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Portsmouth: One of History's Great Peace Negotiations

​Ongoing research reveals how the State of New Hampshire, people of Portsmouth and US Navy acted as hosts to the Russian and Japanese delegations in 1905. While President Theodore Roosevelt did not come to Portsmouth, citizen diplomacy played an important role in multi-track efforts that resulted in the Portsmouth Peace Treaty. Read more... 

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​THEODORE ROOSEVELT'S
1906 Nobel Peace Prize

TR in 1906 won the Prize as President for negotiating the peace between Russia and Japan that produced the Treaty in 1905. For more on Roosevelt’s diplomacy, the acceptance delivered on his behalf December 10, 1906 and the lecture he delivered in Norway himself in 1910.​ ​Read more...

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Treaty Exhibit: "An Uncommon Commitment to Peace" 

The exhibit at the John Paul Jones House Museum includes a day-by-day timeline of events during the 30 days the negotiators were in Portsmouth, artifacts from 1905 and changing exhibits focused on aspects of the Treaty and its commemoration. The companion catalogue includes additional background on the war.  Read more...​

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Living Memorial Cherry Tree Project

The iconic Washington DC cherry trees were a gift from Japan to the US because of the Portsmouth Peace Treaty. In 2012, the Japan America Society of New Hampshire began planting descendants of those trees gifted by the Japanese Foreign Ministry, at key sites related to the Treaty history, as a living memorial to the Portsmouth Peace Treaty and citizen diplomacy. Read more ...

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Portsmouth peace treaty forum

The Portsmouth Peace Treaty endures in the Portsmouth Peace Treaty Forum, established in 1994 as an organization committed to exploring diplomatic themes “in the spirit of the Treaty of Portsmouth.”  Read more ...

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Portsmouth Peace Treaty Day September 5th

Each year at the moment the Treaty was signed, 3:47 pm, citizens ring bells throughout Portsmouth and the state. The annual Governor’s Proclamation is read which “calls on the citizens of New Hampshire to observe the day with appropriate ceremonies and activities commemorating this important piece of New Hampshire history.” Read more.

The Japan-America Society is the 501c3 nonprofit that supports the efforts of the Portsmouth Peace Treaty Forum.
​To learn more and join, click here.

Treaty Exhibit catalogue:
​"An Uncommon Commitment to Peace"​

The companion exhibit catalogue includes the newly-documented timeline of events during the 30 days the negotiators were in Portsmouth. It also contains images by noted photographer Richard Haynes, of the exhibit artifacts from 1905. Read more...

Portsmouth's Sister City: Nichinan, Japan​

Nichinan, birthplace of Baron Jutaro Komura, lead diplomat for the Japanese delegation in Portsmouth, established a Sister Cities International agreement in 1985. The cherry trees at Portsmouth City Hall were a gift from Nichinan. Exchange trips between Portsmouth High School and Sister School -- Nichinan Gakuen Jr-Sr High School-- began soon after. Read more...

The Portsmouth Peace Treaty Trail​

The Portsmouth Peace Treaty Trail -- from venues for formal conference sessions to informal social settings, identified through original newspaper reports, diaries and letters from event participants -- to bring the 30 days in 1905 to life. Read more...

history of the War and the Peace​

Portsmouth Peace Treaty resources include: a detailed exhibit with historical artifacts including documents from Russia and Japan; the Portsmouth Peace Treaty Trail mapping the iconic sites of the Treaty summer; permanent historical markers and this website made possible by The Japan Foundation and recognized by the Library of Congress. Read more...