Officials look to put no-name lake on the map
Officials tasked with naming things on maps are looking for historical information on a small, unnamed lake in the West Valley.
Kenneth and Sharon Ramsey, residents of the neighborhood adjacent to the 10-acre lake, suggested the name “Lone Coyote Lake” in an application sent to the Montana State Library earlier this year. The name is a reference to Lone Coyote Trail, which partially borders the anonymous body of water between Farm-to-Market Road and West Valley Drive, north of Church Drive.
Gerry Daumiller, the Montana State Library’s geographic information specialist, serves as the state’s liaison to the U.S. Board on Geographic Names, the governmental body with final say over how features are officially designated on maps. Since the initial publication of the proposal, Daumiller said several residents responded with evidence that the lake had once borne the name of Mathis Mohn, who owned land around the lake between 1898 and 1937, before it disappeared from official records.
“I’m thinking originally there were some people who called it ‘Mohn Lake’ because it was on Mr. Mohn’s land, and then there were some people that later misunderstood it,” Daumiller said, referring to the leading consensus of “Moon Lake” as the historical name.
One woman contacted his office claiming to have documents from a land purchase referring to “Moon Lake,” although Daumiller said he’s yet to receive a scanned copy of the papers. A nearby street, Moon Lake Trail, is also likely a reference to the lake.
Daumiller will continue to collect information and historic records from residents through Nov. 15, then issue a recommendation to the federal board.
“If no new information comes in, I’d recommend that they call it ‘Moon Lake,’” Daumiller said. “Anybody who cares about it, that’s what they call it now.”
He added that Sharon Ramsey had also emailed him, indicating that she would be willing to change her application to recommend the local consensus.
In the coming weeks, he said he’ll send the county commissioners a letter asking for their endorsement before making his recommendation. January 2017 is the earliest he expects the U.S. Board on Geographic Names to issue a final decision.
Anyone with knowledge of the “Moon Lake” or “Mohn Lake” names, or with documents that include the lake, can contact Daumiller at 406-444-5358 or gdaumiller@mt.gov, or send relevant information to P.O. Box 201800, Helena, MT 59620.
The initial comment period ends on Nov. 15, but all comments received prior to the decision will be forwarded to the Board on Geographic Names.
To view the lake’s location on a map, visit goo.gl/hS597A.
Reporter Sam Wilson can be reached at 758-4407 or by email at swilson@dailyinterlake.com.