MapQuest refuses to rename Lake Ontario after Trump’s executive order; app sees renewed interest

MapQuest, now owned by advertising company System1, rejected the change. The company posted "We're not changing it" on social media and released a tool letting users download maps that keep Lake Ontario's historical name or apply their own custom names. That response echoed MapQuest's similar stance after a prior renaming effort for the Gulf of Mexico.

The president's authority to rename geographic features applies to federal agencies and federal maps. It does not compel foreign governments or private mapping services to adopt the change. Binational features such as the Great Lakes are governed through longstanding U.S.-Canada arrangements, and cartographers noted that a presidential order alone cannot unilaterally rename an internationally shared water body.

Google and, in some cases, Apple adjusted how their apps display the lake name for U.S. users. MapQuest's refusal produced a spike in attention: the app rose to top positions on app-store charts, including number one among free navigation apps in Canada and a high placement in the U.S. store. MapQuest's general manager told the Los Angeles Times that the company had seen "hundreds of thousands" of new downloads since the announcement.

Launched in 1996, MapQuest was once the dominant online mapping and directions service. It was acquired by AOL in 1999, later became part of Verizon via acquisitions, and was sold to System1 in 2019. After losing ground to other mapping platforms in the smartphone era, MapQuest now occupies a niche audience and has reappeared in public conversation because of its stance on this naming order.

Expect mixed map labeling across platforms: federal U.S. maps will reflect the presidential order, while private apps and international maps may keep the historical name. The public attention on MapQuest demonstrates how a single decision by a private provider can shape consumer awareness and app-store rankings.

A presidential executive order changed federal naming for Lake Ontario within U.S. agencies, but it did not force private map companies or other countries to follow. MapQuest chose to resist that change, offering users alternatives and receiving a noticeable boost in downloads and public attention as a result.