Rambles About Portsmouth

More than 150 years ago, Charles Warren Brewster began publishing in his newspaper, The Portsmouth Journal of Literature and Politics, a series of essays on the history of his already ancient community. Brewster continued researching, writing and publishing the articles almost to the day of his death in 1868.

            In 1858, various articles were gathered together and published in a bound volume, which Brewster entitled Rambles About Portsmouth. In doing so, he placed in his debt succeeding generations of students of Portsmouth history. Then, to compound the deep obligation already owed him, a second volume of The Rambles was published in 1868.

            It’s with no thought of denigrating the value of Brewster’s work that Raymond A. Brighton, a “carpetbagger” of some 50 years standing is attempting to carry Brewster’s efforts forward another hundred years. Much the same format utilized by Brewster is being followed. However, only when necessary for background purposes do these latter-day Rambles touch on the historical period exploited by Brewster, whose concentration was largely centered on the 17^th, 18^th and early 19^th centuries.

            From the time he began as a reporter for the Portsmouth Herald in 1946, through the years of his editorship, and then into retirement, Brighton has written numerous essays on the more latter-day aspects of the city’s great story. This edition of Rambles About Portsmouth has been compiled from these articles, although revisions have been made to the originals for various reasons. Since 1988, Brighton’s column has appeared every Sunday in the Herald and the Herald has given permission for reproduction.