The name “Devils Tower” stems from a misinterpretation during an 1875 U.S. Geological Survey expedition. Prior to this, the formation was widely known as Bear Lodge, a name reflecting its deep spiritual importance to numerous Native American tribes, including the Lakota, Cheyenne, and Kiowa, who each possess unique creation stories about the site. President Theodore Roosevelt’s 1906 proclamation, which established the tower as the first national monument, was a landmark use of the Antiquities Ac