New Hampshire State Day, Motto, and Nickname

STATE DAY June 21 STATUS Unofficial DATE OF ADMISSION TO UNITED STATES June 21, 1788 RANKING IN STATE ADMISSION 9th FORMER DESIGNATION Province of Maine New Hampshire Colony HISTORY New Hampshire’s history of statehood runs parallel to the story of the creation of the United States. The state was the first to vote for the Declaration of Independence and the ninth state to ratify the Constitution of the United States. It provided leadership to the cause of independence before, during, and after the Revolutionary War. New Hampshire established its own government in January 1776, thus assuring its status as an independent state. With the signing of the Constitution, it became a founding member of the new country.  MOTTO "Live Free or Die" New Hampshire's official motto, arguably the most famous of any state, was adopted in 1945. It is attributed to a famous Revolutionary War figure, General John Stark, who used the phrase in a toast: "Live free or die. Death is not the worst of evils." NICKNAMES "The Granite State," "Mother of Rivers," "The White Mountain State" "The Granite State" highlights the fact that granite quarrying was a large industry in New Hampshire.(Granite is the official state rock.) The nickname "Mother of Rivers" accords recognition to New Hampshire’s mountains, which supply most of the rivers of the New England states. "White Mountain State" is a product of the New Hampshire Division of Travel and Tourism and refers to a region in the northern part of the state. -World Trade Press