First Peoples Mountain (formerly Mount Doane) 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
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 was formerly named for Lieutenant
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 ...
, a U.S. Army cavalry officer who escorted the
Washburn-Langford-Doane Expedition into Yellowstone in 1870. During that expedition, Doane 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 ...
ascended several peaks east 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 ...
. The name was changed to First Peoples Mountain in 2022.
Washburn-Langford-Doane Expedition
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 leader of the expedition named a peak for Doane, but that peak's name was later changed to
Mount Schurz
Mount Schurz el. is a mountain peak in the Absaroka Range in Yellowstone National Park. Mount Schurz is the second highest peak in Yellowstone. The mountain was originally named Mount Doane by Henry D. Washburn during the Washburn–Langford– ...
. Mount Doane was officially named by 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 ...
to honor the first truly official report of an exploration of the Yellowstone region that Doane wrote after the Washburn expedition. Doane also participated in the 1st Hayden expedition in 1871.
![GustavusCDoane](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/df/GustavusCDoane.jpg)
Doane's account of his and Langford's ascent into the Absaroka Range (The Peak ascended is today's
Colter Peak
Colter Peak el. is a mountain peak in the Absaroka Range in the southeastern section of Yellowstone National Park. The peak is named for mountain man John Colter, reputedly the first white man to visit the Yellowstone region. Colter Peak was fi ...
):
Image:LangfordYellowstoneLakeMap.JPG, Original Map of Yellowstone Lake showing the first Mount Doane
File:MountsDoaneStevensonYNP1871.jpg, Mount Doane (left) and Mount Stevenson
Mount Stevenson el. is a mountain peak in the Absaroka Range of Yellowstone National Park. Mount Stevenson was named in 1871 by geologist Ferdinand Vandeveer Hayden, Ferdinand Hayden during the Hayden Geological Survey of 1871 for his friend and ...
(right) 1871
Renaming
Various groups of Native Americans had proposed renaming the mountain in 2017 and 2018, to First Peoples Mountain. The Great Plains Tribal Chairman's Association stated that Gustavius Doane should not be honored because of his role in murdering 200 Native American people, predominantly women and children who were sick with smallpox, in the
Marias Massacre
The Marias Massacre (also known as the Baker Massacre or the Piegan Massacre) was a massacre of Piegan Blackfeet Native peoples which was committed by the United States Army as part of the Indian Wars. The massacre took place on January 23, 1870, ...
.
Based of suggestions by the Rocky Mountain Tribal Council, the Wyoming Board of Geographic names, and the National Park Service, the name "First Peoples Mountain" was forwarded to the Board of Geographic Names. In June 2022 the new name was affirmed by a vote of 15–0.
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