On June 12 of
2014, East Dix Peak was officially renamed Grace Peak in honor of Grace
Hudowalski. Renaming an Adirondack peak, especially one of the original 46
peaks, is nearly impossible - the effort requires public support, strict
adherence to state regulations and a legitimate reason for the name change. Yet
Grace’s contributions to the Adirondack Park and the public desire for the
mountain to take her name supersede the effort it will take to officially
change East Dix to Grace Peak.
Grace
Hudowalski, also known as the matriarch of the 46ers, was the first woman to
climb all 46 peaks (Hill, 2014). She continued to act as a mentor for other
people, especially other women, who took the challenge to hike all 46
Adirondack Peaks (“East Dix…”, 2015). Grace also became an outspoken advocate
for the conservation of the park and maintaining the New York State “forever
wild” clause (“Article XIV of the New York State Constitution”, 2014). For her dedication
to the park and outreach to future recreationists, the Adirondack community
advocated for and supported the decision to commemorate her legacy with the renaming
of Grace’s Peak.
Despite open public support,
there has been opposition to this decision. Daniel Egan, ex-editor of 46 Peaks Magazine, argued against the
renaming of East Dix Peak. He reasoned that changing the peak name would create
more confusion for historians who already struggle to compile Adirondack
information (Hill, 2014). Also, the argument has been made that renaming East
Dix would dishonor Governor Dix, the original namesake of the peak. Yet, the
“Grace Peak” advocates were able to convince New York State governing groups by
challenging both arguments. Adirondack history is riddled with confusion – from
claiming and reclaiming land to defining and redefining boundaries. Therefore,
a well-documented peak renaming shouldn’t have a negative impact on Adirondack
history. Additionally, Governor Dix already has the South Dix Peak bearing his
name. Renaming East Dix shouldn’t have an impact on the governor’s legacy.
The renaming of East Dix Peak celebrates
Grace Hudowalski’s legacy of Adirondack Park conservation and openness to
hiking the Adirondack peaks. Her spirit of adventure will continue to live and
be enjoyed by the countless explorers who visit Grace Peak.
 |
| ADK Forty Sixers |
Sources
"East Dix Officially Renamed “Grace Peak”
in Honor of Grace Hudowalski."The Adirondack Forty-Sixers. The
Adirondack Forty-Sixers, 2013. Web. 13 Apr. 2015.
<http://adk46er.org/news.html>.
Hill, Michael. "Lofty Consideration." Adirondack
Life. Adirondack Life Inc., Dec. 2014. Web. 13 Apr. 2015. <http://www.adirondacklifemag.com/blogs/2014/10/21/lofty-consideration/>.
United States. New York State Department of
Environmental Conservation. Article XIV of the New York State Constitution.
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, 1 Jan. 2014. Web. 13
Apr. 2015. <http://www.dec.ny.gov/lands/55849.html>.
Throughout climbing and mountaineering history, the renaming of peaks has been a fairly controversial topic. Whenever a new name is proposed, people like to make a stink about how the new name is disrespectful to the person for whom the mountain was originally named, but I think that when we make this argument, we tend to forget that we're considering the name that settlers gave a mountain to be the original name. When we argue over whether Grace Peak should be named after Grace Hudowalski or be one of three peaks and a mountain range named after Governor John Dix, we forget that the peak wasn't originally called either of those names (though this isn't necessarily true in the Adirondacks, where even the state's highest peak did have a name until white settlers arrived). While the Denali/Mount McKinley debate is the most famous of these naming disputes, there are many other mountain names that we blindly accept, such as Mount Rushmore (Lakota Sioux name - Six Grandfathers) and Mount Everest (Tibetan - Chomolungma, or Nepalese - Sagarmatha). It seems as though naming issues only become a big controversy when someone proposes that a peak named after a dead white man be renamed for a woman or given its original name. Perhaps this is indicative of the role of the white patriarchal culture in the naming of geological features.
ReplyDelete