New Hampshire is a small state in Northern USA. It is one of the best states to live because of its quality of life and robust economy.
A city like New Hampshire with these attributes shouldn’t be lacking in producing influential people. In fact, they should spur residents to live a life of influence.
On our list of the most influential and famous people in New Hampshire, we included people who were basically born in the state. We also have people who were significantly raised and lived in the city of New Hampshire.
Stay with us as we look at these people who have reshaped history.
Top 20 Most Influential People in New Hampshire | Social Media Handles 2022
The most influential people in New Hampshire have been chosen from different careers, from politics to entertainment, writing and poetry, spiritual leaders, entrepreneurs and all.
In no other, these influential people in New Hampshire include;
#1 President Franklin Pierce
President Franklin Pierce was the fourteenth 14th president of the United States of America from 1853 to 1857. He is one of the most influential people in New Hampshire.
He was born in Hillsborough, New Hampshire on April 23, 1804, and died on October 8, 1869.
Pierce attended Hillsborough Center in childhood and was sent to the town school at Hancock at age 12 by his father Benjamin. Later that year, he transferred to Phillips Exeter Academy to prepare for college.
In the fall, he attended Bowdoin College in Maine and was self-trained as a lawyer through self-study.
He served two terms in the United States House of Representatives. After this, he left congress to run for Hampshire’s state governorship.
He served two terms having been elected twice as Governor of New Hampshire. He then ran for Presidency under Democratic Party.
Actually, he alienated anti-slavery groups by signing Kansas-Nebraska Act and forcing the Fugitive Slave Act.
He was married to Jane Appleton in 1834 and died in 1863. They had 3 children.
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#2 Mary Baker Eddy (1821-1910)
Mary Baker was a spiritual leader whose work bothered around science, theology, and medicine.
She studied the Bible her entire life after being miraculously healed from a life-threatening accident after reading one of Jesus’ healing.
In her quest to understand how she was healed, she read the bible and prayed for answers. She understood that healing is based on the divine laws of God. And she spent her entire life proving that they can be applied to every form of human suffering.
She later established the Church of Christ, Scientist, a Christian denomination of worldwide spiritual healers. In her life, she wrote and published 16 books asides from weekly journals and monthly magazines including the Christian Science Sentinel, The Christian Science Journal, and The Herald of Christian Science.
When she was 87 years old (in 1908), she found The Christian Science Monitor, a newspaper that provides world news in a balanced human coverage.
In 2014, Smithsonian Magazine named her among the 100 Most Significant Americans of All Time. Her book Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures was named among the “75 Books by Women Whose Words Have Changed the World” by the Women’s National Book Association.
Mary Baker Edy is one of the most influential and famous people in new Hampshire.
#3 Dan Brown
Dan Brown is the famous author of the bestselling novels, The Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons.
Da BRown’s books have been translated into 57 languages, and three of his novels, Angels & Demons, The Da Vinci Code, and Inferno, have been turned into movies.
The Da Vinci Code was the winner of 2005 British Book Award.
Born Daniel Gerhard Brown on June 22, 1964 in Exter, New Hampshire, Brown attended Exeter’s public schools until the ninth grade. He is a graduate of Amherst College and Phillips Exeter Academy where he was an English teacher before diving fully into writing in 1996.
Brown’s love for puzzles and codes which is easily seen in his works sterned from his childhood by his father. For example, on Christmas, Dan and his siblings didn’t get a gift under a tree but had to follow a treasure map with codes and clues throughout the house and even around town to find their gifts.
In his book, The Da Vinci Code, the treasure hunts from his childhood inspired chapter 23.
Did you know that Brown dabbled into music after graduating from Amherst? He self-produced a children’s cassette and also formed a record company called Dalliance.
Dan is one of the most famous and influential people in New Hampshire, even in death.
#4 Alice Brown
Alice Brown (December 5, 1857 – June 21, 1948) was a Novelist, poet and playwright. She is best known as the author of local color. She also wrote a chapter in the novel The whole Family.
Alice was born in Hampton Falls, New Hampshire and graduated from Robinson Female Seminary in Exeter in 1876. She worked as a school teacher before moving to Boston in 1884 to become a full-time writer.
She instructed that her personal works be destroyed at her death, and they were after her demise in Boston, Massachusetts in 1948.
Alice was a terrific author for many years as she produced a book a year until she stopped writing in 1935. Yale University and Holy Cross have a few collections of her letters she changed with Rev. Fathers.
She has over 40 novels to her name and is enlisted as one of the most influential people in New Hampshire.
#5 Ken Burns
|Wikipedia/personal website||https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ken_Burns / https://kenburns.com/|
Born Kenneth Lauren Burns on July 29, 1953, Ken is an American filmmaker. He is popular for documentaries, tv series.
His work is often produced in association with WETA-TV and/or the National Endowment for the Humanities, and distributed by PBS.
Some popular documentaries by Burns include The Civil War (1990), Baseball (1994), Jazz (2001), The War (2007), The Roosevelts (2014), The Vietnam War (2017), and Country Music (2019).
His works have earned him two Academy Award nominations, and he has won several Emmy Awards.
His love for filmmaking started as a child when he shot a documentary about an Ann Arbor factory with an 8mm film camera he received as a 17th birthday gift.
He attended Hampshire College in Amherst, Massachusetts where students are graded using narrative evaluations. Students are also allowed to choose concentrations instead of following a traditional major.
He earned a Bachelor of Arts in film studies and design in 1975.
Similarly, he studied photography under Jerome Liebling and Elaine Mayes.
#6 Bob Montana
Bob Montana was an author and illustrator of comic strips who lived in New Hampshire.
He worked as a writer and artist for the Walt Disney Company. He created the famous long-running comic strip, Little Archie.
He died in 1975 at 55.
Bob was born on October 23rd 1920 and died on January 4th 1975 in Meredith, New Hampshire.
Bob was born to Roberta Pandolfini Montana and Ray Montana, both were in show business. Because of this, Bob travelled a lot as a child.
He attended Haverhill High School, Massachusetts and graduated from Manchester High School Central in Manchester, New Hampshire.
#7 Adam Sandler
Adam Sandler is born on September 9, 1966. He is an American actor, filmmaker and comedian.
Adam was born to Judy a nursery school teacher and Stanley an electrical engineer.
He grew up in Manchester, New Hampshire. He attended Manchester Central High School. As a teen, Sandler was in BBYO, a Jewish youth group. He graduated from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts in 1988.
At the beginning of his career, he played a role in The Cosby Show and on the MTV game show Remote Control.
He starred in his debut film, Going Overboard in 1989. He started performing at comedy clubs having first taken a stage with his brother when he was 17.
Dennis Miller saw his act during one of his shows and recommended it to Saturday Night Live producer Lorne Michaels. He performed amusing original songs on the show.
Years later, he had his breakthrough in the movie industry where he is now a frontline actor. He has transitioned to Netflix where he features in films and even has an original western comedy film The Ridiculous.
Adam has been married to Jackie since 20003. They have 2 daughters Sadie and Sunny. His wife and 2 daughters often feature in his films.
#8 Mandy Moore
Born Amanda Leigh Moore on April 10, 1984, in Nashua, New Hampshire, she is an American songwriter, singer and actress.
Her parents are Stacy, a former news reporter and Donald Moore, a pilot for American Airlines.
She was only twelve years old when she went to the Stagedoor Manor performing arts camp. Natalie Portman and other celebrities attended this art camp.
When Moore was thirteen, she began working on music by herself.
One day while working in an Orlando studio, she was overheard by Victor Cade, a FedEx delivery man who had a friend in A&R at Epic Records.
Cade later sent this friend a copy of Moore’s unfinished demo, and Moore signed on with the label.
She became famous after her debut single Candy became number 41 on Billboard Hot 100.
She started her film feature in 2001 when she had a minor voice role in the comedy Dr Dolittle 2. Her main recognition came after her role as Jamie Sullivan in the romantic drama film A Walk to Remember (2002).
She won two screen actors awards for outstanding performance in the family drama series This is Us.
In 2019, Moore received a star on the Hollywood walk of fame.
#9 Triple H
Bonner received an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Florida.
From 1999 to 2003, he was a member of coach Billy Donovan’s Florida Gators men’s basketball team for four seasons. He was a first-team All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) pick and an honourable mention All-American by the Associated Press in 2003 as a senior.
Bonner earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration with high honours and a 3.96-grade point average (GPA).
In both 2002 and 2003, he was named the year’s top academic basketball All-American.
He gained prominence in WWE after co-founding D-Generation X stable. He became one of the best wrestlers in North America after winning his first championship in 1999. And became one of the most influential people in New Hampshire.
In 2019, he was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame as part of the D-Generation X group.
Paul Michael Levesque was born in Nashua, New Hampshire, on July 27, 1969.
He attended Nashua South High School, where he played baseball and basketball.
#10 Matt Bonner
Red Rocket is a former American basketball player born on April 5, 1980.
He was born in Concord, New Hampshire.
In addition to being the valedictorian of his graduating class, helped his school’s athletic teams win three state titles while he was a student at Concord High School.
In order to attend the University of Florida, Bonner received an athletic scholarship. From 1999 to 2003, he was a member of coach Billy Donovan’s Florida Gators men’s basketball team. He accumulated 1,570 points, 778 rebounds, and 165 three-point field goals throughout the course of his four seasons.
He was a first-team All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) pick and an honourable mention All-American by the Associated Press in 2003 as a senior.
Bonner earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration with high honours and a 3.96-grade point average (GPA). In both 2002 and 2003, he was named the year’s top academic basketball All-American.
He joined NBA in 2003. He signed with Sicilia Messina from 2003 to 2004. He played for Toronto Raptors from 2004 to 2006. Also, he played for San Antonio Spurs from 2006 to 2017.
#11 Sarah Silverman
Sarah Kate Silverman was born on December 1, 1970, in Bedford, New Hampshire. She is an American comedian, actress, and writer.
How do we identify Sarah’s comedy? It addresses social taboos, and controversial issues like racism, sexism, homophobia, politics and religion.
She has won two Primetime Emmy Awards for her television works.
She had a show – The Sarah Silverman Show which ran from 2007 to 2010 on Comedy Central.
Sarah first performed comedy at age 17 in Boston. When some correspondents spoke with her, she described the performance as awful. But, we can see that the awful performance birthed something enjoyed by every household in America today.
She is one of the most influential people in New Hampshire.
#12 H. H. Holmes
H. H. Holmes is better known as Dr. Henry Howard (May 16, 1861- May 7, 1896).
Although his influence is negative, H.H Holmes is one of the most famous people in New Hampshire.
He was a serial killer and an American con artist. In Chicago alone, he had over 50 lawsuits.
He was executed in 1896, after having a career in crime which includes insurance fraud, swindling, check forging, bigamous illegal marriages, murder and horse theft.
Holmes confessed to 27 murders while awaiting trial. Even with the confession, he was sentenced to death for only one murder.
He was executed on May 7, 1898, 9 days before his 35th birthday.
#13 Richard McDonald
Richard McDonald (February 1909 – July 14, 1998) is an American entrepreneur who found the fast food company Mcdonald’s in 1940.
McDonalds started in San Bernardino, California. They used the Speedee service to make their food. They hired Ray Kroc as their franchise agent in 1954. They ran the company until Kroc bought it in 1961.
Richard was born in Manchester, New Hampshire before moving to California.
Richard died from heart failure in a nursing home in New Hampshire at age 89.
#14 Ludwig Ahgren
Ludwig Ahgren is an American live streamer, Youtuber, podcaster, esport commentator and competitor.
Born Ludwig Anders Ahgren, on July 6, 1995, he grew p in Hollis, New Hampshire.
He attended Hollis Brookline High school in New Hampshire and graduated in 2013. He then went on to attend Arizona State University.
Ahgren lives in Los Angeles California.
He is known for his live streams on Twitch from 2018 to late 2021 before starting YouTube in the same late 2021. On YouTube, he broadcasts video-game-related content and even game shows, contests and gambling.
On November 9, 2021, Ahgren signed an exclusive deal with YouTube gaming.
#15 Eliza Coupe
Eliza Kate Coupe was born on April 6, 1981. She is an American model, actress and comedian. She is popular for playing the role of Jane Kerkovich-Williams in the ABC comedy series Happy Endings.
She was born in New Hampshire to Ernest and Kathryn. She attended Plymouth Regional High School and graduated in 1999.
After being an active member of her high school’s theatre program, she went on to attend the California Institute of the Arts and graduated in 2006.
After college, she took classes at The Groundlings and ImprovOlympic in improvisational comedy.
In 2007, she was featured in the film I Think I Love My Wife and this began her career as a screen goddess.
She has been married and divorced twice, first to an acting teacher and second to the founder of SuperLife.
Although she was diagnosed with dyslexia and ADHD in childhood, she is still one of the most influential people in New Hampshire.
#16 Trish Regan
Patricia Ann Regan was born on December 13, 1972 in Hampton, New Hampshire.
In1994, she was Miss New Hampshire and represented her home in the Miss America beauty contest.
She studied voice in Graz, Austria, and at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. This was before she enrolled in Columbia University.
Regan started her career in 2001 at CBS MarketWatch where she was a business correspondent that reported on CBS Evening News.
Over her career, she has worked with Bloomberg Television (2012–15), and Fox Business and Fox News (2015–2020).
#17 Toby Fox
Born Robert F. Fox, in Manchester, New Hampshire, Toby Fox is a video game developer and composer.
He is one of the famous people in New Hampshire for developing the video games Undertale and Deltarune. Because of these games, he has received a British Academy Game Award nomination and three Game Awards.
Earlier in his career, he composed music for the webcomic Homestuck. He also contributed to the soundtracks of Super Smash Bros and other independent video games.
#18 Maurice McDonald
Maurice is the elder brother to Richard, of the McDonald brothers.
He was born in 1092 and died of kidney failure on December 11, 1971.
They were born in Manchester, New Hampshire to Patrick and Margarete McDonald.
After starting their restaurant, they reduced the menu to consist of only 9 items. Their 15-cent hamburger, cheeseburger, soft drinks, milk, coffee, potato chips, and a slice of pie.
They had a goal of making $1 million dollars before they turned 50 and Ray Kroc made that happen after he franchised their restaurant.
#19 Adam Grandmaison
Popularly known as Adam 22, Adam John Grandmaison is an American podcaster and YouTuber.
He was born on November 24, 1983, in New Hampshire. He is the host of the popular podcast No Jumper.
In 2006, he started a BMX website The Come Up.
Later, he created a BMX biking team and BMX-based clothing line which at one point had a retail store on Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles called ONSOMESHIT.
From 2022 to the present, he has been working on his blog No Jumper and started the No Jumper podcast on YouTube that interviews rap artists and pop culture tastemakers.
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#20 John Irving
John Winslow Irving is one of the most influential and famous people in New Hampshire. He is a novelist, short story writer and screenwriter.
He was born on March 2, 1942, with the name John Wallace Blunt, Jr in Exeter, New Hampshire. His parents are writers and executive recruiters.
He gained international recognition in 1978 through his novel The World According to Garp. 5 of his novels Garp, Hotel, Meany, Cider, Widow have been translated into films.
John has based numerous awards including Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, Award for paperback general Fiction for The World According to Garp
These are the most influential and famous people in New Hampshire. We hope you enjoyed reading it, do get back to us in the comment box.
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