New names for a mountain in Wyoming have been proposed as it currently honors a disgraced park superintendent who was accused of intending to rape an 11-year-old girl.
The Wyoming Board on Geographical Names have been discussing Mount Woodring and its new name after the sullied past of Samuel Woodring came to light.
Woodring was the first superintendent of Grand Teton National Park in 1929 but faced accusations of assault with intent to rape an 11-year-old girl in 1934.
The superintendent resigned from his position and left Teton County before the charges were dropped, as the alleged victim’s parents said they didn’t want to put their daughter through the trauma of testifying.
A proposal to change the peak’s name was submitted earlier this year following a fresh investigation. Now, two names have stood out for the pick, including ‘Equality Peak’ and ‘Raven Peak.’
Jim Greer, an entrepreneur and project manager from Utah, pointed out to WyoFile that none of the Teton peaks are named after women.
Greer and his family thought Nellie Tayloe Ross Peak, to honor Wyoming and the US’s first female governor.
After consideration they submitted ‘Equality Peak’ to the board in April, and Greer added: ‘It’s an aspirational value that’s embedded in our democracy.’
The Wyoming Board on Geographical Names have been discussing Mount Woodring and its new name after the sullied past of Samuel Woodring came to light
Samuel Woodring (pictured) was the first superintendent of Grand Teton National Park in 1929 but faced accusations of assault with intent to rape an 11-year-old girl in 1934
A proposal to change the peak’s name was submitted earlier this year following a fresh investigation. Now, two names have stood out for the pick, including ‘Equality Peak’ and ‘Raven Peak’
Another name submitted for the 11,595-foot mountain, ‘Raven Peak,’ was submitted by the man who re-discovered Woodring’s charges and called on the board for the name change.
Retired professor Bob Righter and two of his former graduate students, Paul Horton and Bruce Noble, formed an informal committee to investigate the charges.
Their committee discovered a letter sent from Woodring’s secretary, H.M Sherman, detailing an investigation that took place into the allegations placed against Woodring.
Sherman said they had heard a story from a trusted source about a young girl who accused Woodring of sexual assault at least six times, Cowboy State Daily reported.
Another story was brought to Sherman’s attention by another park ranger, detailing Woodring’s attempt to sexually assault a 12-year-old girl who had been afraid to tell her parents as her father worked for Woodring as a ranger, according to the outlet.
Sherman and the park ranger, after discovering the claims to be credible, brought the accusations to the attention of Fritiof Fryxell, Grand Teton’s first naturalist.
Fryxell, who four years earlier had put forward Woodring’s name for the mountain, was ‘horrified’ to learn of the accusations and helped them with the investigation.
The father to the 11-year-old girl accused Woodring, who allegedly admitted some guilt but denied any rape.
Jim Greer, an entrepreneur and project manager from Utah , pointed out to WyoFile that none of the Teton peaks are named after women. Greer and his family submitted ‘Equality Peak’ to the board in April, and Greer added: ‘It’s an aspirational value that’s embedded in our democracy’
Under Sherman’s questioning, however, Woodring claimed one of the girls had climbed into his lap, which indicated to him they wanted to engage in the physical acts.
Woodring then completely denied any accusations after charges were filed, and claimed he had been framed.
The superintendent was arrested and pleaded not guilty. He was released on a $5,000 bond, Cowboy State Daily reported.
‘These documents should demonstrate the offensive nature of the name Mount Woodring and the need to adopt a new name at the earliest possible opportunity,’ Noble wrote in the proposal, according to the outlet.
Woodring died five years after his resignation. The mountain’s name was approved in 1963.
Shelley Messer, a natural resource analyst for the State Engineer’s Office and a voting member on the Wyoming Board on Geographic Names, told the outlet: ‘The community was well aware of what happened. It kind of put a scarlet letter on his name.’
Messer added that she ‘personally’ found the documents ‘very persuasive’.
After the committee discovered credible evidence to the accusations, they approached the board to change the name of the mountain and were given the task to find an alternative name.
Retired professor Bob Righter and two of his former graduate students, Paul Horton and Bruce Noble, discovered credible evidence to the accusations and approached the board to change the name of the mountain and submitted ‘Raven Peak’
They believe their proposal of ‘Raven Peak’ should be considered over ‘Equality Peak.’
Horton told the outlet that their choice reflects the nature of the area instead of serving as a political reminder.
He believes that ‘Equality Peak’ could ‘make a lot of people unhappy’.
‘That alone is enough to disqualify it,’ Horton added.
Noble added to the sentiment and said: ‘The reputation of a person can change with the passage of time, whereas the status of a raven is not likely to change as years pass.
‘The hope is that Raven Peak will have staying power that helps to make it a fitting name.’
