Globemakers are torn over Trump's 'Lake America' move

Globemakers are torn about how to respond to the 'Lake America' name change.

Johner Images/Getty Images Trump's latest name change has put map and globe makers in a bind.

One globemaker says he won't adopt the term "Lake America," refusing to follow "the whims of a madman." A map-and-globe company is allowing customers to update their maps at no extra charge.

Globe and map makers are grappling with a very Trump-era problem: what do you do when politics keeps changing the map? President Donald Trump renamed Lake Ontario “Lake America” by executive order on Thursday, more than a year after renaming the Gulf of Mexico the "Gulf of America." The move is throwing some makers of physical maps and globes for a loop.

Joseph C.

Wright, the CEO of Illinois-based Replogle Globes, said his company has weathered changes to the world map throughout its 96-year history, from the fall of the Soviet Union to African nations changing names.

Even so, geopolitical uncertainty translates to business uncertainty, he said.

"As long as a change is pending, it adds uncertainty to globe purchasers, who may want to hold off purchases until a decision is made," Wright said.

The problem doesn't go away now that Trump has signed the executive order, he said.

"The issue of international acceptance is also a factor, as some nations may not accept it," Wright said.

"We sell globes worldwide." After Trump renamed the Gulf of Mexico in January 2025, the UK, Mexico, and China were among the countries to reject the change to the Gulf of America .

It also led to a legal dispute between Mexico and Google .

This time, Wright expects that some nations might once again refuse to accept a US-ordered name change.

"The political uncertainty for such changes affects the timing of purchases," he said, "as a change in presidential administrations in a little less than two and a half years might result in a change back to the previous names, or lead to other additional changes." Other globemakers have a simpler solution to this cartographic conundrum: Ignore Trump.