Mount Pemigewasset, or Indian Head, is a mountain in

Franconia Notch Franconia Notch (elev. ) is a major mountain pass through the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Dominated by Cannon Mountain to the west and Mount Lafayette to the east, it lies principally within Franconia Notch State Park and is traversed b ...

in the White Mountains in

Grafton County, New Hampshire Grafton County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New Hampshire. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 91,118. Its county seat is the town of Haverhill, New Hampshire, Haverhill. In 1972, the ...

, United States. It lies near the town of Lincoln. The mountain is known for the distinctive cliff along the southern side of its summit, which resembles the profile of a Native American head. Such shapes are formed when water enters cracks in the granite. Over time, the water freezes and expands, which further shapes and cracks the rock. The "face" measures from chin to forehead, and the mountain itself has an elevation of . The head shape has been noted since the early 19th century. It was partly hidden by trees near the chin, but a 1901 forest fire revealed the full profile. The mountain received more attention after a better-known

rock formation A rock formation is an isolated, scenic, or spectacular surface rock (geology), rock outcrop. Rock formations are usually the result of weathering and erosion sculpting the existing rock. The term ''rock Geological formation, formation ...

in the White Mountains, the Old Man of the Mountain, collapsed in 2003. The "Indian Head" will eventually lose its shape as well. ''Pemigewasset'' is an

Abenaki The Abenaki ( Abenaki: ''Wαpánahki'') are Indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands of Canada and the United States. They are an Algonquian-speaking people and part of the Wabanaki Confederacy. The Eastern Abenaki language was pred ...

Indian word meaning "rapidly moving", and it also names the nearby Pemigewasset River. The Native American Pemigewasset tribe lived in the area in the 17th and 18th centuries, and a legend of the Abenaki people tells that Chief Pemigewasset spied for enemies from the top of the mountain. According to an 1898 guidebook, "The view on a moonlight night from the top of this vast cliff is awe inspiring." The Indian Head Resort, a more than one-hundred-year-old tourist facility, has a view over the mountain as well as a viewing tower.

References

External links

Mount Pemigewasset
at Peakbagger.com, a mountain information site
Mount Pemigewasset (Indian Head)
at summitpost.org, a mountaineering website
Hiking Mt Pemigewasset - Indian Head (New Hampshire)
video {{DEFAULTSORT:Pemigewasset, Mount Mountains of New Hampshire White Mountains (New Hampshire) Rock formations of New Hampshire Landforms of Grafton County, New Hampshire Tourist attractions in Grafton County, New Hampshire Abenaki in the United States