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A peak in western Oregon’s Umpqua National Forest dubbed Swastika Mountain has a new name after residents suggested a change to the appellation.
The U.S. Board on Geographic Names approved renaming the mountain Mount Halo on April 13.
The new title, Mount Halo, pays tribute to Chief Halito of the Yoncalla Kalapuya tribe. Halo lead the tribe in the 1800s, according to the Oregon Historical Society. The tribal village was located 20 miles west of the mountain.
The move was approved in a 19-3 vote during a Dec. 6 Oregon Geographic Names Board meeting. It was made official by the board last month.
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The mountain is nestled in the Umpqua National Forest on the western slopes of the Cascade Mountains. Explosive geologic events shaped the landscape and “provide spectacular scenery,” according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
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No ties to German Workers’ Party
The mountain − as well as the now-extinct town of Swastika − was named after a cattle ranch in the early 1900s before Adolf Hitler’s rise to power, Kerry Tymchuk, executive secretary at the Oregon Historical Society, told NPR in 2022.
According to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum the swastika symbol dates back some 7,000 years and means “good fortune” or “well-being” in Sanskrit. However, in the early 20th century, the marker came to symbolize German nationalists and Hitler’s Nazi Party.
Includes reporting from Tatiana Parafiniuk-Takesnick with the Eugene Register-Guard, part of the USA TODAY Network.
Natalie Neysa Alund covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on Twitter @nataliealund.
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