Rivers and Lakes. The Connecticut, the 

 longest river of New England, rising in Con- 

 necticut Lake and forming the boundary be- 

 tween New Hampshire and Vermont, drains 

 the entire western section of the state south- 

 ward into Long Island Sound. The swift Mer- 

 rimac, one of the greatest power-yielding streams 

 of the world, rising in the mountains in the cen- 

 tral part of the state, drains the south-central 

 section. Its banks are lined with factories and 

 it is said to turn more cotton spindles than 

 any other river of the world. Saco and An- 

 droscoggin rivers, rising in the northern moun- 

 tains, flow south in New Hampshire, then 



turning east, make their way through Maine 

 to the sea. The Piscataqua, fed by Salmon 

 Falls, flows into the sea in a broad estuary, 

 where, as its name, meaning fishing waters, in- 

 dicates, are the best fishing grounds of the 

 state. 



The swift flow of these rivers is equalized by 

 waters stored in hundreds of beautiful lakes. 

 The largest of these is Lake Winnepesaukee, 

 sixteen miles long and six miles wide, dotted 

 with 264 wooded islands and enclosed by hills 

 and mountains. Squam, New Found, Winni- 

 squam and Ossipee lakes near Winnepesaukee, 

 Connecticut Lake and Diamond Pond in' the 

 White Mountains are other lakes of noted 

 beauty. 



Climate. New Hampshire has severe winters, 

 the ground being covered with snow and most 

 of the rivers frozen from autumn to spring. 

 Owing to the high elevation, the climate aver- 

 ages cooler than that of Maine. The warmest 

 section is on the lower Merrimac, but here the 

 average winter temperature is 21 F. The an- 

 nual snowfall in the northern mountains is 

 seven to eight feet. The summers are cool 

 and pleasant. The average temperature for 

 July is 70 F. in the south and 67 F. in the 

 northern part of the state. Rainfall is plenti- 

 ful and fairly evenly distributed, the annual 

 precipitation averaging forty-five inches. 



Agriculture. In general the soil is poor, con- 

 taining much stony boulder clay and glacial 

 drift. Fertile sections are found in the bottom 

 lands of the Connecticut and other rivers, and 

 farm lands occupy about one-sixth of the total 

 area of the state. Many farms in the sterile 

 sections of the north-central region have been 

 abandoned and sold for country homes, and the 

 roads improved and features of scenery adver- 

 tised to attract summer colonies. 



Live stock and poultry raising, dairying, fruit 

 and truck farming are extensive branches of 

 agriculture. The most important crop is hay 

 and forage ; others are potatoes and Indian corn. 

 Apples are the most plentiful of the fruits, and 

 the strawberry the most important small fruit. 



Forests. Nearly one-third of the state, com- 

 prising the White Mountain region and Coos 

 County, is forest country. Primeval forests 

 still yield red spruce, which is the chief mer- 

 chantable timber of the state and in the pro- 

 duction of which New Hampshire is exceeded 

 only by Maine. The output of spruce is influ- 

 enced by its increasing use in the manufacture 

 of paper and wood pulp. Much of the virgin 

 growth of white pine has been cut, but New 



