Here I introduce isostatic rebound, or postglacial rebound, to explain how it came to be that the Charlotte Whale was found during the construction of a railway a mile from the freshwater lake shore. This is a story that illustrates the significant changes taking place in northeastern North America following the last glacial maximum and shows an example of how sea level can change very rapidly at a location in part due to this postglacial process.
The video was shot in January 2025 in Charlotte, Vermont and at the University of Vermont Perkins Museum.