Oswego mayor rejects Trump's renaming of Lake Ontario to 'Lake America'

The Republican mayor of Oswego, New York, Robert Corradino, has rejected the renaming of Lake Ontario to “Lake America,” a change enacted by US President Donald Trump through an executive order on August 27. While Google and Apple Maps have already adopted the new name for US users, Corradino said his community is “taking the renaming very personally” and will continue to use Lake Ontario in all signage, tourism materials, and official communications. According to a report by National Post, Corradino emphasized that Lake Ontario is central to Oswego’s identity, citing its economic importance through charter boats, cruise ships, and tourism.

The renaming of ‘Lake Ontario’ and local pushback

Corradino emphasized that Lake Ontario's name is rooted in a Huron Indigenous word meaning "lake of shining waters," predating the province of Ontario itself, which took its name from the lake in 1867. “Lake Ontario is in the DNA of Osweganians. Everything that we are emanates from the lake,” he said. The mayor also noted that Canadian tourism, vital to local businesses, has dropped substantially following the breakdown of US-Canada trade negotiations last month. Statistics Canada data shows Canadian travel to the US fell 10.6% in the first quarter of 2026 compared to the same period in 2025. Corradino reaffirmed Oswego’s stance: “Lake Ontario has carried its name for hundreds of years. It is a name rooted in history, geography, and the shared identity of the communities that surround it. The city of Oswego will continue using the name that reflects our history and honors the generations who have lived, worked, and built their lives along its shores.”

A Bipartisan and cross-border backlash

Trump's order has drawn criticism well beyond Oswego. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton responded to the renaming with a brief rebuttal on X, while Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders said the American public has no appetite for calling the lake "Lake America." North of the border, Carney noted on social media that the name Lake Ontario derives from the Wendat word "Ontari'io," meaning the lake is beautiful and big, and that it predates both Canadian Confederation and the U.S. Declaration of Independence by more than 400 years. He argued that acknowledging reality means continuing to call it Lake Ontario. Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre echoed the sentiment, saying the lake was never Trump's to rename on a whim.

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Ontario Premier Doug Ford went a step further on Saturday, unveiling a new "Lake Ontario" sign in Winona, Ontario, declaring in a video posted to X that the lake carried that name long before Trump and would continue to carry it long after he's gone.

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