Mount Washington, located in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, is the highest peak in the northeastern United States. It is often cited by its inhabitants, no less as the home of the country s worst weather, a claim supported by the mountain s long-held record for the highest wind gust directly measured at the Earth s surface (231 mph on April 12, 1934). As a transmitter supervisor for WMTW-TV, Lee Vincent traveled regularly to the summit of Mount Washington. Soon enough his reports from the peak began appearing in a column in a local paper and just as quickly captivated readers near and...