Denali: Facts About North America's Tallest Mountain Denali: Facts About North America's Tallest Mountain By Kim Ann Zimmermann, Live Science Contributor | September 3, 2015 03:34pm ET MORE Credit: Galyna Andrushko | Shutterstock Denali is the tallest mountain in North America. Located in south-central Alaska, the mountain's peak is 20,310 feet (6,190 meters) above sea level, also making it the third highest of the Seven Summits — the highest mountains on each of the seven continents — following Mount Everest in Nepal and Aconcagua in Argentina. By one measure, it could be considered the third tallest mountain in the world. Denali's height was recalculated at 20,310 feet in September 2015, based on GPS survey data; And that number was an update to a 2013 estimate of 20,237 feet (6,168 m), which was calculated using a remote-sensing technique called interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR).

Both numbers placed Denali's summit lower than the original calculation of 20,320 feet (6,194 m) established in 1953 by Bradford Washburn, a mountaineer, photographer and cartographer. Naming controversy The native Koyukon Athabascan people call the mountain Denali, which is usually translated as "The Great One." However, linguist James Kari of the Alaska Native Language Center at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, wrote in the book “ Shem Pete’s Alaska ” that the name is based on a verb theme meaning “high” or “tall.” A gold prospector, William Dickey, named it Mount McKinley in 1896, after President William McKinley. Dickey was among a large group of prospectors who were part of the Cook Inlet gold rush. When asked why he chose to name the mountain after then-presidential nominee McKinley, he cited McKinley’s support of the gold standard. McKinley, who was from Ohio, never visited his namesake mountain or any part of Alaska. The park in which the mountain resides was established as Mount McKinley National Park on Feb. 26, 1917.

The state of Alaska officially changed the name to Denali in 1975 and asked the federal government to do so too. However, when the park was tripled in size and renamed Denali National Park and Preserve in 1980, the federal government retained the name Mount McKinley, according to the Alaska Dispatch News. A number of efforts had tried to switch the name to Denali. Hudson Stuck, who made the first ascent of the mountain in 1913, wrote a book titled "The Ascent of Denali." In the preface of the book, he called for "the restoration to the greatest mountain in North America of its immemorial native name." Past attempts were blocked by lawmakers from Ohio. In August 2015, with President Barack Obama's approval, the U.S. Department of the Interior officially renamed the mountain Denali . According to the Department of Interior, a 1947 federal law gave Secretary Sally Jewell the authority to change geographic names through the U.S. Board on Geographic Names. Where is Denali?

Denali is about 170 miles (275 km) southwest of Fairbanks and about 130 miles (210 km) north-northwest of Anchorage. It is part of the Alaska Range and the centerpiece of Denali National Park. While it has long been believed that the Alaska Range, which spans much of south-central Alaska, was formed by tectonic activity, it has remained a mystery until recently because it is more than 300 miles (500 kilometers) from Alaska's southern coast, the closest source of mountain-building activity. A recent 3D computer model project shed some light on how the low angles and unusual bent in a geological fault further inland combined to form the mountain range. How tall is Denali? There is a distinction between measuring "highest" and "tallest." The highest mountain is determined by measuring a mountain's highest point above sea level. The tallest mountain is measured from base to summit. Using that measurement, Denali is taller than Mount Everest .

Denali rises about 18,000 feet (5,500 meters) from its base, which is a greater vertical rise than Everest’s 12,000-foot rise (3,700 meters) from its base at 17,000 feet (5,200 meters). In his book, "The Finest Peaks: Prominence and Other Mountain Measures" (Trafford, 2005), Adam Helman wrote, "The base to peak rise of Mount McKinley is the largest of any mountain that lies entirely above sea level." Based on its topographic prominence, or the distance between its summit and lowest contour line, Denali is the third most prominent peak after Mount Everest and Aconcagua in South America. But Denali and Everest are both dwarfed by Mauna Kea in Hawaii. When measured from the ocean floor to its summit, that mountain is 33,476 feet (10,204 meters) tall. However, only 13,803 feet (4,207 meters) rise above sea level.

Denali’s climate The upper half of Denali is permanently covered with snow and many glaciers, some more than 30 miles (48 km) long. The mountain’s extreme cold, which can be minus 75 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 60 degrees Celsius) with wind chill down to minus 118 F (minus 83 C), can freeze a human in an instant. An automated weather station at 18,700 feet (5,700 meters) records temperatures. More than 400,000 people visit Denali National Park and Preserve each year, primarily between May and September. An estimated 32,000 people have attempted to reach the summit, with about a 50 percent success rate. There are many guides who lead climbing trips to Denali, and it is classified as an extremely challenging expedition due to the severe weather and difficulty in acclimating. Because of its far northern latitude of 63 degrees, Denali has lower barometric pressure than the world’s other high mountains. Key dates in Denali’s history 1794: British explorer George Vancouver refers to Denali in his journal.

1902: A mapping expedition led by geologist Alfred Brooks explores the area. 1903: Judge James Wickersham and four team members make it as far as the 10,000-foot (3,048-meter) mark, which is now known as Wickersham Wall. 1906: Physician and explorer Frederick Cook claimed to have reached the summit, but this assertion was discredited, as was his claim to have reached the North Pole in 1908. 1913: Hudson Stuck, Walter Harper, Harry Karstens and Robert Tatum are the first to reach the south summit. 1932: Bush pilot Joe Crosson lands the Cosmic Ray Party at 5,700 feet (1,524 meters) on the Muldrow Glacier. This expedition sees the first two known fatalities on the mountain. More than 100 climbers have perished on the mountain since. 1947: Barbara Washburn becomes the first woman to summit the mountain. 1960: The first topographic map of the mountain is published by Bradford Washburn. The first party to camp on the mountain is a Meiji University team.

1967: The first successful winter ascent is accomplished by Art Davidson, Dave Johnston and Ray Genet. 1970: The first solo ascent (Naomi Uemura); first all-female ascent; and the mountain's first ski descent are recorded. 1982: The first woman to complete a solo climb is Dr. Miri Ercolani. 1988: Vernon Tejas is the first solo climber to ascend the mountain in the winter and survive. 1993: Joan Phelps is the first blind climber to reach the ascent. 1995: Merrick Johnston, 12, is the youngest female to summit. 2001: Galen Johnston, 11, becomes the youngest male to reach the summit, Toshiko Uchida, 70, becomes oldest woman to summit. 2013: Alaska resident Tom Choate, 78, breaks the record as the oldest male to reach the summit. 2015: The mountain's name is officially changed to Denali. Additional resources Mt.

McKinley to Denali: How A Mountain's Renaming Got Tied Up in Politics - NBC News Copy this code to your website or blog <iframe src="" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> If a president is going to risk angering Ohio, it probably makes sense to hold off until after Election Day. That may be one reason President Obama waited until now to rename America's tallest mountain. Mount McKinley — the name given a century ago in honor of Republican President William McKinley, a native Buckeye who was assassinated in 1901 — will now be known as Denali, or "the high one" in the language of Alaska's indigenous Athabascan people. The move is rooted in Obama's 2008 campaign, when he promised to improve relations with Native Americans, a key Democratic constituency. Alaskan tribes have been advocating for a return to Denali for decades. But Ohioans — who helped deliver the presidency to Obama in 2008 and 2012 — pushed back, saying it would be an insult to McKinley's political legacy.

But on Sunday, perhaps freed from the need to avoid upsetting voters and leaders in a crucial swing state, Obama approved the renaming , officially recognizing "the sacred status of Denali to generations of Alaska natives," the White House said in a statement. The mountain has spoken Mt McKinley officially renamed Denali: Congrats, Alaska! pic.twitter.com/ZdRTJ2PEHL — US Dept of Interior (@Interior) August 30, 2015 Ohio Republicans lashed out. "I'm deeply disappointed in this decision," House Speaker John Boehner said. Boehner cited McKinley's service in the Civil War, in Congress, as Ohio governor and as the 25th president. Sen. Rob Portman accused Obama of "going around Congress." But he seemed resigned to the renaming. "I now urge the administration to work with me to find alternative ways to preserve McKinley's legacy somewhere else in the national park that once bore his name." Ohio Gov. John Kasich, who is running for the Republican presidential nomination, also said Obama had acted outside his authority. As POTUS once again oversteps his bounds, Ohio knows every carnation is a monument to our own William McKinley.

-John pic.twitter.com/GvQfqnIKOh — John Kasich (@JohnKasich) August 31, 2015 Rep. Bob Gibbs vowed to find a way to block what he called "Constitutional overreach" and a "political stunt" that was "insulting to all Ohioans." My full statement on @POTUS ignoring an Act of Congress and changing the name of Mount McKinley. pic.twitter.com/nsLLOiUBU8 — Rep. Bob Gibbs (@RepBobGibbs) August 31, 2015 Republican strategist Karl Rove, meanwhile, apparently used the event to remind readers about his forthcoming book about McKinley. Seems like good time 2 learn more about 25th POTUS.

Pre-order "Triumph of William #McKinley " — Karl Rove (@KarlRove) August 30, 2015 But in her order making the name change official, Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell pointed out that "President McKinley never visited, nor did he have any significant historical connection to, the mountain or to Alaska." The renaming was made on the eve of Obama's trip to Alaska, meant to call attention to climate change. The two issues are unrelated, but they potentially give Alaskans another reason to welcome him warmly. The mountain — whose official height is 20,322 feet, though new measurements may lower that a bit — has been called Denali for centuries by native Alaskans. A gold prospector named it McKinley in 1896 , while the Ohio Republican was still campaigning for the White House. The name was formally recognized by the federal government in 1917, 16 years after his death. The area that surrounds the mountain was named for McKinley as well, but in 1980 it was changed to Denali National Park and Preserve.

Kimberly Kenney, curator of the William McKinley Presidential Library and Museum in Canton, Ohio, acknowledged that the circumstances made it difficult to argue for keeping the mountain's presidential name. "McKinley didn't see it, didn't travel there, didn't do anything for the people of Alaska — it wasn't a state yet," Kenney said. President Obama wants to change the name of Mt. McKinley to Denali after more than 100 years. Great insult to Ohio. I will change back! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 1, 2015 Nevertheless, the fact that a mountain was named for a native son remained a "matter of pride" for the people of Ohio. Kenney said she hoped that the debate would encourage Americans to learn more about McKinley, who doesn't get discussed as much as he should. She pointed out what she saw as McKinley's most lasting contribution to American history: a victory in the Spanish-American War, which established the United States as a world power and set the tone for future military campaigns in foreign countries, from Korea and Vietnam to the Middle East.

White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said Monday that the Department of the Interior would work with leaders in Ohio "to find the appropriate way to acknowledge President McKinley's contribution." Jon Schuppe Mt. McKinley, Denali National Park - Kantishna Wilderness Trails Mt. McKinley, Denali National Park December 31, 2014 by Kantishna Wilderness Trails 1 Comment Click photo by Kirsty Knittel, Name Controversy Mount McKinley is also commonly known as Denali, which means “the great one” in the Dena’ina language, and which is also the official name currently recognized by the State of Alaska. In 1897 the Mountain was officially named Mount McKinley, after the popular U.S. president William McKinley. As the decades progressed Indian-rights activists began increasingly to view this renaming as colonial and disrespectful. Denali is also the name preferred by the mountaineering community. There have been several campaigns to officially switch the federally recognized name of the mountain back to “Denali”. However, the name “McKinley” is well-known and has support as well.

In particular, at the first session of each Congress, Ralph Regula, the congressman from President McKinley’s district, introduces legislation “to provide for the retention of the name of Mount McKinley,” which effectively blocks any effort at a name change. Click photo to hear Denali Legend Chief Mitch Demientieff of Nenana, Alaska, tells an Athabascan legend about the origins of Denali, the Great One. Audio segment and photo from U.S. National Park Service The First attempt to climb Mount McKinley was by Judge James Wickersham in 1903, via the Peters Glacier and the North Face, now known as the Wickersham Wall. This route has tremendous avalanche danger and was not climbed until 1963. This video segment is from the video Kantishna Hills Pioneers that is a Historical Documentation of the Gold Rush Era in 1905 in the Kantishna Hills of Alaska. Gold was discovered in the area as a result of Judge Wickersham leading an exploring party up the Kantishna River to make the first attempt to climb Mt. McKinley, Denali. KANTISHNA HILLS PIONEERS is a 30min.

DVD Video Production produced as a project of Doyon Tourism and Doyon Foundation. Videos may be purchased by contacting: bboyd@doyon.com. First ascent of the main summit of McKinley came on June 7, 1913 by a party led by Hudson Stuck. The first man to reach the summit was Walter Harper, an Alaska Native. Harry Karstens and Robert Tatum also made the summit. They ascended the Muldrow Glacier route pioneered by the earlier expeditions, which is still a popular route today. Mount McKinley or Denali in Alaska is the highest mountain peak in North America at a height of approximately 20,320 feet (6,194 meters). It is the centerpiece of Denali National Park. Location Mount McKinley is located in the central portion of the Alaska Range, which spans much of south central Alaska. It is approximately 130 miles (210 km) north-northwest of Anchorage and 155 miles (250 km) southwest of Fairbanks.

The summit is approximately 35 miles (56 km) from the nearest major road, the George Parks Highway Notable features Mount McKinley has a larger bulk and rise than Mount Everest. Even though the summit of Everest is 9000 feet higher, measured from sea level, its base sits on the Tibetan Plateau at about 17,000 feet, giving it a real vertical rise of little more than 12,000 feet. The base of Denali is roughly a 2,000 foot plateau, giving it an actual rise of 18,000 feet.The mountain is also characterized by an unusually severe risk of altitude illness and extremely cold weather due to its high latitude and its proximity to the jet stream. At the equator, a mountain as high as Mount McKinley would have 47% as much oxygen available on its summit as there is at sea level, but because of its very high latitude, the pressure on the summit is much lower.

Layout of the mountain Mount McKinley has two significant summits: the South Summit is the higher one, while the North Summit has an elevation of 19,470 feet (5,935 m) and a prominence of approximately 1,320 feet (402 m). The North Summit is sometimes counted as a separate peak (see e.g. the List of United States fourteeners) and sometimes not; it is rarely climbed, except by those doing routes on the north side of the massif. Five large glaciers flow off the slopes of the mountain. The Peters Glacier lies on the northwest side of the massif, while the Muldrow Glacier falls from its northeast slopes. Just to the east of the Muldrow, and abutting the eastern side of the massif, is the Traleika Glacier. The Ruth Glacier lies to the southeast of the mountain, and the Kahiltna Glacier leads up to the southwest side of the mountain. Mount McKinley becomes "Denali" Again. Hoax Ensues.

waffles September 1, 2015 In August 2015, Mount McKinley was officially renamed Denali, a restoration of its original name by which it was originally known until 1917. Sponsored links Mt. McKinley Becomes Denali. Again. Mt. McKinley was officially renamed Denali in August 2015, restoring the name by which it had been known up until 1917. The mountain was originally known as Denali, based on the Koyukon word for “tall” or “high” by the Koyukon Athabaskans who inhabit the region. In the late 1890’s the peak was unofficially named McKinley in support of presidential candidate William McKinley, who was elected to office that year. In 1917, the name was officially changed to Mount McKinley in honor of at the signing of the National Park Act of February 26, 1917. The name was changed on a local level back in 1975, but an Ohio congressman from McKinley’s hometown blocked the renaming it on a national level.

Sponsored Links Denali Hoax Shortly after the new name was announced, an internet meme circulated that claimed the naming was done so by President Obama as some sort of honor to his Kenyan roots. The meme read: President Barack Obama is Renaming Mt. McKinley to “Denali” “Denali” is the Kenyan word for “Black Power.” Like and share to spread awareness. The meme is a flimsy attempt to tie the renaming of the mountain with the birther movement which claims President Obama was born in Kenya. There is no merit to the claim, and there is not even a “Kenyan” language. Denali originates from the Koyukon language , which as of 2015 only has about 300 speakers remaining. Donald Trump Reaction Real estate tycoon and Presidential candidate Donald Trump weighed in on the renaming and denounced the move. Trump tweeted, “President Obama wants to change the name of Mt. McKinley to Denali after more than 100 years. Great insult to Ohio. I will change back!” President McKinley was from Ohio, and politicians from that state also derided the decision to remove the president’s name from the mountain.

Not surprisingly, politicians from Alaska praised the move. Sponsored links Denali | mountain, Alaska, United States | Britannica.com mountain, Alaska, United States Alternative Titles: Bolshaya Gora, Densmores Peak, Mount McKinley Related Topics Denali, also called Mount McKinley, highest peak in North America . It is located near the centre of the Alaska Range , with two summits rising above the Denali Fault, in south-central Alaska , U.S. Denali (Mount McKinley), south-central Alaska, U.S. Brett Baunton—Stone/Getty Images Denali’s official elevation figure of 20,310 feet (6,190 metres), established by the United States Geological Survey in September 2015, was the product of a thorough remeasurement of the mountain’s height conducted earlier that year using state-of-the-art equipment. The new value superseded the long-standing figure of 20,320 feet (6,194 metres) that had been the official elevation since the early 1950s. Earlier attempts to measure the mountain’s height had yielded different values.

One such survey, conducted in 2010 using advanced radar technology, was made public in September 2013 and gave its elevation as 20,237 feet (6,168 metres). However, that measurement was subsequently determined to be inaccurate. Denali lies about 130 miles (210 km) north-northwest of Anchorage and some 170 miles (275 km) southwest of Fairbanks in Denali National Park and Preserve . The mountain is essentially a giant block of granite that was lifted above Earth’s crust during a period of tectonic activity that began about 60 million years ago. It rises abruptly some 18,000 feet (5,500 metres) from Denali Fault at its base to the higher, more southerly of its two summits. The upper half of the mountain is covered with permanent snowfields that feed many glaciers, some surpassing 30 miles (48 km) in length. In 1794 the English navigator George Vancouver sighted the mountain from Cook Inlet (an arm of the Gulf of Alaska ).

The first attempt to climb it was made in 1903 by an American judge, James Wickersham, but it was unsuccessful. A much-publicized but fraudulent claim by the physician and explorer Frederick A. Cook that he had reached the top inspired the conquest of the North Peak in 1910, by two prospectors of what was dubbed the “Sourdough Expedition.” On June 7, 1913, Hudson Stuck and Harry Karstens led a party to the South Peak, the true summit. A climbing party was first airlifted onto the mountain’s flanks in 1932; beginning in the 1950s, that became the standard way to attempt a summit climb, as it reduced the trip by several weeks. Most climbers are now flown to a base camp on southern-facing Kahiltna Glacier at an elevation of 7,200 feet (2,195 metres), where the greatest number follow the West Buttress route. On average, several hundred climbers attempt to reach the summit each year. Hiker silhouetted against Denali (Mount McKinley), Denali National Park, south-central Alaska.

Paul Souders—Photographer’s Choice/Getty Images Similar Topics Mount Pelée The mountain was known to the Athabaskan Indians as Denali (“The High One” or “The Great One”) and to the Russians as Bolshaya Gora (“Great Mountain”). It was called Densmore’s Mountain in 1889 by Frank Densmore, a prospector. The name Mount McKinley was applied in 1896 by William A. Dickey, another prospector, in honour of William McKinley (who was elected president of the United States later that year) and became the official name. Efforts began in the mid-1970s to restore the mountain’s original Native American name but faced opposition, mainly from lawmakers from Ohio, McKinley’s home state. However, the mountain’s original name was recognized by the state of Alaska, and it was adopted as the name of the national park and preserve when it was created in 1980. Use of the name Denali for the mountain became increasingly common, and in 2015 it was officially renamed Denali. Denali (Mount McKinley) at sunset, Denali National Park, south-central Alaska, U.S.

Robert Glusic/Getty Images Denali - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up) The highest mountain in North America, Denali (also called Mount McKinley) is located in south-central Alaska near the center of the Alaska Range. It rises 20,320 feet (6,194 meters) above sea level and 17,000 feet (5,200 meters) above the timberline. Two peaks crown Denali with the south peak the higher. The upper two thirds of the summits are covered with permanent snowfields that feed many glaciers. Beginning in 1903, many unsuccessful attempts were made to scale the mountain. The north peak was conquered in 1910. The higher south peak was scaled on June 13, 1913, by Hudson Stuck and Harry Karstens. Article Contributors Mount McKinley is being renamed Denali by President Obama - Vox Mount McKinley is being renamed Denali by President Obama General view of the West face of Mount McKinley in Denali National Park in Alaska.

(Photo by: Mike Powell/Getty Images) Mike Powell/Getty Images On Sunday, the Obama administration announced that the peak formerly known as Mount McKinley will henceforth be known as "Denali," its traditional Native Alaskan name. The mountain was officially named after President William McKinley in 1917, a gesture originally proposed by an Alaska gold prospector in recognition of McKinley's support for the gold standard. The Denali name is widely supported by Alaskans regardless of ethnicity. Politicians from McKinley's home state of Ohio are leading the opposition to the change. The origins of "Mount McKinley" The area around the mountain is inhabited by the Koyukon people, an Athabascan-speaking group of native Alaskans. Their traditional name for the mountain is Denali, or "tall," fitting for the tallest peak in North America.

When Alaska was under Russian rule, the mountain was known as Bolshaya Gora — "big mountain" — essentially a Russian translation of "Denali." In the 1880s and 1890s, white mountaineers briefly began referring to the mountain as Densmore's Mountain, after Frank Densmore, the first white explorer to reach the base of the mountain. Then, in 1896, came the confluence of two events. First there was a US presidential campaign dominated by a disagreement between William McKinley, who supported tying the value of the US dollar to gold, and William Jennings Bryan, who supported providing monetary stimulus by minting silver-backed dollars. Second was the beginning of the Klondike Gold Rush , prompted by the discover of gold reserves in Alaska. Gold prospectors were enthusiastic about the McKinley campaign, and began to informally call the mountain McKinley. McKinley won the election, and natural gold discoveries (in Alaska and elsewhere) provided monetary stimulus and turned McKinley's administration into a success. He was reelected, but then assassinated in 1901 in Buffalo.

In 1917, the Wilson administration officially signed the Mount McKinley National Park Act, which , among other things, changed the official name of the mountain. Native Alaskans never appreciated the Colonial rewriting of the name of their mountain. The fact that it was named after a white man who had nothing to do with the mountain — indeed, who had never so much as been to Alaska — added insult to injury. Alaska politicians have long been pushing for a renaming, and Obama obliged them in advance of an official presidential visit to the state. A backlash from Ohio It seems difficult to believe that any voters in Ohio actually care about this, but for a generation now the Ohio congressional delegation has appointed itself the stewards of the "Mount McKinley" name on the grounds that McKinley is from Ohio. Sen. Robert Portman led the charge on Twitter: I'm disappointed with the Administration's decision to change the name of Mt.

McKinley in Alaska (1/5) — Rob Portman (@senrobportman) August 31, 2015 Pres McKinley was a proud Ohioan, and the mountain was named after him, as a way to remember his rich legacy after his assassination (2/5) — Rob Portman (@senrobportman) August 31, 2015 The naming of the mountain has been a topic of discussion in Congress for many years (3/5) — Rob Portman (@senrobportman) August 31, 2015 This decision by the Administration is yet another example of the President going around Congress (4/5) — Rob Portman (@senrobportman) August 31, 2015 I urge Admin 2 work w/ me 2 find alternative ways 2 preserve McKinley's legacy somewhere else in the natl park that once bore his name (5/5) — Rob Portman (@senrobportman) August 31, 2015 House Speaker John Boehner is also an Ohioan and reacted angrily to the news , proclaiming himself "deeply disappointed" with this slight to McKinley's legacy.

Was this article helpful? The Other Denali Controversy: How America's Tallest Mountain Got Shorter - Condé Nast Traveler The Other Denali Controversy: How America's Tallest Mountain Got Shorter Share via Pinterest When Mt. McKinley officially went back to being Denali, it also got a height reduction. The highest point in North America is always something to see, but it doesn't usually make headlines the way it did last month, when President Obama officially changed the name of Alaska's Mt. McKinley to Denali. The very next day, the headlines got stranger: The United States Geological Survey announced that they were chopping ten feet off of Denali's official height. Wait, what? How does a mountain lose weight? Here are some fun facts you should know: Mt. McKinley has actually been "Denali" for forty years. First of all, a reality check for your aunt sending you Facebook memes about how Denaliis a Kenyan swear word, or something: Alaska renamed Mt.

McKinley Denali in 1975 to honor the traditional Athabascan name for the mountain, which means "the high one." At the time, the Alaskan legislature asked the United States Board on Geographic Names to do the same. The Buckeye State remembers! One Ohio congressman didn't like the idea of Ohio-born president William McKinley losing by far his most prominent monument. So for decades, Representative Ralph Regula attached a renunciation of the "Denali" name switch as a rider to appropriations bills funding the Interior Department. The Board on Geographic Names was powerless to act as long as the matter was pending in Congress. It wasn't until 2015 that the Obama administration made the change official. The move had bipartisan support in Alaska, but Ohio is still peeved. Mt. McKinley was slightly higher than Denali. Mt. McKinley's official height had been 20,320 feet since the 1950s, when surveyors took that measurement the old-fashioned way: tilting an instrument called a theodolite up to look at the peak, and then measuring the angle that tilt formed with the horizon.

That's right: just a few decades ago, mountains were measured with, essentially, a giant protractor and ninth-grade trigonometry. But in June, a team of climbers ascended the peak armed with the next generation of equipment: GPS. After a lot of sophisticated math to take into account variables like snow pack and the best sea-level baseline at that latitude, the team announced that the old measurement was ten feet too high. Denali is going to need a lot of new altitude signs. Mt. Everest's height was a deliberate lie for a century. Denali isn't the only mountain whose height has changed. The first British survey of India in 1852 discovered that Everest was the highest mountain in the world, with a height of exactly 29,000 feet. That number seemed suspiciously even, so Surveyor General Andrew Waugh announced the height as 29,002 feet. But Waugh needn't have bothered, since more recent surveys have given Everest's actual height as 29,029 feet. Last year's Nepal earthquake may have taken an inch or so off that height but, in general, plate tectonics are pushing Everest a little higher every year.

Denali is also growing slowly, so in about 3,000 years or so, we should once again have a 20,320-foot Denali. Unless William McKinley's vengeful ghost finds some way to destroy it first. Video Highlights Obama To Rename North America's Tallest Mountain In Alaska : NPR Obama To Rename North America's Tallest Mountain In Alaska Embed Embed Obama To Rename North America's Tallest Mountain In Alaska Obama To Rename North America's Tallest Mountain In Alaska Embed Embed NPR's Robert Siegel talks with National Park Service historian Frank Norris about the history of how North America's tallest peak was named. ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST: The tallest mountain in North America sits in the Alaska Range. It's been called many things - the crown jewel of the North, the great one, big mountain. Officially, though, it has been known as Mount McKinley since 1917, the legacy to America's 25th President, William McKinley of Ohio. But in an executive order announced yesterday, President Obama is renaming the mountain. It will now be known according to its more traditional name, Denali.

Frank Noris is a historian with the National Park Service - he wrote "The Crown Jewel Of The North: Administrative History Of Denali National Park And Preserve" - joins us now. And first, Frank Norris, tell us how was it that a mountain in Alaska was named after President McKinley who never set foot in Alaska? FRANK NORRIS: Well, in 1896, a prospector named William Dickey, after spending several months in the wilderness, came out and heard about the nomination of William McKinley, a devout gold proponent, and wrote a letter to the New York Sun, extolling the mountain Mount McKinley. In fact, he called it that in the New York Sun article. So that was picked up, and within a year or two, it was part of the official geographical lexicon. SIEGEL: Wow. Now, what about the name Denali? Where does that come from? NORRIS: Well, various Athabascan groups, for hundreds of years, have lived around the mountain in all directions. And they typically call it Denali or the great one.

SIEGEL: Does anybody, though, call it Mount McKinley, or has it just been Denali to Alaskans? NORRIS: Among Alaskans, Denali has been preferred. And in fact, this whole controversy began in 1975 shortly after Jay Hammond was elected governor. He wanted to see the name changed, and he was able to work with the Alaska legislature to have an official resolution passed to have the name changed to Denali. That went on over to the U.S. Board of Geographic Names. And for the next five years or so, there was a real maelstrom that took place in Alaska between the Board of Geographic Names and the U.S. Senate and House that various factions wanted to see those names changed. SIEGEL: But the name wasn't changed, so there must have been some support for keeping it Mount McKinley. NORRIS: Well, what came out of the final Alaska lands bill that passed in 1980 was a compromise in which the new enlarged national park would be called Denali National Park and Preserve, whereas the mountain itself would be called Mount McKinley.

A large reason why the mountain's name stuck was because of the Ohio congressional delegation, specifically Ralph Regula, who came from Canton, Ohio, which was President McKinley's hometown. So they saw to it that the name did not change. SIEGEL: And managed to bottle this up for quite a while. NORRIS: And in fact, once the Alaska lands bill passed Congress, there was a provision that said the name could not be changed any time there was an active bill in Congress in which the name would not change. And sure enough, Ralph Regula, who served in Congress until 2009, submitted a bill once every two years saying this name will stay Mount McKinley. SIEGEL: Well, now that the name is to be changed to the traditional name, Denali, now what do you think? NORRIS: I think Alaskans have long had a preference for Denali, and in fact, the only people fighting this change have been specifically the Ohio congressional delegation. And I think they're - Alaskans in particular recognize that McKinley's name was entirely specious because not only did he not have any particular recognition of this. He had never been to Alaska.

He'd never seen the mountain, and he, you know, he had no personal stake in how this naming took place. SIEGEL: Frank Norris is a historian with the National Park Service, and we've been talking about the coming name change of Mount McKinley in Alaska to Denali. Thanks for talking with us. NORRIS: Thank you. Copyright © 2015 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at for further information. NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by Verb8tm, Inc. , an NPR contractor, and produced using a proprietary transcription process developed with NPR. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.

Question: What mountain was officially known as Mount McKinley until 2015?
Answer: Denali