The old man in the Granite State’s heart

From the show “An Enduring Presence: The Old Man of the Mountain,’’ at the Museum of the White Mountains, at Plymouth State University, Plymouth, N.H., through Sept. 16.

The museum says:

“On May 3, 2003, New Hampshire awoke to a world in which an iconic stony face no longer looked out over Franconia Notch. For over two centuries, the Old Man of the Mountain had captured the imagination of storytellers, artists, writers, statesmen, scientists, entrepreneurs, and tourists. Twenty years later the Old Man of the Mountain remains a prominent New Hampshire icon and can still be found as an official and unofficial emblem across the state and beyond. This exhibition explores the history of the Old Man of the Mountain and the ways in which its images and narratives symbolized and reflected the evolving identity of New Hampshire and its citizens. The extraordinary story of the people and technology involved in the innovative efforts to preserve the Old Man’s place atop Cannon Mountain will also be told.’’

New Hampshire's 'pinched little joykillers'

The New Hampshire quarter, minted in 2000. But the Old Man of the Mountain (which brooded over Franconia Notch) fell apart on May 3, 2003.

A composite image of the Old Man of the Mountain created from images taken before and after the collapse.

“New Hampshire has always been cheap, mean, rural, small-minded, and reactionary. It's one of the few states in the nation with neither a sales tax nor an income tax. Social services are totally inadequate there, it ranks at the bottom in state aid to education--the state is literally shaped like a dunce cap--and its medical assistance program is virtually nonexistent. Expecting aid for the poor there is like looking for an egg under a basilisk.... The state encourages skinflints, cheapskates, shut wallets, and pinched little joykillers who move there as a tax refuge to save money.’’

— Alexander Theroux (born in 1939 in Medford, Mass.), American poet and novelist. He’s a brother of the better known travel writer and novelist Paul Theroux.

The state seal. The ship is a reference to the state’s Port of Portsmouth, which long played a key role in the state’s economy.