Wondering where New Hampshire got the state motto, ‘Live Free or Die’? Yes, we know it inspired the title of one of the ‘Die Hard’ franchise movies (‘Live Free or Die Hard’), but no, Bruce Willis wasn’t the first to come up with it.
Here’s the scoop: it was coined by Revolutionary War hero and New Hampshire native General John Stark as part of a speech he wrote to celebrate the 32nd anniversary of the famed Battle of Bennington in 1777. Although Stark begged off from attending the 1809 anniversary celebration due to illness, he sent a toast titled: “Live Free or Die; Death is Not the Worst of Evils,” to be delivered by one of his wartime comrades.
The Battle of Bennington (which actually took place in New York, about ten miles from Bennington, Vermont) produced a decisive victory for the Continental Army, as it reduced British forces by over 1,000 men and gave a huge boost to the morale of the revolutionary movement.
The motto was adopted by the New Hampshire State Legislature in 1945, just as the Second World War was drawing to an end. As of 1977, it appears on all non-commercial New Hampshire license plates, replacing the comparatively less-exciting descriptive, “Scenic.”
For most New Hampshire-ites, ‘Live Free or Die’ reflects their signature stoic independence and strength of spirit. In that way, it’s exactly the right motto for this business-friendly, tax-averse New England state.
