Mount Washington is the highest peak in the Northeastern United States at 6,288 ft (1,917 m) and the most prominent mountain east of the Mississippi River. It is famous for dangerously erratic weather. For 76 years, until 2010, a weather observatory on the summit held the record for the highest wind gust directly measured at the Earth’s surface, 231 mph (372 km/h or 103 m/s), on the afternoon of April 12, 1934. The mountain is located in the Presidential Range of the White Mountains, in the township of Sargent’s Purchase, Coos County, New Hampshire. While nearly the whole mountain is in the White Mountain National Forest, an area of 59 acres (24 ha) surrounding and including the summit is occupied by Mount Washington State Park.
