I am celebrating today… Cow Hampshire has reached its sixth month anniversary.
Looking back it’s obvious that at first I set “too lofty” goals. During the first three months I published a blog article almost every single day. Finally I realized that I needed some breathing room, in order to continue offering well-crafted and researched stories.
Sometimes the stories I thought would WOW readers were a yawn, and vice versa. The real “sleeper” article–unexpectedly popular–was about Roberta Brooke (Russell) Kuser Marshall Astor. Not only did that article help me to connect with some distant cousins, but also was used by the news media to research Brooke’s family, and to write about her alleged abuse. Over one thousand people have already read this single story. That intriguing story is still ongoing, and I continue to pray for the entire family.
The second most popular story was another of my personal favorites–“New Hampshire Motorcylists Invade Laconia” for 83rd Year, with over six hundred readers, many of them also enjoying “New Hampshire’s Love Affair with Motorcycles.”
As for overall hits, and where my visitors are from, unfortunately I didn’t post a world tracking map until May 12, 2006 (the map key says June, but it lies). Since that date over 16,000 people from every continent except Antarctica have been a blog guest. The most concentrated visits, as expected, come from within the continental United States, but European visitors are quickly gaining ground.
Since I signed up for Google Analytics, I have been able to glean some interesting facts about my blog. For example, at least 50% of my visitors find my blog by using Google and specific keywords. 79% of visitors are new (21% are returning).
I’m honored that people are interested in New Hampshire’s history, and I hope that I make it fun for people to discover our heritage. As Michael Crichton said in “Timeline:” If you don’t know history, you don’t know anything. You’re a leaf that doesn’t know it’s part of a tree.
Come celebrate with me. Read a story about New Hampshire’s history–or write one!
Janice
