Socially conservative towns in NH (Concord, Rochester: fit in, school, colleges)
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Theres a strong possibility I will be moving to NH soon. I am a big social conservative. I understand NH is socially liberal. That being said I am looking for some small towns that will be atleast socially moderate in regards to guns, God, life, etc.
Please don't turn this into a political debate thread. I am not interested in fighting with anyone over these positions. It is who I am and if you don't like it, tough, you are free to believe whatever you choose.
I have now visited NH 4 times over the last 2 months. It is breathtaking with natural beauty and I am Mr. autumn so I can not wait for that. Some thoughts:
Lake Sunapee/ New London area was great, but I hear it is very far to the left. Is this true?
Hillsboro area. Not very pretty, especially compared to everywhere else I went, the people seemed a little creepy, almost a certain deadness to them. Cold, hard to explain. Trying not to sound judgmental about them but still be honest.
Tlton/ laconia. Nice but super touristy. I heard this area is a little more conservative. It does have a private Christian school. How is the area north of here like Sandwhich etc?
Next trip I want to check put Pittsfield to Rochester area.
I do not want to be too far south, above Concord please. The idea of living so close to Mass residents using NH as a economic escape from their self make liberal utopia sounds awful to me. So please, no border areas.
There is a church that interests me called Next Level Church that has campuses from Concord to Rochester so I would want to be within 45 min of one of these places to meet some like minded folks.
Lastly the more rural feeling the better. I have an autistic son and having neighbors too close is a big no no. The average person is very much lacking in any understanding of loud autism melt downs. I have no patience for that intolerance, so no rich well to do status hounds nearby who would hate a loud little boy intruding upon their perfect life.
Look for towns with no money and lousy school systems and you will be getting close to your requirements. Berlin might suit you well as the main industry is a privately owned prison.
Some consider New Hampshire to be social liberal if they mean that to be people that mind their own business and do not shove their social agenda on anyone.
Theres a strong possibility I will be moving to NH soon. I am a big social conservative. I understand NH is socially liberal.
NH is more complex than simple labels like "liberal" or "conservative", both politically and socially. Most towns would qualify as socially moderate, with a strong tradition of "live and let live", with the possible exception of the most extreme outliers.
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That being said I am looking for some small towns that will be at least socially moderate in regards to guns, God, life, etc.
With our statewide preemption of firearms laws and all-but-shall-issue concealed carry, no need to worry about whether your town is "socially moderate in regards to guns". If you're just looking for neighbors who won't freak out if they see your NRA sticker and back seat full of rifles on Saturday morning, then just avoid the border/college towns and you'll be fine. You can also try to look for a place within a reasonable drive of a private membership "Fish & Game" club, there are several directories online.
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Lake Sunapee/ New London area was great, but I hear it is very far to the left. Is this true?
Hanover, Plymouth, Durham & New London are corrupted by their liberal arts colleges
Other towns leaning towards socially liberal include Bow, Keene, Littleton, Portsmouth, etc. Visit a coffeeshop or tavern in the town center of any candidate town and you'll quickly figure out the politics in play.
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Lastly the more rural feeling the better. I have an autistic son and having neighbors too close is a big no no. The average person is very much lacking in any understanding of loud autism melt downs. I have no patience for that intolerance, so no rich well to do status hounds nearby who would hate a loud little boy intruding upon their perfect life.
No problem finding rural feeling, that's +80% of the state.
Disturbing the peace is disturbing the peace. Most people here just want to be left alone to enjoy the peace and quiet of nature, IMHO this has nothing to do with being rich well to do status hounds.
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There is a church that interests me called Next Level Church that has campuses from Concord to Rochester so I would want to be within 45 min of one of these places to meet some like minded folks.
That requirement may limit your options. I'd draw 45-minute-travel circles around church locations, use that to drive your housing search.
As far as your town's relationship with God goes, don't expect religion to be a big part of public life in NH. We love to talk about politics and taxes and the weather, but I've never had anybody ask me what church I attend or really bring up religion at all, unlike what I experienced in the south and even in some parts of Chicago.
For more insight, see the "Which towns are liberal?" thread, here's a pretty good summary from that thread, emphasis mine.
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Originally Posted by GotBackHome
oh no! NH folks really don't care what anyone's religion is, or in general opinion about much of anything else... as long as you don't shout it out at people and insist they believe the same as you. It is very accepting of lots of things (except, as NHYRNUT pointed out, wanting handouts) as long as it's done in a .. quiet way. See, if you jump up and down and 'demand' rights or special treatment (or anything else) for something, people will walk away. If you just pitch in and quietly do your thing, that's cool. No one really cares what anyone's religion, skin color or number of eyes they have - just don't raise the taxes.
NH is more complex than simple labels like "liberal" or "conservative", both politically and socially. Most towns would qualify as socially moderate, with a strong tradition of "live and let live", with the possible exception of the most extreme outliers.
This. New Hampshire is very much "live and let live". No one is going to bother you for living the way you want, or believing what you believe. But the flip side is also expected of you, respect your neighbors' rights to live the way they wish and you'll be fine. There is no shortage of churches and religious communities here. The difference with some other parts of the country, however, is that a question about where you go to church is not a part of the default conversation when you meet someone.
You will not find a religious culture here like the Deep South or Utah. It's live and let live and religion is private. You are not judged for going or not going to church in NH like you would be elsewhere. Utah was a tough place for me to live because I wasn't Mormon. Got asked all the time which "ward" I belonged to. Once they found out I wasn't part of the club, see you later. Probably the closest I'll ever feel to being a minority because I was not part of the LDS church. If you go throwing your religion in everyone's face and aggressively evangelizing, you will get some pushback here. Religion is not usually part of politics here either, which is fine with me.
My brother is part of the Next Level Church in Rochester. I have not been proselytized by them nor do they go door to door looking for converts. My brother likes it and they are like family to him. They are pretty active in the area.
Not sure what they have above Concord though.
Not sure what you mean by "well to do status hounds", so I can't tell you where they are/aren't. Sounds a little judgmental to me though.
Do you know anything about NH? First there's no shortage of Conservatives in NH, but I've found more fall in line with Libertarianism. NH is also more gun friendly than a handful of Southern States so I'm not sure why your even worried about that. As far as the people from MA moving to NH, the Liberal nutjobs that wrecked MA are NOT the ones moving to NH. Those people view NH as no different than Alabama and stay far from it.
Yes we would like to think so but I have not found that to be the case. At least among the younger generations, religion is definitely viewed as a negative thing. It is true that no one will ask you what church you go to; but if people know you go to church they may look down on you. They probably won't verbally harass you-- but there are behind your back comments. That's kind of how it is around here-- behind your back belittling. If you don't go to church no one will care, but if you do some may think that is weird. The truth is that the ignorance I found here in terms of church or religious related topics are outstanding; though I suppose it is not surprising when you consider thr fact that New Hampshire has a second lowest rate of church attendance in the nation. Make no mistake I'm not saying that religious people get harassed I'm just saying that there is a general attitude of negativity in regards to religion (Christianity). Again this is mostly among the younger generations; attitudes among older generations are probably different, and likely less negative. I hope this is a helpful and not discouraging. Overall people are pretty good, and not overly judgmental just as long as you don't evangelize to anyone.
Theres a strong possibility I will be moving to NH soon. I am a big social conservative. I understand NH is socially liberal. That being said I am looking for some small towns that will be atleast socially moderate in regards to guns, God, life, etc.
Please don't turn this into a political debate thread. I am not interested in fighting with anyone over these positions. It is who I am and if you don't like it, tough, you are free to believe whatever you choose.
I have now visited NH 4 times over the last 2 months. It is breathtaking with natural beauty and I am Mr. autumn so I can not wait for that. Some thoughts:
Lake Sunapee/ New London area was great, but I hear it is very far to the left. Is this true?
Hillsboro area. Not very pretty, especially compared to everywhere else I went, the people seemed a little creepy, almost a certain deadness to them. Cold, hard to explain. Trying not to sound judgmental about them but still be honest.
Tlton/ laconia. Nice but super touristy. I heard this area is a little more conservative. It does have a private Christian school. How is the area north of here like Sandwhich etc?
Next trip I want to check put Pittsfield to Rochester area.
I do not want to be too far south, above Concord please. The idea of living so close to Mass residents using NH as a economic escape from their self make liberal utopia sounds awful to me. So please, no border areas.
There is a church that interests me called Next Level Church that has campuses from Concord to Rochester so I would want to be within 45 min of one of these places to meet some like minded folks.
Lastly the more rural feeling the better. I have an autistic son and having neighbors too close is a big no no. The average person is very much lacking in any understanding of loud autism melt downs. I have no patience for that intolerance, so no rich well to do status hounds nearby who would hate a loud little boy intruding upon their perfect life.
Thanks in advance!
Stay in Colorado Springs. New Hampshire is truly an independent "live and let live" state. Hard core social conservatives are not comfortable in that environment. You won't fit in anywhere in New England. As other people have said, what makes it seem conservative is fiscal responsibility and less government intrusion. There is disdain for the government, not people who think differently.
Last edited by thenewtexan; 08-08-2015 at 07:22 AM..
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