In 1985, the picturesque Lord’s Hill area of Effingham was added to the National Register of Historic Places. This historic district covers 319 acres, and includes 37 buildings and structures, with examples of Greek Revival, Georgian, and Federal architecture, dating from 1750. Additional information can be found at the National Register of Historic Places and the Effingham Historic District Commission.

A state historical marker appears near the Meeting House, describing the First Normal School in New Hampshire:

“On the rise of the ground just west of here, on the second floor of the old Effingham Union Academy Building (1819), was the First Normal School in New Hampshire. It was in this Academy in 1830 that James W. Bradbury, later United States Senator from Maine, took charge of the school only on condition that it should be for the “instruction and training of teachers.” The idea was his own and at that time entirely novel. The Effingham Union Academy Building is a part of the Lord’s Hill District which was listed on the National Register in 1985.”

Marker Location: Located in the Lord’s Hill section of Effingham, in a triangular plot at the intersection of Route 153 and Hobbs Road, which leads to the old Union Academy.