Upstate New Yorkers Push Back on ‘Lake America’ Rename

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on August 27 directing federal agencies to refer to Lake Ontario as “Lake America,” but residents along the lake’s New York shoreline are making clear they have no intention of letting go of the centuries-old name. The order, signed in the Oval Office amid an escalating U.S.-Canada trade war, instructs the Department of the Interior and the U.S. Board on Geographic Names to update the federal Geographic Names Information System within 30 days, according to CNBC.

“We’re going to be changing the name of Lake Ontario, effective immediately, to Lake America,” Trump said before signing the order, adding that “the Canadian officials have treated us very badly. They’re nasty people.”

Local Resistance Along the Shoreline

The executive order applies only to the U.S. federal government — it does not require New York communities, Canada, or the public to adopt the new name. That distinction is especially notable in Oswego County, which voted for Trump in the 2016, 2020, and 2024 presidential elections, yet residents there are pushing back against the change, as reported by CNY Central.

Robert Code, an Oswego County resident who said he has supported Trump from the beginning, told CNY Central: “I’ve been on his side all the way, right from day one, but I think he’s losing it here. I just assumed that remained Lake Ontario.” For Code, the name is tied to memories stretching back decades. “I remember riding my bike around here 70 years ago, taking a pop bottle out, taking a drink out of the lake,” he said.

Sisters Theresa Chalone and Patricia Hardwick, who grew up in Fulton, New York, were emphatic in their opposition. “No, no, no, no, no,” they said. “It’s Lake Ontario. It’s our lake. It’s Lake Ontario. Never, ever.”

Along the western shore, residents expressed similar sentiments. Michael Moyer, a Village of Wilson resident, told WKBW: “I don’t think it changes much. You can do with it what you want with it, and people are still going to call it Lake Ontario.” John Hallows of Middleport added: “Doesn’t really bother me at all, and they can name it what they want, but it’s always going to be Lake Ontario to us. Any of us that grew up around this area, it will always be Lake Ontario.”

A Name Rooted in History

The name “Lake Ontario” comes from the Iroquoian/Wendat word “Ontari’io,” meaning “lake of shining waters” or “the lake is beautiful, the lake is big.” The name first appeared on European explorers’ maps in the 1660s and predates both the United States and Canada, as detailed by CityNews Toronto. The province of Ontario took its name from the lake when it was created in 1867 at Confederation.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney rejected the name change outright, saying: “The name is more than 400 years old, predating both the Confederation of Canada and the Declaration of Independence of the United States of America.” He added: “Canadians also know that naming reality means calling it Lake Ontario — then, now and always.”

Political Fallout

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul declared “New York won’t be calling it that,” calling the renaming “absurd” and criticizing the administration for not focusing on mending relations with Canada, according to the Democrat and Chronicle. “The fact that this is even part of the conversation shows how absurd the Trump administration is,” Hochul said. “They should be focusing on ways to mend relationships with Canada so our farmers and our consumers and our families do not continue suffering from this inane war over tariffs.”

Hochul also noted that the Great Lakes acronym has changed: “An acronym for the Great Lakes used to be HOMES. Thanks to Donald Trump, it’s now SHAME.”

Rep. Joseph Morelle (D-25) called the move “an attempted distraction from the President’s disastrous trade talks with Canada,” saying that “while Rochester families deal with the impacts of a trade war he started, President Trump is playing games with a map.” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer described the order as “Sad and Pathetic,” adding that “voters will respond accordingly in November.”

Even some Republicans have distanced themselves from the move. Rep. Tom Tiffany of Wisconsin said: “I believe the Great Lakes are the Great Lakes and should stay Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, Lake Ontario.” And New York gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman, a Republican, told CNY Central that Trump was “kidding” — “He’s not going to change Lake Ontario. He’s just tweaking the Prime Minister of Canada.”

Trade War Context

The renaming comes amid a rapidly escalating trade war between the U.S. and Canada. Trump imposed 50% tariffs on about $20 billion of Canadian goods after trade negotiations broke down, and Canada has responded with retaliatory tariffs of up to 50% on U.S. imports, set to take effect September 8, as reported by USA Today. The economic impact is already being felt in border communities — Canadian tourism to New York is down 26% and Canadian spending is down 28%.

Trump has also floated renaming an ocean next, saying: “If you think about it, we have a gulf and we have a lake, now all we need is an ocean. So maybe we’ll have to change the name of the Atlantic and/or the Pacific.”

Legal Limitations and What’s Next

While Trump can legally change how the U.S. refers to the lake through an executive order, it does not apply internationally. Lake Ontario is jointly controlled by the United States and Canada under the Boundary Waters Treaty of 1909, and there is no single binding international authority that determines what every country must call a shared body of water, according to the USA Today explainer.

This is the second time Trump has renamed an international body of water — he previously renamed the Gulf of Mexico as the “Gulf of America,” a change the international community, including Mexico, still does not recognize. As USA Today reported, the backlash from Americans themselves has been notable, with residents like John Melder of Greece, New York, laughing off the change: “He did the same thing with the Gulf of Mexico and it’s still the Gulf of Mexico, so this would still be Lake Ontario. I think people will do what I do and not take it seriously.”

The US Geological Survey officially changed the name in its Geographic Names Information System within hours of the order, and Google has indicated it follows official government names in its maps. But for the people who live along the lake’s shores, the name that has stood for more than 400 years isn’t going anywhere. As Sharee Turpin of Gates, New York, put it: “I just wanted it to stay Lake Ontario because it’s part of our history.”

What to Watch For

As the trade war continues to escalate and Canada’s retaliatory tariffs take effect September 8, the renaming controversy is likely to remain a flashpoint in U.S.-Canada relations. Whether the new name gains traction in federal documents and maps — or fades like the “Gulf of America” designation — remains to be seen. For now, the communities along Lake Ontario’s shores are unified in their message: it will always be Lake Ontario.