Slashdot Mirror
Replacing New Hampshire's Old Man of the Mountain
Holdstrong writes "New Hampshire's iconic natural rock formation, the Old Man of the Mountain, fell from its mountain-side perch back in 2003. Award-winning architect Francis D. Treves is proposing a monument to replace it. His idea would feature a replica of the Old Man made out of 250 suspended glass panels and would allow visitors to enter the structure in order to gain views of the valley below. The design has received harsh criticism from the public, in part, Mr. Treves believes, due to the fact that quality images and accurate information about his design have been hard to come by. Replacing a beloved natural monument with a man-made one is sure to bring out emotions. Will a clearer understanding of the design help sway public opinion?"
I was in New Hampshire as a tourist from England with a friend from San Diego. She knew NH had this Old Man rock formation thing, and so we went to see it. We parked the car, and wandered along the track towards the lake, eyes up on the skyline waiting for this rock formation to appear round the corner from the hillside. But it didn't. It was September 2007. We'd got all the way to the viewpoint before we saw any mention of the fact it had fallen off four years earlier.
There were quite a few visitors there pointing at the empty space where the Old Man used to be.
I'm in NH also... I never really cared much for the old man, I mean it was kind of an interesting thing to look at and I'd occasionally bring friends from out of state to see it if we happened to be going through the area where it was located.
It didn't make me sad at all when it fell, I actually laughed because the state put that image on everything, coins, badges, logos, anything state related had the tied old man on it. Now they have to be a bit more creative when thinking up new state symbols. The face was slowly sliding apart for YEARS before it fell, there was a small crew that would add hooks and cables to the damn thing every year to keep it from sliding off, really it was just postponing the inevitable.
Personally I like NH, the cost of living is relatively cheap, taxes are some of the lowest in the country, and the state politics (while no where near perfect) are a lot more pleasing than nearly all the other states out there IMO.
I think the proposed glass replacement is a great idea I'd like to see more modern architecture here in the state, a visitors center would be good for tourism and a glass replacement would make the face look like a ghost, certainly better than the shapeless lump that sits up there now. I don't know why people would oppose this for ascetic or historical reasons, I mean it's not like the the old face will grow back. If you wait much longer people will forget the damn thing even existed, honestly I hadn't even thought about it for years until I saw this article.
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