James Hector was still nineteen kilometres down the Bow Valley from what is now known as Castle Junction when he decided what the name of this mountain should be. He wrote, "Seeming to stand out in the centre of the valley is a very remarkable mountain... which looks exactly like a giant castle." When Sir Sandford Fleming travelled up the valley during the construction of the CPR he seemed to agree with the appropriateness of the name, writing, "Westward we see Castle Mountain to our right. The resemblance to Cyclopean masonary has doubtless suggested the name, for it is marked by huge masses of castellated-looking work, with turreted flanks."
One of the most imposing peaks in the Bow Valley, the bold, castellated southwest front of the mountain dominates the view for much of the journey from Banff to Lake Louise, its bulk, prominent position as noted by Hector, and reddish colour combining to make this a favourite of many who pass this way.
Despite the appropriateness of Dr. Hector’s name and the fact that it had been used for almost one hundred years, the mountain was renamed Mount Eisenhower in 1946 in honour of American General Dwight D. Eisenhower, the Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces in Europe during the final year of World War II.
The decision to rename Castle Mountain was made by Prime Minister Mackenzie-King on the day before the President was to pay a visit to Ottawa. As much as Eisenhower was respected, this arbitrary decision so enraged the Alberta government that it immediately formed its own geographical names board. It took thirty-three years and an Albertan as Prime Minister before Castle Mountain regained its original name in 1979. As a compromise, the prominent tower on the southern end of the mountain was given the name Eisenhower Peak.