Castle Mountain Mount Eisenhower Miistukskoowa What’s in a Name?

by Mike Carleton

Castle Mountain in Banff National Park. Photo: Carleton Family
Mike Carleton is working on stories about the days he lived with his family at the Mount Eisenhower
Warden Station in Banff National Park between 1955 and 1961.

MOUNT EISENHOWER – THE FAMILY CONNECTION
The name Mount Eisenhower held special meaning for the Carleton family when we moved to the war- den district in 1955. The name may have changed but many years on, the mountain and area remain a significant part of my past and continues to shape my present. I’m still learning from my experiences and through these stories that I’m sharing with you today.
Originally named Castle Mountain, the name was changed by Prime Minister MacKenzie King in 1946, in honour of American Dwight D. Eisen- hower (nicknamed “Ike”), who was Supreme Com- mander of the Allied Forces in the Second World War. The “gift” of the mountain was both a trib- ute to Eisenhower and an expression of Canada’s friendship for the United States. My dad, Ed, and four of his brothers had served with the Canadian army in the war and they were all very aware of Eisenhower and his military role.
For Ed and brother Russ there was a personal connection. They both served with the Calgary Highlanders regiment, part of the Canadian Army Second Infantry Division. While training in En- gland during the days leading up to the Norman- dy invasion in 1944, there was a memorable day for the Highlanders. On May 29, the Supreme Commander visited them for a ceremonial inspec- tion at the Shorncliffe army base on the English Channel. George Morasch, a Calgary Highlander and Ed’s family friend who would later fight side by side with him and Russ on the front lines in France less than two months later, remembers the occasion well.
“We were surprised and honoured that Eisen-hower would choose the Highlanders from the many thousands of Canadian troops in England. When Eisenhower stood up to speak, we were in

Signpost for the Mount Eisenhower District. Photo: Carleton Family

formation at attention. But Eisenhower gestured with his arms and said, ‘Relax boys! At ease; come in close to me.’ As the soldiers broke rank and approached, Eisenhower spoke of the ‘rough waters ahead’ and how he was counting on the Highlanders to do their part to win the war.”
According to George, Eisenhower spoke about how he held the Canadian Armed Forces in high re- gard and at the end of his speech, he said, “I love the people of Canada.” Now over 80 years later, George still gets emotional telling the story of the Supreme Commander’s visit.
After the war, my dad became a park warden in Banff. During our time at Mount Eisenhower from 1955 to 1961, the name of the mountain was well established in Banff Park. Dad was the warden for the “Mount Eisenhower District,” located at what was referred to as the “The Eisenhower Junction.” The Canadian Youth Hostel was across the highway from the warden station and nicknamed “Ike Inn.” Even
my mum, Dorothy, got in on the action, referring to the building that doubled as the warden office and our house, as “Eisenhower Lodge.” Compared to the rustic remote warden cabins she had occupied while living in other warden districts “in the bush,” she no doubt felt that having a bedroom, indoor plumbing with a bathtub and a power plant for lighting, which worked most of the time, was definitely like a “Lodge.”

THE MOUNTAIN TIME CAPSULE
There were two significant tribute events to Dwight Eisenhower and the mountain during my family’s time in the Mount Eisenhower District. On August 28, 1957, a time capsule was placed on the summit of the main peak by a couple from Long Beach, California. Jake and Agnes Verwoord were photogra- phers who spent their summers in Banff Park, taking photographs to sell to publications in the U.S. like Newsweek magazine.
Each summer, the Verwoords showed up at the warden station and chatted with Dad about their latest plans. Mount Eisenhower was a favourite objective for their photos. In 1957, through their lobby- ing efforts to the U.S. and Canadian governments, the Verwoords obtained permission to place a time capsule on the peak. The capsule was a 14” by 5 ½” rocket-shaped wood-epoxy container painted red, white, and blue. It held microfilm records about the history of the mountain and the area, stories relat- ed to Eisenhower (who was now the American president), and the friendship and cooperation between the U.S. and Canada. There were also microfilm records containing the current copy of Newsweek mag- azine. The capsule was to be opened 100 years hence in 2057.
Dad and Swiss Mountain Guide Walter Perren were ordered by Banff Park Superintendent B.I.M. Strong to escort the Verwoords to the summit of Mount Eisenhower. There was much gear to transport including the capsule, a plaque, Canadian and American flags, photographic equipment and supplies like cement, a hammer, a drill, etc. needed for placing the capsule at the peak. The assignment was not received with enthusiasm. Dad thought it was a rather crazy idea. During the very busy summer season, he had more important things to attend to. But orders had to be followed.
In later U.S. newspaper coverage about the Verwoords and their expedition, the couple was touted as “mountain climbers,” but they needed much assistance in this endeavour. The climb to the main peak was somewhat of an epic effort, involving horses for transport as far as the Upper Eisenhower Lake (now Rockbound Lake). Then Dad and Walter subsequently coaxed and aided the Verwoords to the summit. The climb took 15 hours round trip. Agnes, who wore running shoes for footwear, had a par- ticularly difficult time negotiating the rough limestone rock and sustained numerous cuts and scrapes. Mum expected the party to return around supper time and when they didn’t, was getting anxious. The group finally returned to the warden station in darkness, to the relief of Mum and Walter’s wife Pam. Agnes was bloodied and completely exhausted. Mum made tea and comforted the weary couple while Dad took care of the horses. It had been a long day, and he would be up early in the morning to catch up on district business.
The time capsule story was reported in the Calgary Herald and the Banff Crag and Canyon. The Ver- woords returned to Long Beach and their telling of the trip – somewhat exaggerated in their favour – appeared in California newspapers including the Independent Press-Telegram in Long Beach. Dad might have thought that was it but the Verwoords would be back again the following summer.
Years passed and memories of the Verwoords and their time capsule faded. There were various ru- mours about the site being damaged and the capsule removed. In 2014, a curious group of Carleton family and friends ascended the main peak and carried out a search. They located some remains of the capsule underneath the rocks at the base of the summit cairn. The contents were gone and only the low- er section of the time capsule was recovered. What happened to the original placement and the capsule contents remains a mystery.

Above: On the Summit of Mount Eisenhower Main Peak with the time capsule. Left to right: Ed Carleton, Agnes and Jake Verwoord.
Photo: Walter Perren

Left to right: Erik Carleton, Mike Carleton, Karen Messenger, Sanne Van Der Ros and Milo, on the Main Peak, 2014.

The remains of the time capsule. Only the bottom section was found. Photos: Carleton Family

THE COMMEMORATION PLAQUE
On August 24, 1958, there was a ceremony at the prominent viewpoint of Mount Eisenhower along the recently opened Trans-Canada Highway, about 20 km west of Banff. It was organized by the West- ern Canada District Convention of Kiwanis International and named “Dedication of Commemoration Plaque.” On the plaque were the words:

MOUNT EISENHOWER
NAMED IN APPRECIATION OF THE LEADERSHIP GIVEN TO THE ALLIED FORCES IN WORLD WAR II BY THE SUPREME COMMANDER
GENERAL DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER
THIS PLAQUE PLACED AS AN EXPRESSION OF THE GOODWILL EXISTING BETWEEN THE PEOPLE OF CANADA
AND THOSE OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
KIWANIS INTERNATIONAL WESTERN CANADA DISTRICT
August 24, 1958

Jake and Agnes Verwoord were there and no doubt had some influence in making this event happen. It was quite a spectacle with a program that included the Royal Canadian Army Service Corps band and Colour Guard. They played God Save the Queen, The Star-Spangled Banner, O Canada and America
– My Country Tis of Thee. Attendees were invited to join in on the hymn Unto the Hills. There was an
aerial salute fly past by T 33 Jet aircraft of the Royal Canadian Air Force (R.C.A.F.).
A large crowd was in attendance that day and the event was broadcast via Calgary radio station CFAC. Prime Minister Diefenbaker was represented by the Honourable Michael Starr, minister of labour for the Canadian government.
Edgar Eisenhower, “Personal Representative of President Eisenhower” and older brother of the pres- ident, officially accepted the plaque. In his speech, Edgar expressed hope that peace and tranquility would exist between Canada and the U.S. until “this vast mountain is reduced to dust.” He also told the audience he “had often heard his brother express friendly feelings towards Canadians…and had often lauded the Canadian Army with which he was associated during the Second Great War.” (The Calgary Herald, August 25, 1958)
George Brown, vice-president of the Kiwanis Club of Downtown Calgary, did a solo performance of
the poem, “Two Nations Side by Side.”

Two nations side by side,
Two lands where friends abide, from shore to shore. Two flags whose tints unite to form in heaven’s light One arc of peace and right for-ever-more.
So shall this friendship spread,
By peace with honour led, from sea to sea.
That from this continent, Our good-will may be sent,
To bless the world at length – in unity.

The event concluded with a Benediction by Major Gerald Wagner of the Salvation Army.
Dad wrote in his diary that day, “Patrolled to Black Rock Viewpoint for Mt. Eisenhower dedication.
Plaque – Verwoords.”
I think Dad thought all this attention on the mountain was getting a little carried away. It is interest- ing that the Verwoords climbed to the main peak again during the summer of 1958 on their own accord. The familiarity with the route and the terrain made their second ascent much easier.

Cover page of the 1958 Commemoration program. Photo: Carleton Family

Above: Spectators at the 1958 Commemora- tion Plaque Ceremony. Photo by Bruno Engler, Courtesy of the Whyte Museum

This is a map showing Blackfoot Nation Tim- ber Berth Rights in the Castle Mountain area, part of Treaty 7.
The map of the Tim- ber Limit is courtesy of Perry Davis and the Glenbow Western Re- search Centre.
CASTLE MOUNTAIN NAME RESTORED
Before Mount Eisenhower was Mount Eisenhower, it was Castle Mountain, named by geologist James Hector. Hector was a member of the Palliser Expedition. The expedition was assigned by Britain’s Queen Victoria in 1857 and led by Captain John Palliser to explore Canada’s Rocky Mountain region. Hector noticed one mountain’s impressive “castle like” formation and its prominence along the valley, and hence the name “Castle Mountain” seemed perfect.
Castle Mountain became Mount Eisenhower without warning or consultation after Prime Minis- ter MacKenzie King ordered the new name. Despite the initiatives toward recognizing the Eisenhower name and the friendship between the two countries, there was significant opposition to the renaming of the mountain. Mount Eisenhower was no doubt a drawing card to American tourists and seen as beneficial for folks in the tourism business, but the name upset many who thought that the mountain shouldn’t be named after a foreigner, no matter how famous. To many of the locals, the mountain was always “Castle Mountain.”
After many years of public protests, the original name was restored in 1979 when Joe Clark’s Progres- sive Conservative government was in power. A compromise was made in that the prominent peak on the south end of the mountain would be called “Eisenhower Tower.”
Not everyone in Canada agreed with the change back to Castle. Many Second World War veterans thought this was disrespectful to a man they fondly remembered. Even in 2025, George Morasch gets upset when Castle Mountain is mentioned, launching into a bit of a tirade against the powers-that-be who made the decision to restore the original name.
Dad always had high respect for Dwight Eisenhower, but he was not opposed to changing the name to Castle Mountain. By that time in the late 70s, Dad was a seasoned Parks worker who had grown to love Banff Park and its nature and wilderness. Dedications to an American president were not necessary.
I agree with Dad’s perspective. However, during my six years living at the warden station, the name “Eisenhower” really sank in. I still sometimes default to using the name Mount Eisenhower when I re- call all my fond memories from there. Life as a “warden’s kid” then was quite an adventure. The moun- tain and the surrounding district made a huge impression on my life.

THE BLACKFOOT CONNECTION
The Blackfoot name for Castle Mountain, Miistukskoowa, has gathered attention in recent years. On January 25, 2017, the Government of Canada and the Siksika Nation announced an agreement to settle a land claim in the region of Miistukskoowa. The agreement ended an outstanding claim dating back to the 1880s when land located there was set aside as a timber berth for the use and benefit of the First Nation.
The basis of the Siksika Nation claim was that these lands were wrongfully taken from them in 1908 without their consent and without proper compensation. In 1911, these lands at Castle Mountain were added to Rocky Mountain Park, now known as Banff National Park. The agreement provides the Siksika Nation with financial compensation, economic opportunities inside Banff National Park, and ongoing park access for cultural, traditional and educational purposes. (Source: Canada and the Siksika Nation Advance Reconciliation with Signing of Castle Mountain Settlement, accessed June 2025).

Case Vanderwolf (left) and Mike Carleton near Lower Eisenhower Lake (Tower Lake) in 1959. Photo: Herb Cerezke
REFLECTIONS
In 2009, I was with some friends on a hike to Rockbound Lake, located in the amphitheatre-like forma- tion behind Castle Mountain. It is a nine km hike to the lake from the parking lot where the warden sta- tion was located so many years ago. On this gor-
geous summer day, we enjoyed the glorious scene that unfolds as you approach the lake. There is a prominent area of smooth eroded rock near the south-east lake shore. In that area there were 50 or 60 Buddhist monks dressed in robes and most of them were wearing sandals. They were en- gaged in what I assumed was a religious ceremo- ny. Later, I had the opportunity to approach one of the monks. I said hello and asked how it was to hike in the mountains in sandals. The monk said his group was very experienced with sandals and had no worries. Through our chat, I learned this was not their first time at Rockbound Lake. This particular group of monks, from all over the world, chose a special place to meet each year. He said, “this mountain and this place are spiri- tual to us.”
I thought for a moment.
“It’s spiritual to me too,” I said. No doubt, it is
also spiritual for the Blackfoot Nation.
Over the years, I have experienced Castle Mountain in many ways: Climbing the Eisen- hower Tower, scrambling the main peak in the summer and a skiing ascent of the main peak in winter. There have been numerous trips to Rock- bound and Tower lakes as hikes with friends or on horseback with Dad as a youth. I have felt the sorrow of my mum comforting survivors who had lost a friend in a fatal climb of the Eisen- hower Tower. I have also felt the joy of catching perhaps the first fish from Rockbound – a native cutthroat – a few years after Dad was involved in stocking the lake with fingerlings during our time in the District. When Mum was 75, she made a very memorable hike to Rockbound to celebrate

My mum, Dorothy, on Rockbound Lake Trail. Photo: Peter Perren

her birthday. There has been an abundance of warm memories created for which I’m very grateful.
Recently at my church, St. David’s – Northminster United Church in Calgary, Reverend Nancy Nourse spoke about the “thin places” between heaven and Earth. According to Nancy, a thin place is a place where heaven and Earth seem so close, or as George MacLeod founder of the Iona Community, said, “only a tissue paper is separating the material from the spiritual.”
Sitting on a rock above Rockbound Lake, having a snack and gazing out at the beauty of the mountain and its surroundings, the memories come flooding back. In that moment, I have seen a thin place. In retrospect, the name of the mountain at any point provides a place marker. But maybe the name is less important than what you see, and what sticks with you, from the precious moments experiencing the mountain and “God’s Glory.”
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to express my sincere appreciation for the assistance in writing this story: to Lea Stor- ry (Our Family Lines) and Jennifer Galambos for their advice, suggestions, and encouragement; to Perry Davis and Al Bradley for their contributions; to the Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies,
and especially to George Morasch – proud Calgary Highlander and World War II veteran – for all of his
valuable and emotional recollections from the war.
Mike Carleton

CONTACT
To connect with Mike, email him at mike.carleton@shaw.ca. More stories about the Mount Eisenhow- er District and Carleton family life in Banff National Park are available in the book Ed and Dorothy: Rocky Mountain Romance. You can find it on Amazon at https://tinyurl.com/edanddorothy.