All the places the Trump administration has renamed in his second presidency, from the Gulf of Mexico to Lake Ontario
The Trump administration has renamed several landmarks and bodies of water, including changing Lake Ontario to 'Lake America' amid escalating trade tensions with Canada. Canadian officials have rejected the name change, which currently only applies to U.S. federal usage.
Why it matters
The renaming reflects a broader trend of nationalist branding and escalating diplomatic friction between the U.S. and its northern neighbor.
President Donald Trump changed the name of Lake Ontario to "Lake America" on Thursday. Andrew Harnik/Getty Images The Trump administration has changed the names of buildings, agencies, and bodies of water. Trump renamed the Gulf of Mexico and Alaska's Denali upon taking office in January 2025. Amid tensions with Canada, Trump renamed Lake Ontario to "Lake America" on Thursday. First, the Gulf of Mexico, now Lake Ontario — President Donald Trump has suggested an ocean could be next. The president signed an executive order on Thursday to rename Lake Ontario — one of the five Great Lakes, bordering both Canada and the US — to Lake America, telling reporters in the Oval Office that he had been thinking about the change "for a long time." "Maybe we'll have to change the name of the Atlantic and/or the Pacific," Trump said about renaming other bodies of water for America.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in