Crater Glacier - Naming The Glacier

Naming The Glacier

Since the glacier was first observed to be forming and actively flowing in the late 1980s, most scientists working on the mountain have referred to it informally as the "crater glacier". That name has been in wide use with the public (at least those who were aware of the glacier's existence) for the two decades since the glacier formed, and has appeared in several scientific publications too. A single scientific paper, the most complete published study of the glacier to date, referred to it as the "Amphitheater glacier," but that name has not been used otherwise.

Despite numerous observations and publications about the growing glacier in the late 1990s and early 2000s, no move was made to give the glacier a permanent and official name until late 2004, after the current eruptive cycle began and the new dome began to split the glacier. At that time, a proponent from the Cowlitz tribe suggested the name "Tulutson Glacier," from the Cowlitz language word for ice. In March 2005, the Washington State Board on Geographic Names chose Tulutson over three other contenders (Crater, Spirit, and Tamanawas), and so Tulutson Glacier became the de facto name.

However, the U.S. Board on Geographic Names had yet to make its decision, which would be official throughout the United States. The name Tulutson Glacier was submitted for consideration, along with Crater Glacier and Kraffts Glacier, which would have honored the volcanologists Katia and Maurice Krafft, killed by a pyroclastic flow in 1991. In June 2006, the U.S. BGN chose Crater Glacier because of its two-decade precedent of common use, despite objections from the state of Washington and the United States Forest Service which both preferred Tulutson. The scientists at the USGS Cascades Volcano Observatory strongly supported Crater Glacier, and also commented that Tulutson may not be an appropriate name since the volcano “lies inland in a region where the native language was not Cowlitz but Sahaptin.”

After the decision, some controversy erupted following an editorial in a local newspaper protesting the decision, and the state of Washington "has indicated that the name Tulutson Glacier will continue to appear on State products, although if the feature melts soon, as is anticipated, this may not be a great concern." Despite these protests, the glacier is now officially named the Crater Glacier, and it continues to expand even through the past two-and-half years of renewed volcanic activity. Since continued dome building has nearly split the glacier in two, shortly after their June 2006 decision the BGN received a follow-up proposal to name the two arms of the glacier, East Crater Glacier and West Crater Glacier, but no further action has been taken on this matter.