Formerly called Mount McKinley, Denali is now known by the Native Alaskan (Athabascan) name it's held for thousands of years. Denali's summit is 20,310 feet and is the highest mountain peak in North America.
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Mount Katahdin looms beyond the West Branch on the Penobscot River near Abol Bridge in Maine. The northernmost point of the Appalachian Trail, the mountain's Penobscot Indian name means "the Greatest Mountain."
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The Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area in Georgia -- and the river for which it's named -- retains its Native American name, which is thought to mean "'River of Painted Rocks."
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Hawadax Island in Alaska used to be overrun by rats, the result of a shipwreck, and was so named Rat Island. The Nature Conservancy worked with Island Conservation and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife service to remove the rats and restore the island's ecology. Native Alaskan elders officially restored the Hawadax name in 2012.
Hawadax Island Seabird Restoration Project
There's a movement by some activists to change the name of Devils Tower National Monument in Wyoming to Bear Lodge National Monument.
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South Dakota's board on geographic names voted to retain the name of Harney Peak after there was debate over the proposed native name Hinhan Kaga (Making of Owls).
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There are Native Americans who want to change the name of Mount Rainier, a dormant volcano southeast of Seattle, back to a Native language name. It's named for a British explorer and naval officer, Admiral Peter Rainier.
