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[[File:Alaska Mt. McKinley.jpg|thumb|right|'''Denali''' is the highest mountain in North America.]]

[[File:Alaska Mt. McKinley.jpg|thumb|right|'''Denali''' is the highest mountain in North America.]]

'''Denali''', formerly Mount McKinley, is the highest mountain in [[North America]]. It is located in south central [[Alaska]] and rises 20,330 ft (6,194 m) above sea level.

'''Denali''', formerly Mount McKinley, is the highest mountain in [[North America]]. It is located in south central [[Alaska]] and rises 20,310 ft (6,190 m)<ref>[http://www.usgs.gov/newsroom/article.asp?ID=4312 U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey]</ref> above sea level.

In the 19th century, Russian residents called the mountain ''Bolshaya Gora'' (the big mountain), an attempt to translate the local Indian name into Russian. In 1896, gold prospector William Dickey wrote an article for the ''New York Sun'' in which he suggested the name "Mount McKinley." This was soon after William McKinley, a supporter of the gold standard, received the Republican Party nomination for president. At first this name was treated as a political joke. After McKinley was murdered in 1901, the name Dickey had bestowed seemed a fitting tribute to the slain president.<ref>[http://usanews.co/denali-or-mckinley-how-a-19th-century-political-joke-turned-into-a-119-year-washington-post/ Denali or McKinley? How a 19th century political 'joke' turned into a 119-year]", ''Washington Post''</ref> It is used in the 1911 edition of ''Britannica''. (No other English-language name existed at that time.)<ref>"Alaska," ''Encyclopedia Britannica'' (1911).</ref>

In the 19th century, Russian residents called the mountain ''Bolshaya Gora'' (the big mountain), an attempt to translate the local Indian name into Russian. In 1896, gold prospector William Dickey wrote an article for the ''New York Sun'' in which he suggested the name "Mount McKinley." This was soon after William McKinley, a supporter of the gold standard, received the Republican Party nomination for president. At first this name was treated as a political joke. After McKinley was murdered in 1901, the name Dickey had bestowed seemed a fitting tribute to the slain president.<ref>[http://usanews.co/denali-or-mckinley-how-a-19th-century-political-joke-turned-into-a-119-year-washington-post/ Denali or McKinley? How a 19th century political 'joke' turned into a 119-year]", ''Washington Post''</ref> It is used in the 1911 edition of ''Britannica''. (No other English-language name existed at that time.)<ref>"Alaska," ''Encyclopedia Britannica'' (1911).</ref>