Old man of the Mountain is gone

The day before the clouds, and the day after they left

The fall ended nearly a century of efforts to protect the 40-foot-tall landmark from the same natural forces that created it. Only stabilizing cables and epoxy remained Saturday where the famous ledges had clung. 
 

Here's two pictures that I've taken of the "Old Man" in the fall of 2001... I've been to the site many times over the years.

"There's only so much you can do," said Mike Pelchat, a state parks official who hiked up the mountain Saturday to make sure there were no signs of foul play. 

"With heavy rains and high winds and freezing temperatures, the combination was just right to loosen him up," he said. "We always thought it was the hand of God holding him up, and he let go." 

Only cables remain where the "nose" used to be

It was unclear when the outcropping actually fell from Cannon Mountain because clouds had obscured the area Thursday and Friday. A state park trails crew reported Saturday morning that the Old Man of the Mountain was gone. 

Gov. Craig Benson quickly declared that the face should be restored and said in a written statement that he was meeting with state officials and planned to form a fund to take donations for the project. 

"I am committed to doing everything possible to restore this important monument to our Granite State," he said. 

The Old Man was New Hampshire's most recognizable symbol. 

It appears on the state quarter, on state road signs and on countless souvenirs and tourist brochures. Millions of tourists have traveled through Franconia Notch to view the profile, 1,200 feet above Interstate 93 about 65 miles north of Concord. 

In the 19th century, the profile inspired New Hampshire statesman Daniel Webster to write: "In the mountains of New Hampshire, God Almighty has hung out a sign to show that there He makes men." 

Dick Hamilton, president of White Mountain Attractions, a tourism group, has commuted through the notch every day for more than 30 years, and said goodnight to the Old Man every night when he drove by. On Friday, with his view blocked by the clouds, he said, "Good night, boss, wherever you are." 

"I've just lost my number one attraction," he said Saturday. 

The state had used cables and epoxy to try for years to keep the rock profile from falling from erosion and the natural freeze-and-thaw cycle. Those who did the work had warned that a collapse was inevitable, but few thought they would live to see it. 

David Nielsen, whose father was the profile's official caretaker for decades before passing the job on to his son in 1989, had tears in his eyes as he looked at the mountainside Saturday. 

"The oldest person in my family just died," he said.
 

 Pics of the old man

This photo of the Old Man was taken in 1880
 

This stay was installed in 1916, the year the first crack was discovered.

The first caretaker, Edward Geddes rests on the "forehead" during the 1916 repair expedition.

Cable stays have held the rock for nearly 50 years.





The annual maintenance became sort of attraction in itself.

Epoxy Seals were used to waterproof the cracks

The Old Man was an outcropping of rock ledges at the top of a "U-Shaped" valley, cut by a glacier during the last ice age.  I took this picture in August of 2002