Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
A view of Brașov’s Old Town.
Romania • 12 days, 11 nights
Legends of Romania: Castles, Ruins & Culinary Delights
from
Balkans road trip
Bosnia and Herzegovina • 9 days, 8 nights
Balkans Road Trip: Serbia, Croatia & Bosnia and Herzegovina
from
View all trips
Loading...
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
L’Escamoteur
Names on the bartop.
The Dive
Cacio e pepe lasagna combines two classics.
C'è Pasta... E Pasta!
Spaghetto taratatà is named for the sound of rattling sabers.
Giano Restaurant
The gnocchi here get blanketed in a sugo with braised oxtail.
Cesare al Pellegrino
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
Simplicity is key: Just a slice of bread with a sprinkling of salt and pepper is the perfect accompaniment.
The Sweet Second Life of Creole Cream Cheese
My rendition of frog legs, popping mushroom curry, pad prik khing with salted egg yolk, and sweet khanom thuai.
Recreating My Favorite Meal From Thailand
Inside London’s Gorgeously Curated ‘Art Restaurants’
The Fantastic, Fading Retro Diners of Hong Kong

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All the United States New Hampshire Littleton Pollyanna Statue
AO Edited

Pollyanna Statue

A town wears its heart on the sleeve of a smiling girl, arms flung wide open in a cheerful greeting for all who encounter her.

Littleton, New Hampshire

Added By
Dawn Felsing
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
CAPTION
Pollyanna Statue   CC BY 2.0
Pollyanna Statue   daveynin/CC BY 2.0
Pollyanna Statue   Doug Kerr/CC BY-SA 2.0
You can see the “Pollyanna Gateway” in the background, leading to the river and a covered bridge.   ickaimp / Atlas Obscura User
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

People remember good things better than bad things. Our brains recall the details of our happiest memories more precisely, and mercifully offer more impressionistic recollections of our worst. This tendency is called the Pollyanna principle, named for the eponymous hero of Eleanor Hodgman Porter’s 1913 children’s classic.

Pollyanna Whittier is an orphan who goes to live with her mean aunt in the dispirited New England town of Beldingsville, Vermont. Influenced by her father’s unending optimism, she simply "plays the glad game" whenever things get bleak—when she’s sentenced to eat bread and milk in the kitchen with the servant, Nancy, for being late to dinner, she profusely thanks her aunt because she loves milk and bread and Nancy.

Porter’s book sold over a million copies the first year and by 1920 had already gone through 47 printings, a Broadway play, and the first of many films. Porter penned the book’s sequel, Pollyanna Grows Up, in 1915, and several other writers have written at least 13 more since.

Pollyanna’s influence reaches much further than New England. Allan Moore's comic The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen features a character, Polly Whittier, who maintains an optimistic outlook despite attacks from the Invisible Man. Merriam-Webster defines a "Pollyanna" as “a person characterized by irrepressible optimism and a tendency to find good in everything,” and Ray Bradbury once described himself to William Plummer (in a scrapped interview for the Paris Review in 1976) as being “too much Pollyanna… But I don’t think I’m too over optimistic.”

Porter was born in Littleton in 1868, and left the town for the New England Conservatory of Music and never came back, but her forever optimistic character left an impression on the people of the town, and they commemorated her gracious spirit in bronze in 2002.

Related Tags

Optimism Statues Books Literature

Know Before You Go

Littleton is right off of I93 in New Hampshire.

Community Contributors

Added By

dfelsing47

Edited By

ickaimp, Michael Inscoe

  • ickaimp
  • Michael Inscoe

Published

July 10, 2017

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g46143-d8619353-Reviews-Pollyanna_of_Littleton_Statue-Littleton_New_Hampshire.html
  • https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eleanor_H._Porter
Pollyanna Statue
92 Main St
Littleton, New Hampshire
United States
44.307025, -71.773712
Visit Website
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Chutters Candy Store

Littleton, New Hampshire

miles away

Yonder Mountain Nursery & Gardens

Bethlehem, New Hampshire

miles away

The Frost Place

Franconia, New Hampshire

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Littleton

Littleton

New Hampshire

Places 2

Nearby Places

Chutters Candy Store

Littleton, New Hampshire

miles away

Yonder Mountain Nursery & Gardens

Bethlehem, New Hampshire

miles away

The Frost Place

Franconia, New Hampshire

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Littleton

Littleton

New Hampshire

Places 2

Related Stories and Lists

19 Places to Explore Children's Literature

List

By Jonathan Carey

Related Places

  • Edinburgh, Scotland

    Paperback Bookshop Rhinoceros

    This small sculpture honors a shuttered bookshop that was the site of a fiery act of protest.

  • The statue in situ in West Philadelphia’s Clark Park.

    Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

    Dickens and Little Nell

    The oldest of only three existing statues of the great novelist stands in a city he did not care for.

  • Mr. Lizard and the Gumnut Baby.

    Melbourne, Australia

    'Mr. Lizard and Gumnut Baby' Statue

    Children's author May Gibbs's beloved stories about the tiny, human-like "Gumnut Babies" are immortalized in bronze.

  • Wizard of Oz in metal.

    Juneau, Alaska

    Wizard of Oz Metal Statues

    On top of a sheet metal business in Juneau stand nearly a dozen charming Wizard of Oz statues.

  • Dr Seuss, Cat in the Hat, and a book with lines from Oh The Places You’ll Go.

    Springfield, Massachusetts

    Dr. Seuss Sculpture Garden

    Life-size bronzes of the Grinch, Cat in the Hat, Yertle the Turtle, Sam-I-Am, and the Lorax—and the author himself.

  • Mrs Mallard and her entire brood.

    Boston, Massachusetts

    Make Way for Ducklings Statue

    Mrs. Mallard and her brood are a beloved fixture in Boston Public Garden.

  • Peter Pan is the boy who never grows up.

    London, England

    Peter Pan Statue

    A statue marks the exact spot where The Boy Who Never Grows Up made his first literary appearance.

  • The Paddington Bear statue at Paddington station.

    London, England

    Paddington Bear Statue

    After nearly 60 years, there's still a bear at Paddington Station looking for help.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.