Akeley, Henry Wentworth

   In “The Whisperer in Darkness,” the reclusive farmer in Townshend, Vt., who notifies Albert Wilmarth (the narrator) of his encounters with the alien beings from the planet Yuggoth. Akeley’s mind is eventually stored in a mechanical apparatus by the aliens, one of whom (possibly Nyarlathotep himself), masquerading as Akeley, lures Wilmarth to Akeley’s farmhouse to destroy him. The character was inspired in part by the rustic Bert G.Akley, whom HPL met during his trip to Vermont in 1927. Henry’s son, George Goodenough Akeley, residing in San Diego, is named partly for the amateur poet Arthur Goodenough, whose rustic abode partly suggested the Akeley farmhouse.