Denali National Park was first established in 1917 as Mount McKinley National Park. The law creating it was signed by President Woodrow Wilson on February 26, 1917, making it Alaska’s first national park.
The original park was created to protect Dall sheep and other wildlife around North America’s highest mountain. Its boundaries were much smaller than today’s park, and the mountain itself was then officially called Mount McKinley.
In 1980, the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act greatly expanded the area and created the present Denali National Park and Preserve. The park’s name changed at the same time, while the mountain’s federal name later became a separate political issue. Denali is therefore both the modern park name and the name commonly associated with the protected landscape.