Highest Point East of Rockies Renamed for Native American
South Dakota's Harney Peak will no longer be named after an army officer who has been accused of massacring native people. It will now be called Black Elk Peak after a Lakota elder.
After several years of study and debate, the U.S. agency that oversees the official names of places—the U.S. Board on Geographic Names—has ruled in favor of Native American groups, ordering that South Dakota's Harney Peak now be known as Black Elk Peak. The U.S. board voted unanimously on the change August 11.
Not far from the iconic Mount Rushmore, the newly renamed peak is the highest point in the state, as well as the highest point in the U.S. east of the Rockies. The peak lies in the Black Elk Wilderness of Black Hills National Forest, in Pennington County.
Since 1896, the 7,242-foot (2,207-meter) feature in the southwestern part of the state had been named for U.S. Army General William S.
