A Tale of Two Names: The Denali/Mt. McKinley Story
Standing majestically in the Alaskan wilderness, North America's highest peak has been known by the name "Denali" among the Koyukon Athabascan people for countless generations. In their language, the name means "the tall one" or "the great one," reflecting both its physical presence and cultural significance.
However, this mountain's identity became entangled in a fascinating web of politics in 1896, when gold prospector William Dickey made a bold decision. He renamed it "Mount McKinley" after William McKinley, then a presidential candidate from Ohio. Interestingly, this wasn't just a random tribute – Dickey chose McKinley because of his support for the gold standard, which aligned with Dickey's own interests as a prospector. McKinley’s opponent supported the silver standard. President McKinley never saw the mountain that was later named after him and, likewise, never visited Alaska.
The federal government officially recognized the name Mount McKinley in 1917, but Alaskans never fully embraced the change. The state took matters into its own hands in 1975, when the Alaska Legislature officially requested the restoration of the original name, with the Alaska Geographic Board already having made the change at the state level.
A decades-long political tug-of-war ensued. Ohio's congressional delegation, determined to protect their native son's legacy, repeatedly blocked attempts to change the name at the federal level. During this period, Alaskan mapmakers listed the peak as "Denali (Mount McKinley)," while mapmakers elsewhere wrote "Mount McKinley (Denali)."
The breakthrough finally came in 2015, when President Barack Obama used his executive authority to officially restore the name Denali. This decision, announced during his visit to Alaska, was celebrated as a victory for Native Alaskan heritage and culture.
Although former President Trump expressed disagreement with Obama's 2015 decision via social media, he did not take action to reverse it during his first term. Recently, in December 2024, Trump announced intentions to restore the "Mount McKinley" name. This announcement faced strong opposition from Alaska's political leaders. At his January 20th, 2025 inauguration, Trump reaffirmed his plan to rename the peak, ensuring this decades-old naming controversy remains active.
If you are interested in the Indigenous tale of how Denali came to be, I have provided a link below to take you to a National Park Service page and a recording by the late Chief Mitch Demientieff of Nenana.
https://www.nps.gov/dena/learn/historyculture/legend-of-denali.htm
