The Unsung Gov. Meshech Weare - Who??

Find out more as the “America 250” celebrations begin at the American Independence Museum this September 18th.

The American Independence Museum and the Exeter Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution are pleased to co-host a special "America 250" presentation on NH's first Governor, Meshech Weare, who was the most powerful man in NH during and after the American Revolution.

This event is in honor of Constitution Week and will be held on Thursday, September 18th, 2025 at 1:30 - 2:30pm, at the museum campus at 1 Governors Lane in Exeter, NH.

The Exeter DAR will serve light refreshments, with a colonial flair.

This event is free and open to the public. The building is handicap accessible.

NH Scholars Rodney Obien and Brian Burford will lead the presentation on Gov. Weare of Hampton Falls and his part in the framing of the NH Constitution. After the presentation they will lead a workshop on historical transcription. You are welcome to stay for one or both.

Brian Nelson Burford is Senior Editor and Co-Founder of the Meshech Weare Papers Project. Burford served as the New Hampshire State Archivist from 2010 to 2020 and New Hampshire State Records Manager from 1995 to 2010. Burford holds a B.A. in History from Keene State College and pursued graduate studies at the University of Virginia. Burford is an affiliate faculty member of the M.A. program in History & Archives at Keene State College.

Rodney Obien is Program Director of the Meshech Weare Papers Project. He is currently Head of Special Collections & Archives at Keene State College and is an associate professor in the college’s M.A. program in History & Archives. He holds a B.A. in History from Virginia Wesleyan College and a Master of Science in Library Science from the Catholic University of American. He has held archival and curatorial positions at the National Trust for Historic Preservation, State University of New York at Buffalo, and Worcester Polytechnic Institute.