Plan to drop French from N.H. signs elicits 'Non'
By William Lin
TORONTO GLOBE AND MAIL
May 20, 2005
It may just be a sign of the times, but French-speaking groups in New Hampshire are upset over a plan to eliminate French from highway welcome signposts on the state's southern border.
Gov. John Lynch announced last week that the state, where an estimated one-third of residents have French roots, plans to replace its plain blue-and-yellow border welcome signs with a more attractive logo.
Signs bordering Quebec will still retain the greeting Bienvenue, but the signs on the boundary with Massachusetts will lose the French wording.
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This isn't the first time the state has suggested removing French from the signs. An effort failed a decade ago. New Hampshire was once a haven for French-speaking Quebeckers willing to work in the state's growing textile mills.
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