Letter drive, bishop's effort help spur renaming of Idaho landmark

Published: 2007-11-06

BOISE, Idaho (CNS) -- Although there was a clear reference to the Blessed Mother, the name change of an Idaho landmark from St. Mary's Nipple to St. Mary's Knoll resulted in part from a challenge by Boise's Catholic bishop that it be renamed out of respect for all women. Earlier this year, Bishop Michael P. Driscoll had written to the U.S. Board on Geographic Names as part of a state campaign to rename the hill, which is near U.S. Highway 26 about 38 miles north of Pocatello. Recently a supporter of that effort wrote to the bishop to tell him the name had been changed and to thank him for his support. "Your letter has provided the leadership and encouragement needed for others to write," said Janet Ward, a leader of the Geographic Names Project and a member of the Idaho Association of University Women, in an Oct. 12 letter to the bishop. Supporters of the renaming said that use of the term "nipple" had not appeared on maps until 1964. It was included in a highway map seven years later.

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