Portsmouth 400th: On Jan. 4, 1945, Charles Dale begins first term as governor
The Portsmouth NH 400th Committee has curated moments in city history that will run bi-weekly in the Portsmouth Herald and Seacoastonline in honor of the city's 400th anniversary.
Charles M. Dale started serving his first term as New Hampshire’s 76th governor on Jan. 4, 1945, having previously served as mayor of Portsmouth. Prior to becoming governor, Dale was hired by Mary and Josie Prescott to contest the will of their brother, Charles Prescott, who had made a fortune as a partner in a successful retail chain.
Coming up:Portsmouth 400th invites community to kickoff party on Jan. 6: What's to come in 2023
Charles Prescott died after only a few days in Harmot Hospital in Erie, Pennsylvania, but was said to have changed his will on his deathbed under questionable circumstances to leave the bulk of his multi-million-dollar estate to that very hospital. Dale was able to prevail in a bitterly contested lawsuit that determined the bequest was illegal, thereby leaving the entire estate (minus significant legal fees) to Prescott’s sisters, who went on to buy out the land off what is now Marcy Street, which housed bars and bordellos, and ultimately donated the land to the city of Portsmouth to be maintained as a park forever. Portsmouth residents know that land today as Prescott Park.
This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: How NH Governor Charles Dale helped Portsmouth get Prescott Park
