Mount Abraham (known as Mount Abe to locals) is a mountain in the

Green Mountains The Green Mountains are a mountain range in the U.S. state of Vermont and are a subrange of the Appalachian Mountains. The range runs primarily south to north and extends approximately from the border with Massachusetts to the border with Que ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...

. Located in the Green Mountain National Forest, its summit is in the town of Lincoln in Addison County, but its eastern slopes extend into the town of Warren in Washington County. The mountain is named after

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War ...

, former president of the United States. It is one of five peaks in Vermont's

Presidential Range The Presidential Range is a mountain range located in the White Mountains of the U.S. state of New Hampshire. It contains the highest peaks of the Whites, the most notable of which are named for American presidents, followed by prominent ...

. At , Mount Abraham is the highest point in Addison County, the fifth highest peak in Vermont, and one of the hundred highest peaks in New England. Its summit supports a small amount of

alpine tundra Alpine tundra is a type of natural region or biome that does not contain trees because it is at high elevation, with an associated harsh climate. As the latitude of a location approaches the poles, the threshold elevation for alpine tundra gets ...

vegetation.

History

Chartered in 1780, the town of Lincoln is named after

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

hero

Benjamin Lincoln Benjamin Lincoln (January 24, 1733 ( O.S. January 13, 1733) – May 9, 1810) was an American army officer. He served as a major general in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. Lincoln was involved in three major surrender ...

, not Abraham Lincoln as might be expected. Nearby Lincoln Peak is also named after Benjamin Lincoln. In Addison County, all place names containing the word “Lincoln” pre-date the birth of Abraham Lincoln. At various times, Mount Abraham has been known as Lincoln Mountain or Potato Hill. The latter name, which dates back to at least 1875, may have coexisted with the current name for decades. In 1897, a

United States Coast and Geodetic Survey The United States Coast and Geodetic Survey ( USC&GS; known as the Survey of the Coast from 1807 to 1836, and as the United States Coast Survey from 1836 until 1878) was the first scientific agency of the Federal government of the United State ...

team wrote "Potato Hill is sometimes called Mount Abraham Lincoln but it is better known by the former name." The latter name, which clashes with local usage of the surname "Lincoln," was eventually abbreviated to "Mount Abraham," a name that dates back to at least 1921 when the

United States Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), founded as the Geological Survey, is an agency of the U.S. Department of the Interior whose work spans the disciplines of biology, geography, geology, and hydrology. The agency was founded on Mar ...

began using that name on various maps. Those maps show Lincoln Mountain to be the range of peaks from Mount Abraham to Mount Ellen. On June 28, 1973, a pilot flying from Twin Mountain, New Hampshire to

Newburgh, New York Newburgh is a City (New York), city in Orange County, New York, United States. With a population of 28,856 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is a principal city of the Kiryas Joel–Poughkeepsie–Newburgh metropolitan area. ...

was maneuvering to avoid clouds when he hit trees on the north ridge of Mount Abraham. He and two passengers survived the plane crash. However, parts of the plane (a Cessna 182N, registration number N92431) are still on the mountain today.

Climate

Drainage basin

Mount Abraham stands within the watershed of

Lake Champlain Lake Champlain ( ; , ) is a natural freshwater lake in North America. It mostly lies between the U.S. states of New York (state), New York and Vermont, but also extends north into the Canadian province of Quebec. The cities of Burlington, Ve ...

, which drains into the

Richelieu River The Richelieu River () is a river of Quebec, Canada, and a major right-bank tributary of the St. Lawrence River. It rises at Lake Champlain, from which it flows northward through Quebec and empties into the St. Lawrence. It was formerly kno ...

Québec Quebec is Canada's largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, New Brunswick to the southeast and a coastal border ...

, the

Saint Lawrence River The St. Lawrence River (, ) is a large international river in the middle latitudes of North America connecting the Great Lakes to the North Atlantic Ocean. Its waters flow in a northeasterly direction from Lake Ontario to the Gulf of St. Lawrenc ...

, and then eventually into the

Gulf of Saint Lawrence The Gulf of St. Lawrence is a gulf that fringes the shores of the provinces of Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador, in Canada, plus the islands Saint-Pierre and Miquelon, possessions of France, in ...

. The southeast slopes of Mount Abraham drain into Lincoln Brook, then into the Mad River, the Winooski River, and into Lake Champlain. The east slopes drain into Bradley Brook, a tributary of the Mad River. The southwest face of Mount Abraham drains into the

headwaters The headwater of a river or stream is the geographical point of its beginning, specifically where surface runoff water begins to accumulate into a flowing channel of water. A river or stream into which one or many tributary rivers or streams flo ...

of the New Haven River, Otter Creek, and into Lake Champlain. The northwest face of Mount Abraham drains into Beaver Meadow Brook, a tributary of the New Haven River.

Hiking

The

Long Trail The Long Trail is a hiking trail located in Vermont, running the length of the state. It is the oldest long-distance trail in the United States, constructed between 1910 and 1930 by the Green Mountain Club. The club remains the primary organiza ...

traverses the summit of Mount Abraham. A popular day hike begins and ends where the Long Trail crosses Lincoln Gap Road in the town of Lincoln. From Lincoln Gap, the summit is north on the Long Trail. Alternatively, the Battell Trail, whose trailhead is also in Lincoln, terminates at the Battell Shelter after . From the shelter, the summit is north on the Long Trail. Mount Abraham offers one of the best panoramas on the entire Long Trail. Beyond the Champlain Valley to the west, stands

Mount Marcy Mount Marcy is the highest point in the Adirondack Mountains and the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, with an elevation of . It is located in the town of Keene, New York, Keene in Essex County, New York, Essex County. The mountain is ...

and the

Adirondack Mountains The Adirondack Mountains ( ) are a massif of mountains in Northeastern New York which form a circular dome approximately wide and covering about . The region contains more than 100 peaks, including Mount Marcy, which is the highest point in Ne ...

. In the opposite direction, one can see the White Mountains of

New Hampshire New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

to the east. To the south,

Killington Peak Killington Peak is the second highest summit in the Green Mountains and in the U.S. state of Vermont. It is located east of Rutland in south-central Vermont. Killington Peak is a stop on the Long Trail, which here shares its route with the Appal ...

may be seen away.

References

External links