We can only assume that all of you can name the only president to come from New Hampshire?
Yes, that’s right, it was Franklin Pierce, who served as the country’s 14th president from 1853-57.
He was born in Hillsboro and later settled in Concord, but if you’re a history buff, presidential connoisseur or merely paid attention in school, then you probably knew that already.
But there’s probably a lot you don’t know about the man who not only has a university named after him, but had his house moved across the city in 1971 to preserve it.
The house, known as Pierce Manse, is located on Horseshoe Pond Lane and is what you’d consider a tribute to the life of Pierce and his family.
While the family only lived in the house from 1842 to 1848, it’s full of personal items that belonged to “Handsome Frank” and his wife Jane, memorabilia from his presidential campaign and loads of great information.
Now if you’ve never visited the Pierce Manse, we can relate because we had never been there before. We had driven by numerous times leaving Kimball-Jenkins Estate, picked up trash near it and even took a picture of it for the historic buildings of Concord issue, but we had never stepped foot in the house that originally stood on Montgomery Street before being put on the back of a big truck and moved across town.
That is until last week.
Through Sept. 3, the Pierce Manse is open to the public for guided tours, Tuesday through Saturday, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. When you walk through the front door, you are greeted by well, a greeter. There are typically two guides on hand to take interested guests through the two story house filled with all kinds of Franklin Pierce goodies in it.
We happened to get Pierce Brigade President Joan Woodhead as our guide and was she ever informative. It’s almost like she knew Pierce personally, which isn’t possible since he died in 1869.
The cost for a tour, which can take anywhere from a half hour to an hour depending on how much you want to learn and the number of questions you ask, is $7 for adults, $6 for seniors and $3 for children. A family can go for $15. After Labor Day, tours are held from noon to 3 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays until Columbus Day.
So if you’re someone who likes history, enjoys seeing old things or want to brush up on your “Handsome Frank” knowledge, The Pierce Manse is for you.
Now there’s only one thing left to say: go try it.
