List of colonial governors of New Hampshire facts for kids

The land that is now New Hampshire has a long history, going all the way back to the 1620s when English settlers first arrived. Its story is closely connected to its neighbor, Massachusetts. Sometimes, Massachusetts claimed New Hampshire's land, and sometimes, they even shared the same leaders!

New Hampshire was first settled in the 1620s thanks to a special land grant given to a man named John Mason. At first, there were only a few small towns near the coast. But as time went on, more people moved further inland during the 1700s. John Mason passed away in 1635, and the colonists took over some of his properties.

Later, in 1641, the people of New Hampshire agreed to be governed by the Massachusetts Bay Colony, which also claimed the land. Massachusetts ruled the New Hampshire settlements until 1680. That's when New Hampshire became its own royal colony, called the Province of New Hampshire, directly under the King of England.

In 1686, New Hampshire became part of a larger group of colonies called the Dominion of New England. But this didn't last long! The Dominion broke apart in 1689 after a big change in England called the Glorious Revolution. After that, Massachusetts temporarily took charge again. Then, Samuel Allen, who had bought John Mason's old land claims, became governor. From 1699 to 1741, New Hampshire and Massachusetts shared the same governor.

However, there were disagreements about the exact border between New Hampshire and Massachusetts. Because of these "boundary disputes," King George II decided in 1741 that the two colonies should have separate governors. He appointed Benning Wentworth, who was from Portsmouth, New Hampshire, as governor.

In 1775, when the American Revolutionary War began, New Hampshire's last royal governor, John Wentworth, had to leave the colony. In early 1776, New Hampshire created its own state constitution. Under this new plan, Meshech Weare was chosen as the very first President of the independent state of New Hampshire.

Early Governors of the Lower Plantations (1630–1641)

Permanent English settlements in New Hampshire began after land grants were given in 1622. These grants went to John Mason and Sir Ferdinando Gorges. Their land was located between the Merrimack River and the Sagadahoc (Kennebec) rivers. This area roughly covers modern-day New Hampshire and western Maine.

Settlers, including early leaders like David Thomson, Edward Hilton, and Thomas Hilton, started building towns on the New Hampshire coast and islands as early as 1623. These settlements grew along the Piscataqua River and the Great Bay. Mason and Gorges never actually visited New England. In 1629, they divided their land claims along the Piscataqua River. Mason took the land between the Piscataqua and Merrimack rivers and named it "New Hampshire," after his home county in England.

There were arguments between people who held land grants from Mason and Gorges about where their land ended. This led to a need for clearer leadership. Captain Walter Neale was chosen in 1630 to be the agent and governor of the "Strawbery Banke" (or "Lower") plantation. This area is now Portsmouth and nearby towns.

Neale went back to England in 1633. John Mason then appointed Francis Williams to govern the lower plantation in 1634. An early New Hampshire historian, Jeremy Belknap, said Williams was the governor until New Hampshire joined Massachusetts. However, another historian, Charles Tuttle, disagrees. He says there are no records before 1640 where Mason or Gorges called Williams a governor. Tuttle believes Mason appointed Henry Josselyn after Neale. He also says Mason's widow appointed Francis Norton in 1638 to look after the family's land interests.

Early Governors of the Upper Plantations (1631–1641)

The first governor of the "Dover" or "Upper Plantation" was Captain Thomas Wiggin. We don't know the exact date he was appointed. He was in the area in 1629 and 1631, and some historians suggest he was appointed governor by Mason and Gorges around then. He received a more official appointment in 1633. This was from Lords Brooke and Say and Sele, who had bought land in the area from Mason.

This territory included what is now Dover, Durham, and Stratham. Wiggin is sometimes called a governor in historical writings. People at the time referred to him as having "the power of Governor hereabouts." However, his powers seemed limited to managing the landowners' business, like giving out land. The landowners themselves didn't have the power to govern.

Wiggin and Walter Neale (from the Lower Plantation) apparently argued about their border lines. They supposedly almost got into a fight, but it's unclear if this happened in 1632 or 1633. In the fall of 1637, the upper communities joined together and formed their own government. It was led by the Rev. George Burdett.

Massachusetts Governors (1641–1680)

In 1638, John Mason's widow decided to stop financially supporting the New Hampshire colony. The plantations had to manage on their own for a while. During this time, the colonists took over much of Mason's property. In 1641, the New Hampshire towns agreed to join the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

The towns of New Hampshire sent representatives to the Massachusetts legislature. They were governed by Massachusetts's governors, who were elected every year.

Governor		Took office	Left office	Deputy governor
Thomas Dudley		May 13, 1640	June 2, 1641	Richard Bellingham
Richard Bellingham		June 2, 1641	May 18, 1642	John Endecott
John Winthrop		May 18, 1642	May 29, 1644	John Endecott
John Endecott		May 29, 1644	May 14, 1645	John Winthrop
Thomas Dudley		May 14, 1645	May 6, 1646	John Winthrop
John Winthrop		May 6, 1646	May 2, 1649	Thomas Dudley
John Endecott		May 2, 1649	May 22, 1650	Thomas Dudley
Thomas Dudley		May 22, 1650	May 7, 1651	John Endecott
John Endecott		May 7, 1651	May 3, 1654	Thomas Dudley
Richard Bellingham		May 3, 1654	May 23, 1655	John Endecott
John Endecott		May 23, 1655	May 3, 1665	Richard Bellingham
Richard Bellingham		May 3, 1665	December 12, 1672	Francis Willoughby (1665–71)
				John Leverett (1671–72)
John Leverett		December 12, 1672 (acting until May 7, 1673)	May 28, 1679	Samuel Symonds (1673–78)
				Simon Bradstreet (1678–80)
Simon Bradstreet		May 28, 1679	January 21, 1680	Thomas Danforth

First Royal Governors (1680–1689)

In 1679, King Charles II issued a special document called a royal charter for the Province of New Hampshire. This made New Hampshire its own royal colony, separate from Massachusetts. John Cutt was appointed as the first president and started his job on January 21, 1680. After he died, his deputy, Richard Waldron, took over.

The heirs of John Mason were still trying to get their inherited land claims back. Because of their efforts, King Charles issued a new charter in 1682. This time, Edward Cranfield was appointed as lieutenant governor. This government lasted until the Dominion of New England was created in 1686. Cranfield left the province in 1685, and his deputy, Walter Barefoote, temporarily replaced him.

Dominion of New England and Temporary Rule

From 1686 to 1689, New Hampshire was joined with other colonies to form the Dominion of New England. This was a large super-colony created by the King. When the Dominion fell apart in April 1689, the New Hampshire communities were left without a government.

They briefly set up their own government in January 1690. However, they soon asked Massachusetts for protection. So, Massachusetts Governor Simon Bradstreet effectively governed New Hampshire from March 1690 until 1692.

Governor		Took office	Left office	Lieutenant Governor
Joseph Dudley (as President of the Council of New England)		May 25, 1686	December 20, 1686	William Stoughton (as Deputy President)
Sir Edmund Andros		December 20, 1686	April 18, 1689	Francis Nicholson (appointed April 1688)
Simon Bradstreet (as de facto governor)		March 19, 1690	1692	Thomas Danforth

Second Royal Period (1692–1775)

From 1692 to 1699, Samuel Allen was the governor of New Hampshire. For most of this time, he stayed in London. He was busy with legal cases about the land claims he had bought from the Mason family. He only came to the colony briefly before his replacement arrived.

From 1699 to 1741, the governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay was also given the job of governor of New Hampshire. During this time, the lieutenant governor usually ran New Hampshire, acting as governor unless the main governor was actually present.

In 1741, the leadership of Massachusetts and New Hampshire was finally separated. This meant that during the time of the last two governors, Benning and John Wentworth, the role of the lieutenant governor became less important. John Temple, the last lieutenant governor, seemed to hold the title only.

One governor was appointed but never actually served. On February 8, 1715/6, Colonel Elizeus Burges was chosen to be the governor of both Massachusetts and New Hampshire. But before he could come to North America, people from Massachusetts paid him money to give up his appointments. So, Colonel Samuel Shute was chosen instead.

The "Commissioned" column in the table below shows when the governor's appointment was officially issued in London. It doesn't mean they arrived in the colony on that date. The "Left office" column shows when someone else replaced them, with a few exceptions. Two governors, Bellomont and William Burnet, died while still holding their positions. Governor Shute left his office by suddenly going to England on January 1, 1723. His time as governor effectively ended then, but he was technically still the office holder until Burnet was appointed in 1728.

The last governor, John Wentworth, fled the province in August 1775. This happened after the American Revolutionary War began and his rule was threatened. After he left, New Hampshire was governed temporarily. Then, in January 1776, Meshech Weare was elected as the independent state's first president under a new state constitution.

Governor		Commissioned	Left office	Lieutenant Governor	Notes
Samuel Allen		March 1, 1691/2	July 31, 1699	John Usher (1692–97)	Allen mostly stayed in London. He only arrived in New Hampshire in September 1698.
				William Partridge (1699–1701)
Richard Coote, 1st Earl of Bellomont		June 18, 1697	March 5, 1701/2		Bellomont was only in New Hampshire for a short time in 1699. He died in 1702.
Vacant
Joseph Dudley		April 1, 1702	October 7, 1716	John Usher (1702–1715)
Vacant				George Vaughan (1715–17)
Samuel Shute		May 10, 1716	January 1, 1723
				John Wentworth (elder) (1717–30)
Vacant
William Burnet		December 19, 1727?	September 7, 1729		Burnet was only in New Hampshire for a short time in 1729. He died in September of that year.
Vacant
Jonathan Belcher		December 11, 1729	December 12, 1741	David Dunbar (1730–37)
				Vacant
Benning Wentworth		June 4, 1741	July 30, 1767		Benning Wentworth was the son of the elder John Wentworth.
				John Temple (titular only, 1762–74)
John Wentworth (younger)		August 11, 1766	August 24, 1775		John Wentworth was the grandson of the elder John Wentworth and nephew to Benning Wentworth.