Old Man of the Mountain

Old Man of the Mountain was a natural rock profile on Cannon Mountain in Franconia Notch, New Hampshire, formed by five granite ledges that resembled an elderly man’s face. Likely shaped after glaciers retreated around 12,000 years ago, it held meaning in Abenaki and Mohawk tradition long before surveyors recorded it about 1805. In the 19th century it gained wide fame through figures such as Daniel Webster and Nathaniel Hawthorne, and eventually became an official emblem of New Hampshire, appearing on signs, license plates, and the state quarter. Despite repeated stabilization efforts, the fragile formation collapsed on May 3, 2003, but remained central to the state’s identity and is now remembered through a memorial near Profile Lake.

Franconia, New Hampshire · United States