Profile Rock

Last updated
A 1902 postcard photo showing Profile Rock Profile Rock (Assonet).jpg
A 1902 postcard photo showing Profile Rock
Profile Rock, 2008 Profilerockjordan1a.jpg
Profile Rock, 2008

Profile Rock (also known as the Old Man of Joshua's Mountain) was a 50-foot high granite rock formation located in Freetown, Massachusetts just outside Assonet village and near the Freetown State Forest. Local Wampanoags believe it to be the image of Chief Massasoit. The Wampanoags occupied the region of Rhode Island and Massachusetts bounded by Narragansett Bay to the west and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and Chief Massasoit was a close friend to the early Pilgrim settlers.

Contents

Joshua's Mountain was named after Joshua Tisdale, who was the first to settle near the site. It was privately owned for several years by former Freetown Selectman Ben Evans, who sold it to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to be used as a state park tourist attraction. In recent years, the site has been frequently vandalized with graffiti, [1] [2] despite an aggressive cleanup effort by the Bristol County Sheriff. [3] On June 19, 2019, at approximately 9:22 a.m., the Freetown Police Department, along with the Freetown Fire Department, responded to the Freetown State Forest “Profile Rock” Park for a report of recent damages to the historic rock formation. First responders and park officials discovered that a large portion of the rock formation had broken off.

State forest officials have closed the park until further notice due to the unsafe environment. The public is encouraged to stay away from the area. [4] As of July 31, 2023 you can go inside the park, but the inside is still a mess with graffiti all over the place. [5]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Freetown, Massachusetts</span> Town in Massachusetts, United States

Freetown is a town in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 9,206 at the 2020 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lakeville, Massachusetts</span> Town in Massachusetts, United States

Lakeville is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 11,523 at the 2020 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Plymouth, Massachusetts</span> Town in Massachusetts, United States

Plymouth is a town and county seat of Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. Located in Greater Boston, the town holds a place of great prominence in American history, folklore, and culture, and is known as "America's Hometown". Plymouth was the site of the colony founded in 1620 by the Mayflower Pilgrims, where New England was first established. It is the oldest municipality in New England and one of the oldest in the United States. The town has served as the location of several prominent events, one of the more notable being the First Thanksgiving feast. Plymouth served as the capital of Plymouth Colony from its founding in 1620 until the colony's merger with the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1691. The English explorer John Smith named the area Plymouth and the region 'New England' during his voyage of 1614. It was a later coincidence that, after an aborted attempt to make the 1620 trans-Atlantic crossing from Southampton, the Mayflower finally set sail for America from Plymouth, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metacomet</span> Elected chief of the Wampanoag Indians

Metacomet, also known as Pometacom, Metacom, and by his adopted English name King Philip, was sachem to the Wampanoag people and the second son of the sachem Massasoit. His older brother Wamsutta briefly became sachem after their father's death in 1661. However, Wamsutta also died shortly thereafter and Metacom became sachem in 1662.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wampanoag</span> Native American tribes in Massachusetts

The Wampanoag, also rendered Wôpanâak, are a Native American people of the Northeastern Woodlands currently based in southeastern Massachusetts and formerly parts of eastern Rhode Island. Their historical territory includes the islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Massasoit</span> Leader of the Wampanoag confederacy

Massasoit Sachem or Ousamequin was the sachem or leader of the Wampanoag confederacy. Massasoit means Great Sachem. Although Massasoit was only his title, English colonists mistook it as his name and it stuck.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pokanoket</span> Native American village and 17th c. Native American political division

The Pokanoket are a group of Wampanoag people and the village governed by Massasoit, chief sachem of the Wampanoag people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Assonet, Massachusetts</span> Town of Freetown in Massachusetts, United States

Assonet is one of two villages in the town of Freetown in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. An original part of the town, Assonet was settled in 1659 along with the city of Fall River, then a part of Freetown. It rests on the banks of the Assonet River. As of the 2000 census, the village had a total population of 4,084; up from 3,614 in 1990. As of the 2014 census, the village had a total estimated population of 9,093.

Stall Hill Island is a small forested inland island on Lake Rico within Massasoit State Park in Taunton, Massachusetts, United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Weetamoo</span> Native American leader

Weetamoo, also referred to as Weethao, Weetamoe, Wattimore, Namumpum, and Tatapanunum, was a Pocasset Wampanoag Native American Chief. She was the sunksqua, or female sachem, of Pocasset tribe, which occupied contemporary Tiverton, Rhode Island in 1620. The Pocasset, which she led, was one of groups of the Wampanoag.

The Hockomock Swamp is a vast wetland encompassing much of the northern part of southeastern Massachusetts. This 16,950-acre (6,859 ha) land is considered the largest freshwater swamp in the state. It acts as a natural flood control mechanism for the region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Freetown-Fall River State Forest</span> Protected area in Massachusetts, United States

The Freetown-Fall River State Forest is a publicly owned forest covering more than 5,000 acres (2,000 ha) in the city of Fall River and the towns of Freetown and Lakeville in the state of Massachusetts. The forest lies mostly in the center of the town of Freetown dividing Assonet, East Freetown, and Fall River's northernmost boundary. The forest land includes Profile Rock, a granite outcropping which local Native Americans believe to be the image of Chief Massasoit, and a 227-acre (92 ha) Wampanoag reservation. The forest is owned by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and operated by the Department of Conservation and Recreation with headquarters in Assonet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bridgewater Triangle</span> Area in Massachusetts claimed to be the site of paranormal phenomena

The Bridgewater Triangle is an area of about 200 square miles (520 km2) within southeastern Massachusetts in the United States, claimed to be a site of alleged paranormal phenomena, ranging from UFOs to poltergeists, and other spectral phenomena, various bigfoot-like sightings, giant snakes and thunderbirds. The term was coined by New England based cryptozoologist Loren Coleman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Hope (Rhode Island)</span> Small hill in Bristol, Rhode Island, US

Mount Hope is a small hill in Bristol, Rhode Island overlooking the part of Narragansett Bay known as Mount Hope Bay. It is the highest point in Bristol County, RI. The 7000 acres that now make up the Town of Bristol in Rhode Island were called the Mt. Hope Lands. The elevation of Mt. Hope summit is 209 feet, and drops sharply to the bay on its eastern side. Mount Hope was the site of a Wampanoag (Pokanoket) village. It is remembered for its role in King Philip's War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fort Revere Park</span> State park in Massachusetts

Fort Revere Park is a state-owned historic site and public recreation area situated on a small peninsula in the town of Hull, Massachusetts. The park occupies 6 acres (2.4 ha) on Telegraph Hill in Hull Village and houses the remains of two seacoast fortifications, including former Fort Revere.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cole's Hill</span> Historic cemetery in Massachusetts, United States

Cole's Hill is a National Historic Landmark containing the first cemetery used by the Mayflower Pilgrims in Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1620. The hill is located on Carver Street near the foot of Leyden Street and across the street from Plymouth Rock. Owned since 1820 by the preservationist Pilgrim Society, it is now a public park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sachem Rock Farm</span> United States historic place

Sachem Rock Farm is a historic farm at 355 Plymouth Street in East Bridgewater, Massachusetts, United States. The farm location is important for a variety of reasons. Its earliest historical association is with the Wampanoag people, who are known to have used the area, particularly around Sachem Rock, a granite outcrop they called Wonnocoote (Wonnocooto) that is the property's high point, prior to European contact. Sachem Rock itself is historically significant as the site of a meeting in 1649 between English settlers from the Plymouth Colony, including Myles Standish, with the Wampanoag sachem Massasoit. In this meeting the colonists purchased rights to a large tract of land, including East and West Bridgewater, Bridgewater, and Brockton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Patuxet</span> Village in Massachusetts, United States

The Patuxet were a Native American band of the Wampanoag tribal confederation. They lived primarily in and around modern-day Plymouth, Massachusetts, and were among the first Native Americans encountered by European settlers in the region in the early 17th century. Most of the population subsequently died of epidemic infectious diseases. The last of the Patuxet – an individual named Tisquantum, who played an important role in the survival of the Pilgrim colony at Plymouth – died in 1622.

The Seaconke Wampanoag Tribe is one of several cultural heritage organizations of individuals who identify as descendants of the Wampanoag people in Rhode Island and Massachusetts. Multiple nonprofit organizations were formed to represent the Seaconke Wampanoag.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head</span> Federally recognized tribe of Wampanoag people located in Massachusetts, USA

The Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) (Wampanoag: Âhqunah Wôpanâak) is a federally recognized tribe of Wampanoag people based in the town of Aquinnah on the southwest tip of Martha's Vineyard in Massachusetts, United States. The tribe hosts an annual Cranberry Day celebration.

References

  1. "Freetown Police search for suspects who spray painted their names on rocks". 7 News Boston. 28 March 2016. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  2. Wagner, Jeffrey (16 April 2013). "Residents aim to fight Profile Rock vandalism". Taunton Daily Gazette. Retrieved 5 July 2016. residents ... have noticed an uptick in debris and graffiti at the (Profile Rock) site
  3. McCready, Dan (15 October 2015). "Cleanup Of Profile Rock Almost Complete". 1420 WBSM. Retrieved 5 July 2016. the (Graffiti Unit) crew has made frequent trips out to Profile Rock ... and they'll keep making those trips wherever graffiti is found
  4. Roy, Linda (19 June 2019). "Large chunk of Profile Rock in Freetown comes crashing down". SouthCoastToday.com. Retrieved 19 June 2019.
  5. Richard, Barry (18 January 2023). "WHAT FREETOWN'S PROFILE ROCK LOOKS LIKE TODAY". WBSM. Retrieved 18 January 2023.

41°47′45″N71°03′18″W / 41.79583°N 71.05500°W / 41.79583; -71.05500