The Struggle Over Mount Rainier
A traveler in 1885 recounts a journey from Portland to Seattle, noting the locals' intense and 'desperate' campaign to rename the iconic peak dominating the Tacoma skyline.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Just before reaching Tacoma, we had a fine view of Mt. Rainier, one of the highest peaks in the United States. The people of Tacoma are making a desperate effort to change the name of this mountain to that of their city, but those who have read of this lofty peak in all school geographies will not be willing to part with a name so familiar to gratify the vanity of a town of but five years' growth. We arrived at Tacoma at 9 o'clock at night, and at once boarded the steamer to Seattle, the largest city of the Territory. It was a delightful ride over the placid waters of the Sound by canoe light, and when nearing the city, the pleasure of the trip was greatly enhanced by the illumination of some of the municipal buildings, the bright, dazzling light of which made a most beautiful luminary from the boat.
“Those who have read of this lofty peak in all school geographies will not be willing to part with a name so familiar to gratify the vanity of a town of but five years' growth.”
The 'desperate effort' mentioned here refers to the fierce 19th-century rivalry between Seattle and Tacoma over the peak's name. While the federal government officially recognized 'Mount Rainier' in 1890, the debate persisted for over a century until the name was finally changed to Mount Rainier's Indigenous name, Tahoma (or Mt. Rainier/Tahoma), reflecting a modern shift toward acknowledging the land's original stewards.
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