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New Hampshire
The Granite State, home of the White Mountains
New Hampshire is small but vertical — a compact New England state dominated by the White Mountains, the highest range in the Northeast. Granite bedrock lies close to the surface everywhere, giving the state both its nickname and its character: rocky, forested, and hard-worn. The north is rugged mountain country — the center rolls through lake-dotted hills — and a tiny 18-mile sliver of Atlantic coast, the shortest of any ocean-fronting state, fronts the sea in the southeast.
Mount Washington crowns the White Mountains at 6,288 feet (1,917 m), famous for some of the worst weather on Earth — winds there once hit 231 miles per hour, long a world record. Glaciers carved the notches and scattered the lakes, including big Lake Winnipesaukee in the central highlands. Forest covers more than four-fifths of the state. Manchester and the southern tier, within commuting reach of Boston, hold most of the people, while the granite hills and mountains define the rest.
Economy
New Hampshire has a high-income economy built on high-technology manufacturing, healthcare, and tourism drawn to the White Mountains, lakes, and autumn foliage. It is famous for a distinctive tax structure with no broad sales or personal income tax, and many residents work in the neighboring Boston metropolitan area.
Politics
New Hampshire carries 4 electoral votes and is a genuine swing state with a strong independent streak captured in its motto, Live Free or Die. It holds the first-in-the-nation presidential primary, giving the small state outsized influence over both parties' nominations.