Zebulon Pike Sees a Distant Peak: Pikes Peak Gets Its Name
He never climbed it. Zebulon Pike spotted the peak that would carry his name on November 15, 1806, squinting at a distant white summit rising above the Colorado foothills, and declared it probably unclimbable. He was wrong — climbers reached the top just 14 years later. But Pike never tried. The mountain he called "Grand Peak" became Pikes Peak, attracting thousands during the 1859 Gold Rush under the rallying cry "Pikes Peak or Bust." The man who gave it its name never set foot on it.
November 15, 1806
220 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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