A composite image of the Old Man of the Mountain created from images taken before and after the collapse.
The reverse of the state quarter of New Hampshire features the Old Man of the Mountain, alongside the state motto 'Live Free or Die'.

The Old Man of the Mountain, also known as the Great Stone Face or the Profile,[1] was a series of five granite cliff ledges on Cannon Mountain in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, USA that, when viewed from the correct angle, appeared to be the jagged profile of a face. The outcrop was 1,200 feet (370 m) above Profile Lake, and measured 40 feet (12 m) tall and 25 feet (7.6 m) wide.

The first recorded mention of the Old Man was in 1805. It collapsed on May 3, 2003.[2]

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History[edit]

The formation was carved by glaciers and was first recorded as being discovered by a surveying team circa 1805. The official state history says several groups of surveyors were working in the Franconia Notch area at the time and claimed credit for the discovery.

Face-like stone formations are common around the world. The Old Man was famous largely because of statesman Daniel Webster, a New Hampshire native, who once wrote: "Men hang out their signs indicative of their respective trades; shoe makers hang out a gigantic shoe; jewelers a monster watch, and the dentist hangs out a gold tooth; but up in the Mountains of New Hampshire, God Almighty has hung out a sign to show that there He makes men."

U. S. stamp issued in 1955.

The writer Nathaniel Hawthorne used the Old Man as inspiration for his short story "The Great Stone Face," published in 1850, in which he described the formation as "a work of Nature in her mood of majestic playfulness."

The profile has been New Hampshire's state emblem since 1945. It was put on the state's license plate, state highway-route signs, and the back of New Hampshire's Statehood Quarter, which is popularly promoted as the only US coin with a profile on both sides. Before the collapse, it could be seen from special viewing areas along Interstate 93 in Franconia Notch State Park, approximately 80 miles (130 km) north of the state's capital, Concord.

Collapse[edit]

Defying attempts at preservation, including the use of cables and spikes for most of the 20th century, the formation collapsed to the ground between midnight and 2 a.m., May 3, 2003.[2] Centuries of wind, snow, and rain, as well as freezing and thawing cycles, finally caught up with the profile. Dismay over the collapse was so great that people left flowers at the base of the cliffs in tribute; some state legislators sought to change New Hampshire's state flag to include the profile; and many people suggested replacing the Old Man with a plastic replica — an idea that was quickly rejected by an official task force headed by former Governor Steve Merrill. On the first anniversary of the collapse, the task force unveiled coin-operated viewfinders near the base of the cliff. Looking through them shows how the Old Man used to appear.[2]

On February 7, 2007, plans were announced at the New Hampshire State Library for an Old Man of the Mountain memorial, to include five huge stones that, viewed from a raised platform, merge into a form that recreates the profile outline. It is being overseen by The Old Man of The Mountain Legacy Fund, a committee that succeeded the Old Man of the Mountain Revitalization Task Force. The Legacy Fund is a private 501(c)(3) corporation with representatives from various state agencies and several private nonprofits.[3]

Timeline of the Old Man[edit]

Old Man of the Mountain on 26 April 2003, about six days prior to the collapse. A late spring snow occurred the night before.

Notes and references[edit]

See also[edit]

External links[edit]

Coordinates: 44°09′38″N 71°41′00″W / 44.1606203°N 71.6834169°W / 44.1606203; -71.6834169