Legends 91: Landslide

Humans have a special ability to create a lot of tragedy, and history is marked with many examples. But the natural world has always done its best to keep up, as these stories show. Narrated and produced by Aaron Mahnke, with writing by Molly Quinlan Artwick and research by Jamie Vargas. ————————— BUY EXHUMED TODAY: aaronmahnke.com/exhumed https://www.aaronmahnke.com/exhumed ————————— Lore Resources: Get Ad-Free Lore: lorepodcast.com/support https://www.lorepodcast.com/support Episode Music: lorepodcast.com/music https://www.lorepodcast.com/music Episode Sources: lorepodcast.com/sources https://www.lorepodcast.com/sources Official Lore Merchandise: lorepodcast.com/shop https://www.lorepodcast.com/shop ————————— Sponsors: HomeServe: Your next costly home repair is already coming. Act now and get protected with a plan through HomeServe. For 50% less your first year, go to HomeServe.com/lore https://www.homeserve.com/lore. SimpliSafe: Secure your home with 24/7 professional monitoring. Sign up today at SimpliSafe.com/Lore http://simplisafe.com/lore to get 50% off a new SimpliSafe system. Quince: Premium European clothing and accessories for 50% to 80% less than similar brands. Visit Quince.com/LORE http://www.quince.com/lore for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns. Gusto: Online payroll and benefits software built for small businesses. Try Gusto today at Gusto.com/LORE https://www.gusto.com/lore, and get 3 months free when you run your first payroll. ————————— To report a concern regarding a radio-style, non-Aaron ad in this episode, reach out to ads @ lorepodcast.com with the name of the company or organization so we can look into it. To advertise on this podcast please email: [email protected]. Or go to: https://advertising.libsyn.com/lore ————————— ©2026 Aaron Mahnke. All rights reserved.

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:00Aaron Mahnke?

  This episode is sponsored by Bram Stoker's Dracula from Audible. A new full cast audio thriller starring Ella Purnell from Fallout as Mina Harker, Jonathan Bailey from Wicked as Dracula, and an A-list cast including Maggie Gyllenhaal from The Dark Knight as Van Helsing, Amy Lou Wood from The White Lotus as Lucy, David Johnson from Industry as Dr. Seward, and many more. Mina and a small fearless band race against time to stop this ancient terror. Using her intellect, her resolve, and a gift for drawing the unseen lines between clues, Mina just may hold the key to bring down the Count if he hasn't already found his way inside her mind.

• 0:41Aaron Mahnke?

  Featuring a haunting original score by Lilan Ashkari from Audible's 1984 and spatial Dolby Atmos sound design, Audible's Dracula invites you to welcome literature's most shadowy figure into your home. Feel the terror of being hunted and the thrill of the hunt. Don't miss this year's best new audio thriller. Bram Stoker's Dracula, Audible's new full cast original adaptation. Written by Robin Ahearn and directed by Mary Lambert. Now on Audible, listen to The Darkness. Go to audible.com/listen to Dracula.

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• 2:19Aaron Mahnke?

  The woods up here can feel deceptively peaceful. Drive up US Highway 302 in the summer and everything's green and tranquil as far as the eye can see. Just a few months later, though, and the leaves are all reds and yellows, final pops of color before the pale winter sets in. In the middle of New Hampshire's White Mountains, the colors may change, but the stillness remains the same. Hiking out here can give you the eerie sense of being the last person on Earth. There are places in these hills where you won't see another human being for miles, where you can imagine everything has been this still for centuries before you and will remain so long after you're gone.

• 3:03Aaron Mahnke?

  But if you look closer at the granite under your feet, you might find something unsettling. Beneath the roots and snow and soil, there's violence hiding in the underbrush. The mountains themselves are a product of slow brutality. Hundreds of millions of years ago, tectonic plates crashed into each other, creating massive jagged peaks. Then, an immense glacier marched slowly through the range, the weight of the ice carving deep valleys into the earth. The White Mountains were born in heat and ice and pressure. And while today the tumult of their creation is a distant dream, every once in a while, the mountains wake up.

• 3:45Aaron Mahnke?

  It's an important reminder that in the White Mountains, you need to have respect for nature, because it certainly does not have respect for you. And that's in New Hampshire. "Live Free or Die" is more than a motto, it's a warning. I'm Aaron Mahnke, and this is Lore Legends.

• 4:20Aaron Mahnke?

  In the middle of New Hampshire's White Mountains is an area marked Nancy Range, right near one of the main valleys in the range, Crawford Notch. The tallest mountain in that range, it's Mount Nancy. And at the top of Mount Nancy is Nancy Pond. The small stream flowing downhill from there, well, they call that Nancy Brook. And when Nancy Brook hits a cliff falling nearly 300 feet to the bottom of Crawford Notch, there's a pair of waterfalls called the Nancy Cascades. And I'm sure it may come as a surprise, but all of these features are named after the exact same person named Nancy. Now, you might be thinking Nancy might be a last name of a white settler, or a local leader, or even a Revolutionary War commander.

• 5:05Aaron Mahnke?

  It wouldn't be out of the ordinary in New Hampshire. But Nancy was actually a first name, that of Nancy Barton. Not a wealthy landowner, but a poor servant, one who loved and who lost. In 1778, in the middle of the War for Independence, Nancy Barton was one of several settlers to Crawford Notch. Just three years before, builders had finished a road passing through that notch, making it accessible to American colonists for the first time. Nancy traveled to the notch, looking for work, and quickly found a home at the farm of Colonel Joseph Whipple. Now, by all accounts, she was a smart and capable teenager. Barely more than a child herself, she cooked for the Whipple's, ran the boarding house

• 5:50Aaron Mahnke?

  for their farmhands, and in one case even rescued the Colonel from kidnappers. That is, if the legends are to be believed. She was a hard worker who lived humbly on the farm, carefully squirreling away her pay to build a nest egg for her future. She wanted to make something of her life, and after a little while, she had the funds. All she needed now was someone to share them with. That someone came in the form of Jim Swindell, a worker on the farm. Soon after meeting, it was clear Jim and Nancy only had eyes for each other. In just a matter of months, they'd already breathlessly confided to friends and neighbors that the two were engaged. All that was left now was to start their new life together.

• 6:35Aaron Mahnke?

  To do so, Nancy entrusted Jim with her money. Now, it wasn't much, but it was her life savings, and he reassured her that it would be exactly what he needed to get them settled in a new home. But what should have been the start of their happily ever after marked a dark new chapter in the White Mountains' history. We don't know why he did it. Some say it was cold-hearted theft. Others claim that Nancy's employer, Colonel Whipple, was actually the one to blame, that he convinced Jim to use the money to join the American Army. What we do know is that while Nancy went on an errand to the nearby town of Lancaster, Jim and Colonel Whipple left for the city of Portsmouth, taking Nancy's life savings with them.

• 7:19Aaron Mahnke?

  Now, it should go without saying that Nancy hadn't gotten to where she was in life by simply letting things go. So the moment news reached her of her beloved's treachery, she struck out to find him. "She would follow the trail to Portsmouth," she told her friends, "and either bring back her lover or her money, but she wouldn't return empty-handed." Her neighbors quickly grew concerned as night fell and there was no sign of Nancy. It was the middle of December, and she had left without extra clothing or food, certain that she would quickly catch up with Jim and fix the whole mess. But when she didn't return, a search party followed the trail of the lovers through the woods. They soon found a camp with signs of recent activity.

• 8:01Aaron Mahnke?

  The search party determined that Jim and the Colonel had spent some time there, even building a fire, but had then moved on. Nancy had found the remains of that fire, but unable to rekindle it, she also moved on, hoping to catch them. Following their trail had forced Nancy to cross the frigid Saco River that cut through the notch, soaking her clothing, and before long, freezing and exhausted, she had collapsed. When the search party finally found her, she had frozen to death at the brook that would later bear her name. Now, according to legend, upon hearing about the fate of his beloved, Jim Swindell lost his mind. He died not long after Nancy.

• 8:44Aaron Mahnke?

  Today, the place where Nancy Barton is buried is on private land belonging to the Notchland Inn. Hikers who visit the area report that while Nancy may be at rest, something is still restless in those woods. Shrieks, laughter, and horrible groans can be heard coming from the trees near Nancy Brook. These sounds are said to be most pronounced in the dead of winter, the same time that Nancy died. Perhaps it's just the wind, given the eerie acoustics by the naked trees and the frozen ground, or perhaps in the bleak winter, someone or something is still out there searching. After all, on a clear night in the White Mountains, you can hear forever.

• 9:41Aaron Mahnke?

  Samuel just knew that he would put Crawford Notch on the map. It was 1825 and 37-year-old Samuel Willie had just moved into the area. He'd brought his wife Polly Lovejoy, five children, and two helpers, David Allen and David Nickerson. Although it was 50 years since the road had opened through the notch, the area was still mostly uninhabited. The couple's homestead was miles from their nearest neighbors, hidden deep in the shadow of the ever-present mountains. Despite this, Willie knew just what would bring the place back to life: an inn. He moved his family into an old house at the base of the mountains and quickly got to work renovating it. Before long, the Willie Inn and Tavern had two stories, stables, and a barn.

• 10:26Aaron Mahnke?

  And weary winter travelers following the frozen Saco would see its lights flickering in the distance, and they would sigh with relief. Hot food and warm beds were just ahead. A year into this new adventure, the Willie family thought that they had carved out a safe refuge amidst the wilds. That is, until nature decided to make itself known once again with a fury. In June of 1826, heavy rains caused a mudslide on the mountain above the Willie Inn. Boulders, trees, and thousands of pounds of rocks hurtled toward the inn. To the Willies, it felt like the mountain was collapsing right on top of them.

• 11:07Aaron Mahnke?

  And as the dust finally cleared, their house still stood, but their confidence was shaken. The family debated leaving Crawford Notch for greener, safer pastures, but ultimately, they decided to stay. Samuel Willie figured that the slide they had just survived must be the worst of it. It had brought down so much debris, there must not be much left on the mountainside. Although, just in case, he agreed to build a stone shelter on the cliffside above the inn. But he was certain that they were safe. The Willies didn't realize that a perfect storm was coming their way. After all, that summer in the mountains was dry as a bone. But the warm weather had hidden consequences.

• 11:49Aaron Mahnke?

  By August, the topsoil on the mountains had been dried to a fine powder. So when a torrential rainstorm hit on August 28th, the conditions were just right for a horrific mudslide. That night, the rain once again brought the mountainside streaming down toward the Willie farm. But when the clouds cleared in the morning miraculously, and once again, the house was still standing. It wasn't until later that evening that anyone noticed that something was wrong. A traveler named John Barker arrived at the Willie Inn. He found the inn deserted, with important papers and money still out on the bar, and the beds unmade. Needing shelter for the night, he made himself supper and attempted to sleep.

• 12:31Aaron Mahnke?

  But strange moaning noises kept him awake throughout the night. The following morning, he discovered what he believed was the source of the noise: an injured ox, which he freed from the collapsed barn. When Barker finally arrived in the nearby town, he was surprised to find the Willies weren't there, taking shelter from the storm. In fact, no one had seen any sign of them, save for the family dog, which had spent the past few days trying to get the attention of the Willies' relatives who lived in town. Finally, with Barker's account of the empty house, the townsfolk sent a search party to the Willie Inn. And there, they finally discovered the family's fate. Under the landslide, where the debris met a brook,

• 13:12Aaron Mahnke?

  the searchers found the bodies of Mr. and Mrs. Willie, two of their children, and their two hired hands. They appeared to have been crushed by the mud in the shelter that Samuel Willie had built after the previous storm. The other three Willie children were never found. In the years since, tales of the infamous tragedy spread across New England. Authors and artists trekked out to Crawford Notch to see the notorious landslide for themselves and the abandoned inn. Thomas Cole painted the place, and Nathaniel Hawthorne even used it as inspiration for a short story called "The Ambitious Guest." An influx of tourists followed, all wanting to see the macabre spectacle of the landslide and the ghostly house that survived.

• 13:55Aaron Mahnke?

  Tragedy, it seemed, was good for business. And although it wasn't the way that he wanted, Samuel Willie did in fact put Crawford Notch on the map. Hikers exploring the woods on what's now called Mount Willie have reported all kinds of odd experiences: screams and laughter on the trails when no one else is there, hikers disappearing before people's eyes, a ghostly dog still looking for his lost family. And some people even claim the strange phenomenon gave rise to a distinct turn of phrase. It's a particular feeling that happens when you suddenly feel uneasy, like seeing someone disappear on the trail ahead, or feeling like someone is watching you when you swore you were alone.

• 14:39Aaron Mahnke?

  It's honestly enough to give you the Willies.

• 14:55Aaron Mahnke?

  As well as natural disasters, the White Mountains have their share of natural beauty. As part of the New Hampshire leg of the Appalachian Trail, they see their fair share of nature lovers as well. Some hikers in New Hampshire join the Appalachian Mountain Club, living and working at one of the many shelters that dot the White Mountains. And if you believe the stories, some of them never leave. In late June of 1900, two members of the Appalachian Mountain Club set out on a hike through the White Mountains: 29-year-old Alan Ormsby and 63-year-old William Buckingham Curtis. Although Ormsby was more of a reader than a rambler, the two were experienced outdoorsmen that had attempted similar hikes before.

• 15:38Aaron Mahnke?

  Their plan was to cross the 32 miles from Mount Lafayette to Mount Washington, the tallest mountain in New England, just in time to attend the Appalachian Mountain Club's field meeting at the summit. And the first leg of their hike went well, with both hikers making good time crossing the range. They decided to spend the night in a hiking shelter on June 29th, planning to strike out fresh in the morning to summit Mount Washington. June 30th dawned cloudy and cool, but Ormsby and Curtis were in good spirits. After all, they were experienced mountaineers, and a little bit of gloom wouldn't hurt them. As they started up Mount Washington, employees at an inn at the base of it noticed the two hikers and tried to get their attention.

• 16:22Aaron Mahnke?

  If the hikers saw them at all, though, they probably just thought the employees were waving them on their way. The wind was picking up, and so they couldn't hear what the employees were shouting. But if they had, they would have known that it wasn't a greeting, but instead, a warning. Mount Washington has the unique distinction of being home to what some people call "the worst weather on Earth." In fact, three different storm tracks intersect at the peak, creating its own unique weather system from the surrounding area. And if that wasn't enough, the mountain holds the unfortunate record of having a recorded wind speed of 231 miles per hour, the fastest wind ever captured on Earth.

• 17:03Aaron Mahnke?

  And all of this is to say that although things looked safe at the base, up on the peak, a storm was brewing. As the rest of the Appalachian Mountain Club arrived at the summit house, concern began to grow. The wind was howling, and sleet was blowing so hard it even broke some of the windows. But Ormsby and Curtis were now hours late. Several club members went out to search for them, but the harsh conditions and the growing dark sent them back inside. The following morning, when the search resumed, the club quickly found what had become of the two hikers. Curtis was first. His body discovered a mile and a half below the summit at a spot called "The Lake of the Clouds." He had injured his head and fell down in the snow, and then frozen to death.

• 17:46Aaron Mahnke?

  A few hours later, Ormsby was found laying among the rocks near the summit. It became clear that after Curtis collapsed, Ormsby must have continued on for help before succumbing to the cold himself. His body was less than 100 yards from the summit house that he was trying so desperately to reach. In response to the tragedy, the Appalachian Mountain Club erected a memorial to the two hikers, as well as a fully-equipped shelter at the spot where they perished: "The Lake of the Clouds." And today, "The Lake of the Clouds" hut can house 90 people, and it's one of the most visited shelters on the Appalachian Trail. But hikers report that something other than nature enthusiasts has apparently taken up residence there,

• 18:29Aaron Mahnke?

  and it's listening to what people say. Even suggesting that Curtis and Ormsby made a mistake in pushing forward through the storm near their memorial is a bad idea. Visitors who have said those things out loud have reported an invisible force knocking them over. It's recommended instead that when passing the memorial, hikers should say that the tragedy could have happened to anyone, which honestly is a good thing to remember for anyone attempting a dangerous climb. Curtis's memorial plaque had a habit of disappearing from the boulder it was affixed to and reappearing inside "The Lake of the Clouds" hut. It did this over and over until it was installed permanently inside, where it has stayed ever since.

• 19:13Aaron Mahnke?

  Even in death, it seemed Curtis was still just trying to reach shelter. But relocating Curtis's plaque inside the hut hasn't stopped a more sinister being from taking up residence there. Just called "The Presence," it's been reported to stock the halls, flush toilets, open doors, and flicker lights. And in one particularly terrifying episode, it even scared an Appalachian Mountain Club member halfway to death. In the 1960s, an AMC club member named George had hiked up to "The Lake of the Clouds" hut to check on its condition before it opened for the season. He was supposed to radio back to base once he got inside. But when the rest of the club heard nothing from him, a search party was sent out.

• 19:56Aaron Mahnke?

  The searchers discovered George's backpack on the floor of the hut, with his fully-functional radio right beside it. And after a thorough search, they found George himself, cowering in a cupboard under the sink. After being taken to a hospital to recover, George was finally able to tell them what had happened. He said that when he stepped into the hut, he saw a horrific face staring back at him from each of the windows. And the thing was, the hut was still closed for the winter, which meant that the windows were boarded up, and he couldn't look through them. Whatever was staring back at him had been inside the hut.

• 20:48Aaron Mahnke?

  Not all those who wander are lost. And in the White Mountains, you certainly could wander forever. The trails that crisscross the jagged peaks invite everyone, whether it's to conquer the mountains' heights or just to enjoy the scenery. That is, as long as you take precautions. The mountains are beautiful for sure. The air is clear and the views are stunning. But just as easily as the mountains can bring peace, they can take much more away. And if you're not careful, you might find yourself still wandering the White Mountains long after you're dead and gone. In the 1970s, Ben Campbell was a staffer that worked at several of the shelters that the Appalachian Mountain Club ran in the White Mountains.

• 21:30Aaron Mahnke?

  By 1979, he became the hutmaster of the Greenleaf Station, meaning that he was the manager in charge of the building, its supplies, and its volunteers. The appointment spoke to the faith and the trust that his fellow club members had in his abilities, and he was happy to hold such a position in his favorite mountains. But he had always harbored a hope that one day he would be in charge of his favorite spot on the trail, the Lake of the Clouds Hut, the shelter that was established after Curtis and Ormsby perished on Mount Washington. In 1980, Campbell got the news he was waiting for. He had been named the new hutmaster of the Lake of the Clouds Hut for the next season.

• 22:11Aaron Mahnke?

  But his tenure was over before it even began, because Ben Campbell sadly fell to his death that year while hiking in Scotland on the other side of the sea. As a memorial to him, his family brought his hiking boots to rest at Greenleaf Station, where he had spent much of his career. But it seemed that Ben didn't want to stay still. Greenleaf visitors reported hearing strange footsteps echoing through the hut when no one was awake. The boots would go missing and then reappear at other shelters, as if the owner had taken them for a walk. Finally, the boots were nailed to a wall at the Lake of the Clouds Hut, Campbell's favorite spot, and ever since, they've managed to stay put.

• 22:55Aaron Mahnke?

  It seems that Ben Campbell's long trek was over, and it was finally time for him to rest in peace.

• 23:15Aaron Mahnke?

  I hope today's trek through the terrifying mountains has left you with an appreciation for nature and the supernatural. We've heard of the dangers that haunt the trail, but we haven't yet learned about the preternatural protector that watched over these mountains. Stick around through this brief sponsor break to hear all about it. This episode was made possible by HomeServe. Home disasters tend to sneak up and bite you. A pipe bursts on Saturday nights, your water heater goes out without warning, you scramble and don't know who to call, and whatever it costs, you'll pay. So maybe it would be good to have a plan. HomeServe is like a subscription for your home. For as little as $4.99 a month, they've got your back. Regular homeowner's insurance usually doesn't cover a lot of the day-to-day wear and tear:

• 24:00Aaron Mahnke?

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• 24:44Aaron Mahnke?

  Act now and get protected before a breakdown with a plan through HomeServe. For 50% less your first year, go to homeserve.com/lor to find the plan that's right for you. That's homeserve.com/lor for 50% less. Savings compared to renewal price, void in California and Florida. This episode was made possible by Quince. Hey, you know those pieces in your closet that you find yourself wearing on repeat? The sweater that goes with everything, the perfect pair of pants, or that tee that you somehow always reach for first? Those are the pieces that make getting dressed easy, and that's what Quince does best. Quince focuses on high-quality wardrobe staples made with premium materials like 100% Mongolian cashmere, organic cotton, and merino wool.

• 25:27Aaron Mahnke?

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• 26:12Aaron Mahnke?

  Get free shipping on your order and 365-day returns, now available in Canada and the UK, too. And when Quince asks you where you heard about them, let them know it was from Lore. It's the best way to support this show. That's Q-U-I-N-C-E.com/lor. This episode was made possible by Gusto. There's probably one particular task on your to-do list that you constantly push to next week because it's just so tedious. For a lot of business owners, that task is payroll. But Gusto is here to take that entirely off your plate so it becomes the easy part of your job instead of the dreaded one. Me, I have an entire team of people working for me at Grim and Mild, and I get to pay them every single month, which is amazing, don't get me wrong.

• 26:56Aaron Mahnke?

  But it also pulls me out of my creative flow, which isn't ideal. Thankfully, Gusto makes that complex task something that I can literally do in 60 seconds with just a couple of clicks. And I've been using Gusto for six glorious years, and I will never stop. I love them that much. Gusto is online payroll and benefit software that's built for small businesses. It's all-in-one, remote-friendly, and incredibly easy to use, so you can pay, hire, onboard, and support your team from anywhere. They offer automatic payroll tax filing, simple direct deposits, health benefits, commuter benefits, workers' comp 401K. Gusto has unlimited payroll runs for one monthly price, no hidden fees, no surprises,

• 27:37Aaron Mahnke?

  and maybe that's why Gusto is ranked number one on G2's highest satisfaction products list for 2026 and trusted by over 400,000 small businesses. Try Gusto today at gusto.com/lor and get three months free when you run your first payroll. That's three months of free payroll at gusto.com/lor. One more time, gusto.com/lor. This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. If you've thought about trying therapy with our long-term partner, BetterHelp, insurance options may now be available nationwide with an average copay for eligible members of just $23 per session. Your mental health does not know that it's World Mental Health Day. Stress does not politely wait until October 10th.

• 28:21Aaron Mahnke?

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• 29:20Aaron Mahnke?

  For centuries, he stood over the White Mountains. His chin was sharp, his brow furrowed in thought. He watched ice sheets form and melt, fires burn and die, and people. First the Abenaki and Mohawk, then white settlers, build their lives on his land. Once upon a time, if you visited Canyon Mountain and looked up at its peak, you might see a collection of jagged granite jutting up into the sky. And if you moved to just the right angle, suddenly the jumble of stones would become a clear profile of a person's face: the Old Man of the Mountain. White settlers first laid their eyes on him in 1805.

• 30:01Aaron Mahnke?

  By the time Nathaniel Hawthorne published a story about him in 1850, the Old Man had become a symbol of the state. New Hampshire politician Daniel Webster famously said of the rock formation, "Men hang out their signs indicative of their respective trades. Shoe makers hang out a gigantic shoe, jewelers a monster watch, and a dentist hangs out a gold tooth." But up in the mountains of New Hampshire, God Almighty has hung out a sign to show that there, He makes men. It's a delightful idea, but the white settlers weren't the first to give the face divine meaning. According to local Pennecook Abenaki people, reverence of the Old Man has been passed

• 30:43Aaron Mahnke?

  down for generations, along with the story of how he got there in the first place. A long time ago, they say, an Abenaki boy was born during an eclipse in the White Mountains. He was given the name Niskizos, meaning "two moons." Niskizos grew to manhood and his skill as a hunter and provider made him a young leader among his people. Soon enough, he was ready to attend a great gathering of native peoples from all across the region. There, he would represent his band, trade for goods, solidify alliances, and, if he was lucky, find love. And Niskizos was lucky, and he found partnership with a beautiful Iroquois woman named Tarlo, which means "bear cub."

• 31:25Aaron Mahnke?

  And for the next year, the two happily lived in Niskizos's village. But once word spread that an illness had struck her home settlement, she decided to leave to nurse her family back to health. Before Tarlo left, Niskizos made her a promise, that he would remain at the hunting camp atop Cannon Mountain even when the rest of the village moved for the winter so that she could find her way home. Which is why, for months, Niskizos kept a fire burning on the mountaintop to guide his lover back home. And for months, she did not return. Finally, worried about his bride, he sent his brother to her village to find out what happened. His brother quickly learned the awful truth: Tarlo had been struck by the same illness,

• 32:10Aaron Mahnke?

  and she had passed away. When the brother returned to their home village, he climbed Cannon Mountain to try to convince Niskizos to return to their village. But when he arrived at the summit, he found a shocking sight: the fire had gone out, and Niskizos had become part of the mountain, his face looking out over the land, still waiting for Tarlo to return. For centuries, Niskizos watched over the mountains until a rumble cut through the night air on the 3rd of May in 2003. Under the cover of darkness, the Old Man of the Mountain, who had been fighting a battle against erosion and gravity for centuries, finally gave way. Locals, of course, were saddened by the loss of the stone feature.

• 32:55Aaron Mahnke?

  The Old Man of the Mountain had become such a symbol of New Hampshire, it was even featured on license plates and highway signs. Thousands of tourists visited it every year, and to people who lived nearby, its visage was a sign that they were home. But not everyone was sad to see the Old Man go. You see, the Abenaki people believe that this change was actually a new chapter of the legend, that the Old Man's destruction was really a reunion. After all this time, they say, Niskizos had finally returned to his lover Tarlo, and the Old Man could finally rest his head.

• 33:46Aaron Mahnke?

  This episode of Lore Legends was produced by me, Aaron Mahnke, with writing by Molly Quinlan Artwick and research by Jamie Vargas. By now, you've probably heard that my new history book, Exhumed, is out in hardcover ebook and an audio version narrated by me. Exhumed explores the strange and twisted roots of the New England vampire panic and its star player Mercy Brown, featured in the very first episode of Lore back in 2015. You can learn more about the book over at lorepodcast.com or aaronmahnke.com. Don't like hearing ads on Lore? Well, there's a paid version available on Apple Podcasts and Patreon that is 100% ad-free. Subscribers also get weekly mini bonus episodes called Lore Bites, and Patreon members get

• 34:29Aaron Mahnke?

  discounts on Lore merchandise and access to my inbox. You can learn more over at lorepodcast.com/support. And finally, if social media is your jam, you can follow the show on YouTube, Threads, Blue Sky, and Instagram. Just search for Lore Podcast, all one word, and then click that follow button. And when you do, say hi. I like it when people say hi. And as always, thanks for listening.

• 35:05Speaker 02

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• 35:35Speaker 03

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