FRANCONIA NOTCH, N.H., May 4 (UPI) -- The Old Man of the Mountain, the rock formation that became a symbol for all New Hampshire, will be honored each May 3, Gov. Craig Benson has proclaimed.
On the first anniversary of the rock formation's collapse from its location about 1,200 feet above Profile Lake, New Hampshire residents established a series of programs to remember the landmark.
Benson said each May 3 will be marked for Old Man of the Mountain observances. The state has set up high-tech viewers that allow the formation to be seen as it was before the collapse, an expanded museum and annual awards to those preserving the legacy of the Old Man.
Former Gov. Walter Peterson, Littleton, N.H., Town Manager Jason Hoch and Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests Chairman Mike Smith were the first given those awards.
The Old Man of the Mountain, a formation that graced the U.S. quarter in 2000, has been the official emblem of New Hampshire since 1945. It had been noted for centuries, including an 1850 Nathaniel Hawthorne story "The Great Stone Face" about the formation.
