| Mount Darwin | |
|---|---|
 Mount Darwin rises above Midnight Lake. |
|
| Elevation | 13,831 ft (4,216 m) |
| Location | California, USA |
| Range | Sierra Nevada |
| Prominence | 1,871 ft (570 m) |
| Coordinates | Coordinates: |
| Topo map | USGS Mount Darwin |
| First ascent | 1908 by Ernest Clayton Andrews and Willard D. Johnson |
| Easiest route | basic snow/glacier climb |
| Listing | SPS Emblem peak |
Mount Darwin is a flat-topped mountain, named for evolution-theorist Charles Darwin, in the Sierra Nevada range in Fresno County, California that is a popular climb. It is located in the Kings Canyon National Park and the Inyo National Forest. It was first climbed on August 12, 1908 by Ernest Clayton Andrews, the Australian geologist, and Willard D. Johnson. The modern name of the mountain was given to it in 1895 by Theodore S. Solomons and E. C. Bonner (of the United States Geological Survey) as part of a series of mountains named after naturalists. Other nearby mountains include Mount Mendel, Mount Fiske, Mount Haeckel, Mount Huxley, Mount Spencer, and Mount Wallace. (This assortment of mountains is also known as the Evolution Region.) Nearby landmarks include Darwin Glacier and Darwin Canyon. A similar exercise in naming mountains after naturalists and other late nineteenth century proponents of evolution theory was carried out at the West Coast Range in Tasmania, Australia. In contrast, Mount Darwin in Tierra del Fuego was given its name during the voyage of the Beagle by captain Robert FitzRoy to celebrate Darwin's 25th birthday on 12 February 1834.
