NH’s ‘Old Man of the Mountain’ memorial plans fall on hard times with donations way short

NH’s ‘Old Man’ memorial plans fall on hard times

CONCORD, N.H. — A planned memorial to New Hampshire’s state symbol, the Old Man of the Mountain, has fallen on hard times — much as the profile rocks of the Old Man fell off his mountain cliff and crumbled to bits in May 2003.

The famed rock outcropping hung 1,200 feet above Profile Lake in Franconia Notch State Park before it disintegrated. The profile has been memorialized on New Hampshire driver’s licenses and on the state’s commemorative quarter.

A three-part, $5 million memorial was to have been completed in 2010, but only about $650,000 has been raised in donations and pledges. Dick Hamilton, a board member of the nonprofit group in charge of the project, said donations “dried up because of the economy.”