Mount Washington State Park
The land forming the park was originally given to Dartmouth College in 1951 by the estate of the owner of the Cog Railway. Dartmouth sold 59 acres (240,000 m) to the State of New Hampshire in 1964 for use as a park and then sold the final 8 acres (32,000 m) in 2008 for $2.1M, after a long-term broadcasting lease had expired. A small segment of the summit is still owned by the Cog Railway and used as the upper terminus of the railway.
History
In 1642, Darby Field was the first to climb to the summit of Mount Washington. He supposedly had guidance by local Native Americans.
Construction of the auto road started in 1854. After funds ran out in 1856, the current Mount Washington Summit Road Company completed building it in 1859. It was at that time that summit buildings were erected. The Cog Railway completed construction in 1869. In 1908 a major fire destroyed all of the buildings but one — the Tip Top House.
References
- ^ Lorna Colquhoun (July 3, 2008). "Dartmouth sells Mt. Washington summit land to state". New Hampshire Union Leader. Retrieved February 5, 2005.
- ^ Rick Russack. "Fire on Mount Washington". WhiteMountainHistory.org. Retrieved June 15, 2011.
External links
- Official website New Hampshire Department of Natural and Cultural Resources