Politics & Government
Fremont Peak Name Could Be Changed To Native American Name
A Native American tribe requested the state reconsider the name due to John Fremont's documented role in violence against Native Americans.
FREMONT PEAK STATE PARK — California officials are proposing to strip the name of a 19th century explorer from Fremont Peak State Park in Monterey and San Benito counties, replacing it with the Native American name Tooyohtak.
Officials are asking for public feedback on restoration of the traditional name, pronounced too-YOH-tahk, meaning "bee place." It comes from the Amah Mutsun Tribe, an Ohlone-speaking people tied to missions San Juan Bautista and Santa Cruz, according to the Amah Mutsun Land Trust.
The tribe made a formal request in 2019 asking the state " to reconsider the use of the name 'Fremont Peak' due to John C. Fremont's documented role in violence against Native Americans," California State Parks said in a statement Friday.
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The 162-acre park, whose highpoint is 3,173-foot Fremont Peak, is 11 miles south of San Juan Batista.
The name review is part of a state initiative known as Reexamining Our Past. Following public feedback, the proposed name will be presented at a meeting of the California State Park and Recreation Commission.
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Fremont was a major-general in the U.S. Army, explorer and politician. He was a U.S. senator from California and the first Republican nominee for president of the U.S. He lost the 1856 presidential election to Democrat James Buchanan.
"The proposed name, Tooyohtak State Park, would honor the longstanding relationship between the Mutsun people and this culturally significant landscape," the tribe's ancestral home, State Parks said.
The park opened in 1936, named for its association with Fremont. "However, historical research has found disagreement about whether this mountain is the peak where Fremont planted an American flag in 1846," State Parks said.
Comments may be submitted by email to feedback.diablorange@parks.ca.gov with "Fremont Peak Name Change" in the subject line. The comment period ends at the close of business on Oct. 23.
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