Portsmouth Historical Society visitors examine the map charting the Hills’ journey south through New Hampshire, marking off stops and sightings along the route
History is not always what visitors expect—and this season, Seacoast members of the NH Heritage Museum Trail are leaning into the stories that surprise, unsettle, and stick with you long after the tour ends.
At the Portsmouth Historical Society, the exhibition Betty & Barney brings one of the Seacoast’s most famous—and most debated—stories back to the public eye. On view through November 2, the exhibition explores the lives of Betty and Barney Hill, the pioneering interracial Portsmouth couple whose 1961 report of a UFO encounter in the White Mountains became a cultural phenomenon. Free curator tours are scheduled for Fridays, July 3 and September 4. To learn more, visit portsmouthhistory.org.
Down the road at Albacore Park in Portsmouth, visitors can tour the USS Albacore, the groundbreaking research submarine whose hull design shaped modern submarine engineering. The Park is open seven days a week, 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. through Columbus Day/Indigenous Peoples’ Day, and recently served as the backdrop for the Silver Dolphin pinning ceremony of three U.S. Navy submariners in April. Visit ussalbacore.org to learn more.
In Dover, the Woodman Museum offers something a little different this fall with Spooky Night at the Woodman Museum, the first-ever paranormal investigation of its kind on the museum’s grounds. Guests will explore three historic buildings, including the 1675 Garrison House, alongside the Paranormal Five team, with proceeds benefiting the museum. To learn more, visit woodmanmuseum.org.
“People sometimes think of history museums as quiet places, but our Seacoast members are proving otherwise,” remarked Trail President Jeff Barraclough. “From Cold War submarines to alien encounters and a ghost hunt in a 17th-century garrison, there’s something happening this season for just about every kind of curiosity.”
The Seacoast is one of five regions represented on the NH Heritage Museum Trail, alongside the Lakes Region, White Mountains, Dartmouth-Sunapee Region, and Merrimack Valley.