Moon Lake? Mohn Lake? Geographer probes mystery of lake name

KALISPELL (AP) — A Montana lake that residents want to name may already have a title.

John and Sharon Ramsey’s quest to label the lake so that it could be stocked with fish led two people to come forward with options that they each say are the original.

About six decades of maps from the U.S. Geological Survey carry no name for the lake, which partially sits on the couple’s property.

Montana State Library geographer Gerry Daumiller started looking into the issue after the two proposed Lone Coyote Lake as the moniker to mirror Lone Coyote Trail, the road where they live.

One person who came forward said the lake is already named after the nearby Moon Lake Trial.

Another says Mohn Lake carries the name of the man who owned the surrounding property from 1898 to 1937.

Daumiller is asking anyone with information about the two names to contact him.

The U.S. Board on Geographic Names decides these proposals.

The Ramseys said Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks initially told them the lake couldn’t be stocked with fish without a name. Agency administrative supervisor Jannice Richardson, however, said the Ramseys had already proposed Lone Coyote Lake when they learned there was a one-time stocking permit available for unnamed lakes.