BY KEVIN SHALVEY

It might be an understatement to refer to Goffstown’s Ben and Jane Hampton as “patriotic” Americans.

Both have traced their roots back to Revolutionary War soldiers, visited all but one of the major Civil War battlefields and, on Thursday, July 4, the two were asked to make a presentation at Hopkinton’s celebration of the United States’ Independence Day.

The history presentations stem from the couple’s passion for their personal history, but Ben is also a retired Massachusetts high school history teacher and now lectures on history and politics at New Hampshire Technical Institute in Concord. Within the past year, Ben has given presentations via video to schools in New Hampshire and New Jersey, and he’s traveled to Virginia for a high school and middle school presentation.

During their presentations -- largely about New Hampshire’s role in the war -- the Hamptons wear authentic recreations of 18th-century garb.

The clothes, which people wore during the day and then to bed without bathing or changing, draw a usual response from children, said Jane.

“Most of the kids say, ‘Ewww,’” she said.

One tidbit the Hamptons might share at their presentation is the military prowess of New Hampshire’s John Stark.

“He developed the idea or the procedure of keeping almost-rapid musket fire,” Ben said.

The muskets, which were about 5 feet long and had 18-inch bayonets, were hard to handle and inaccurate because of misshapen musket balls, he said.

“It might go left, it might go right, it might go up, it might go down. They weren’t accurate,” Ben said.

So during the Revolutionary War battle of Breed’s Hill, in Massachusetts, Stark marched out about 40 yards from his troops and planted stakes. He told his troops to not fire until the British advanced that far. Then he told his troops to form lines that would fire one after another, while each took the time to reload -- a 13-step process for their muskets.

“Stark’s reputation as a military man, a good fighter and a military leader spread,” said Ben.

The Hamptons are two of more than 1,000 New Hampshire residents that come from Revolutionary War families.

Ben is a member of -- and historian for -- the New Hampshire Society of the Sons of the American Revolution, while Jane is a member of its sister group, the Daughters of the American Revolution.
To join the group, applicants must show genealogical proof of their ancestors. Visit www.nhssar.org for more information.