Fishermen and summer visitors discovered the beauty of Lake Sunapee in the late 1870s when the
railroad was built to Newbury and the first passenger steamboat, the LADY WOODSUM, provided access from the station to points around the lake. From that time through the 1930s, many summer hotels, lake resorts, and guest houses were built to accommodate thousands of summer visitors who traveled the lake on several large steamboats. From this early beginning, Sunapee Harbor was and remains the center of lake-centered commercial activities. Today the harbor provides public access with a boat launch and public parks. The days of the railroad, lake steamers, and grand hotels are long-gone, but the beauty of Lake Sunapee remains.