SAN JUAN BAUTISTA, California — October 22, 2026. Residents have until close of business Friday, October 23, to submit public comments on a California State Parks proposal to rename Fremont Peak State Park tooyohtak State Park, restoring a traditional Mutsun place name. The proposal is not yet a final name change.
What does tooyohtak mean?
According to State Parks, tooyohtak (pronounced roughly too-YOH-tahk) means “bee place” or “at the bees.” The park is part of the ancestral homeland of the Mutsun people. The Amah Mutsun Tribal Band requested a reconsideration of the Fremont name in October 2019, citing John C. Frémont’s role in violence against Indigenous peoples in the nineteenth century.
Why officials are considering the change
The proposal is part of State Parks’ Reexamining Our Past initiative, which seeks to address discriminatory place names and expand acknowledgment of California Native American history. State Parks has also said historical research questions whether the mountain was the place where Frémont raised a flag in 1846.
How to comment before the deadline
State Parks says the public can send feedback to feedback.diablorange@parks.ca.gov using the subject line Fremont Peak Name Change. Comments must be received by close of business on October 23, 2026. The park’s official information page also links to the feedback process.
What happens next?
After public feedback, the proposed name will go to a future meeting of the California State Park and Recreation Commission, which has authority over naming State Park System units. As of this report, the established official name remains Fremont Peak State Park. A public comment period is not equivalent to approval.
Local connection
The park is located off Highway 156, south of San Juan Bautista on San Juan Canyon Road, and offers views toward Monterey Bay and the Salinas Valley. Visitors should check road access and the park’s own current restrictions separately from the renaming issue.
Primary source: California State Parks — Fremont Peak State Park and proposed place-name restoration.
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