Colter Peak el. is a mountain peak in the
Absaroka Range
The Absaroka Range ( or ) is a sub-range of the Rocky Mountains in the United States. The range stretches about across the Montana–Wyoming border, and at its widest, forming the eastern boundary of Yellowstone National Park along Paradise Va ...
in the southeastern section of
Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park is an American national park located in the western United States, largely in the northwest corner of Wyoming and extending into Montana and Idaho. It was established by the 42nd U.S. Congress with the Yellowston ...
. The peak is named for mountain man
John Colter
John Colter (c.1770–1775 – May 7, 1812 or November 22, 1813) was a member of the Lewis and Clark Expedition (1804–1806). Though party to one of the more famous expeditions in history, Colter is best remembered for explorations he made ...
, reputedly the first white man to visit the Yellowstone region. Colter Peak was first ascended in 1870 by Lt.
Gustavus Cheyney Doane
Gustavus Cheyney Doane (May 29, 1840 – May 5, 1892) was a U.S. Army Cavalry Captain, explorer, inventor and Civil War soldier who played a prominent role in the exploration of Yellowstone as a member of the Washburn–Langford–Doane Expeditio ...
and
Nathaniel P. Langford
Nathaniel Pitt Langford (August 9, 1832 – October 18, 1911) was an American explorer, businessman, bureaucrat, vigilante and historian from Saint Paul, Minnesota who played an important role in the early years of the Montana gold fields, terri ...
during the
Washburn–Langford–Doane Expedition
The Washburn Expedition of 1870 explored the region of northwestern Wyoming that two years later became Yellowstone National Park. Led by Henry D. Washburn and Nathaniel P. Langford, and with a United States Army, U.S. Army escort headed by Lt. G ...
.
Henry D. Washburn
Henry Dana Washburn (March 28, 1832 – January 26, 1871) was a U.S. Representative from Indiana and a colonel and was breveted twice as brigadier general and major general in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
Biography
Born in Wood ...
, the expedition leader named the peak for Langford and Doane. For unknown reasons, geologist
Ferdinand V. Hayden
Ferdinand Vandeveer Hayden (September 7, 1829 – December 22, 1887) was an American geologist noted for his pioneering surveying expeditions of the Rocky Mountains in the late 19th century. He was also a physician who served with the Union Ar ...
moved those names to peaks farther north in 1871 during the
Hayden Geological Survey of 1871
The Hayden Geological Survey of 1871 explored the region of northwestern Wyoming that later became Yellowstone National Park in 1872. It was led by geologist Ferdinand Vandeveer Hayden. The 1871 survey was not Hayden's first, but it was the first ...
. In 1888,
Philetus Norris
Philetus W. Norris (August 17, 1821 – January 14, 1885) was the second superintendent of Yellowstone National Park and was the first person to be paid for that position.
Early life
Philetus Walter Norris was born in Palmyra, New York on Aug ...
the second park superintendent, named the peak ''Mount Forum'' for unknown reasons. In 1885, geologist
Arnold Hague
Arnold Hague (December 3, 1840 in Boston, Massachusetts – May 14, 1917 in Washington, D.C.) was a United States geologist who did many geological surveys in the U.S., of which the best known was that for Yellowstone National Park. He also had as ...
gave the peak its official name: Colter Peak.
The first detailed map of
Yellowstone Lake
Yellowstone Lake is the largest body of water in Yellowstone National Park. The lake is above sea level and covers with of shoreline. While the average depth of the lake is , its greatest depth is at least . Yellowstone Lake is the largest fre ...
was sketched by Langford from this peak on September 7, 1870.
Doane's account of his and Langford's ascent into the Absaroka Range (The peak ascended is today's Colter Peak):
Image:LangfordYellowstoneLakeMap.JPG, Original Map of Yellowstone Lake sketched from Colter Peak
File:ColterPeakTurretMountainYNP.jpg, As viewed from Thorofare, 2002
See also
*
Mountains and mountain ranges of Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park, located primarily in the U.S. state of Wyoming, though the park also extends into Montana and Idaho and its Mountains and Mountain Ranges are part of the Rocky Mountains. There are at least 70 named mountain peaks over ...
Notes
{{Wyoming
Mountains of Wyoming
Mountains of Yellowstone National Park
Mountains of Park County, Wyoming