New Hampshire
Incorporated 1776
Co-ordinates 44°N 71.5°W
New Hampshire, named after the southern English county of Hampshire, is the 5th least extensive and the 9th least populous of the 50 U.S. states.
It became the first post-colonial sovereign nation in the Americas when it broke off from Great Britain in January 1776, and six months later was one of the original thirteen states that founded the United States of America. In June 1788, it became the ninth state to ratify the United States Constitution, bringing that document into effect. New Hampshire was the first U.S. state to have its own state constitution.
It is known internationally for the New Hampshire primary, the first primary in the U.S. presidential election cycle. Concord is the state capital, while Manchester is the largest city in the state. It has no general sales tax, nor is personal income (other than interest and dividends) taxed at either the state or local level. (Full article...)