Found at the mouth of the Piscataqua River in New Hampshire, the historic town of Portsmouth - only one hour drive north from Boston, Massachusetts - has a long naval tradition and boasts a long and proud past.

As well as being home to a major Naval Base, Portsmouth also boasts two magnificent, well-regarded museums; the Strawberry Banke Museum and the John Paul Jones House Museum. However, although they are significantly different in size, both offer a fascinating insight into the way that our forefathers lived by preserving samples of their way of life.

The Strawberry Banke Museum is not a traditional museum that houses many exhibits, but is made up of one large site containing many buildings that form one major exhibit! It attempts to connect visitors to the past by showing the workings of the local community as it developed, from the mid-17th century up to the 20th century.

Named after the original 1630 settlement on the banks of the Piscataqua River, Strawberry Banke Museum represents a series of snapshots from Portsmouth's history. Important local buildings from different eras have been saved from demolition and moved to the site to form a mini-town. During opening hours the museum is populated by characters that wear period costumes, and give a working flavour of times past.

The John Paul Jones House Museum is also in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. However, despite its name, it was never the American Naval Hero's home, but instead a boarding house at which Jones is reputed to have stayed on two occasions. But, regardless it offers some intriguing exhibits and an insight into the American Revolutionary War with the British, and the life and times of the captain of the USS Ranger.

Built in 1758, the house became one of the first hotels in Portsmouth, when the widow of owner and sea captain Gregory Purcell turned it over to a bed and breakfast establishment following his death to ensure a stable income for her and family. It was during that era that Jones stayed there twice in 1777 and 1781 for a total of 18 months.

It has operated as a museum since 1920 when the fine Georgian three story house was purchased by the Portsmouth Historical Society. At the time the house had been stripped bare by a previous owner and the Historical Society made a series of pleas to locals to donate items of historical value which now, some 80 years later, still make up the majority of the exhibits currently on show.

But, these two marvellous museums are not all that Portsmouth has to offer, it is a historic town that also offers many modern facilities, and as it is in only an hour's drive from Boston proves a popular destination for visitors.

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