Highest Point in Every U.S. State

Caitlin Dempsey

Updated:

The topography of the United States is very diverse. The high points in the country range from Denali, the tallest mountain in the United States located in Alaska with an elevation of 20,310 feet, to states with high points that barely rise above the surrounding areas. The state with the lowest high point is Britton Hill in Florida with a rise of just 345 feet.

Discover the highest point in each U.S. state. Eight of the state high points are found in National Parks.

How high and low are the highest points in the United States?

Only one state, Alaska, has a highest elevation over 20,000 feet with Denali. This is also the highest point in North America.

A hexagon tile map for the United States with a dark blue to light green-yellow gradient to show the highest elevation value in each state.
A hexagon tile grid map showing the highest elevation in each state (higher resolution hexagon map of elevations by state). Map: Caitlin Dempsey.

All of the states with highest elevations above 10,000 feet are found in the western region. There are 13 states in total with elevations that rise above 10,000 feet: Alaska, Hawaii, Washington, Oregon, California, Montana, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, Wyoming, Colorado, and New Mexico.

At the other extreme, six states have no point that rises above 1,000 feet: Florida, District of Columbia, Rhode Island, Mississippi, Delaware, Louisiana.

Map of the highest point in each U.S. state

This map shows the highest point with labels for each state in the United States as well as the District of Columbia.

A shaded relief map with labels of the highest point in each state.
The highest point in each state. There is also a higher resolution PDF version of the map available. Map: Caitlin Dempsey.

Alabama

Cheaha Mountain: 2,413 feet (735 meters). State rank: 35.

Mount Cheaha, also known as Mount Delta, is located in Cheaha State Park, a few miles northwest of Delta. Mount Cheaha is part of the Talladega Mountains, a subset of the larger Appalachian Mountains that stretch along the eastern United States.

Mount Cheaha was named by the Creek Indians and cheaha means “high place”.

Cheaha Mountain, the highest point in Alabama, viewed from Skyway Mountainway, April 2018. Photo: Cheaha Mountain, Alabama - Skye Marthaler, CC BY-SA 4.0 Wikimedia
Cheaha Mountain, the highest point in Alabama, viewed from Skyway Mountainway, April 2018. Photo: Cheaha Mountain, Alabama – Skye Marthaler, CC BY-SA 4.0 Wikimedia

Bunker Tower, also known as Bunker Hill Tower or the Cheaha Observation Tower, is built at the highest natural elevation in Alabama within Cheaha State Park on Cheaha Mountain in Alabama. The tower is made predominantly of locally sourced sandstone and wood designed to blend seamlessly with the surrounding environment. The building features a tower that leads up a flight of stairs to a covered observation deck with a telescope for observing.

A stone tower surrounded by trees.
Bunker Tower marks the highest natural elevation in Alabama in the Cheaha Mountain. Photo: © fredlyfish4/stock.adobe.com.


Alaska

Denali: 20,310 feet (6,190 m) high.

Denali is the highest point in the United States and is located in the Alaska Range in the interior of the U.S. state of Alaska. Denali is also the highest point in North America.

For almost a hundred years, the U.S. government officially recognized the name of the mountain as “Mount McKinley” (named after then-presidential candidate William McKinley in 1896) from 1917 until 2015. In 2015, the officially recognized name was reverted to Denali, a name the local Koyukon people had been using for centuries.

Denali is part of the Alaska Range which stretches 600 miles along the Alaska-Canada border.

A view of Denali from Wonder Lake. Photo: NPS, public domain.
A view of Denali from Wonder Lake. Photo: NPS, public domain.

Arizona

Humphreys Peak: 12,637 ft (3,852 m).

Humphreys Peak is the highest natural point in Arizona.

Part of a group of dormant volcanoes known as San Francisco Peaks, Humphrey Peak is located within the Kachina Peaks Wilderness in the Coconino National Forest, and is about 11 miles (17.7 km) north of Flagstaff, Arizona. The San Francisco Peaks, of which Humphreys Peak is the apex, are remnants an extinct stratovolcano.

Humphreys Peak is the second mountain summit from the right side of this image. Photo: USGS, public domain.
Humphreys Peak is the second mountain summit from the right side of this image. Photo: USGS, public domain.

Arkansas

Magazine Mountain: 2,753 ft (840 m).

The highest point in Arkansas, Magazine Mountain is located north of Blue Mountain Lake in Logan County, Arkansas. Mount Magazine is a flat-topped mountain or mesa capped by hard rock and surrounded by steep cliffs.

The mountain gets its name from French explorers who thought the sound of a landslide on the mountain sounded like an ammunition magazine exploding.

Looking west from Mount Magazine's Cameron Bluff. Photo: Jason Ronza, Wikimedia, CC BY 4.0
Looking west from Mount Magazine’s Cameron Bluff. Photo: Jason Ronza, Wikimedia, CC BY 4.0

California

Mount Whitney: 14,494 feet (4418 meters).

The tallest peak in the United States that isn’t in Alaska is Mount Whitney which lies on the boundary of Sequoia National Park and Inyo National Forest in California.

Mount Whitney from space. Astronaut photograph ISS050-E-17326 was acquired on December 19, 2016, and is provided by the ISS Crew Earth Observations Facility and the Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit, Johnson Space Center.
Mount Whitney from space. Astronaut photograph ISS050-E-17326 was acquired on December 19, 2016, and is provided by the ISS Crew Earth Observations Facility and the Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit, Johnson Space Center.

Mount Whitney, at 14,505 feet (4,421 meters), is the highest mountain in the contiguous United States and a popular day hiking and backpacking destination on the Pacific Crest Trail. In the Paiute language, Mount Whitney is referred to as Too-man-i-goo-yah. Mount Whitney is only 85 miles from the lowest place in North America.

The Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) instrument on NASA’s Terra probe created this 3-D perspective image of Mount Whitney. The western view shows the Alabama Hills in the foreground, a favored locale featured in hundreds of Western movies.

3D image of Mount Whitney created from combing an ASTER image with a digital elevation model. Image: JPL/NASA.
3D image of Mount Whitney created from combing an ASTER image with a digital elevation model. Image: JPL/NASA.


Colorado

Mt. Elbert: 14,440 feet (4401.2 meters)

Mount Elbert is the highest peak in the Rocky Mountains, the highest point in Colorado, and the second-highest summit in the contiguous United States (after Mount Whitney). Mount Elbert is located in the Sawatch Range, a subrange of the Rockies, and is part of the San Isabel National Forest.

Looking southwest from Mt. Elbert (14,439 ft/4,401 m) across the Sawatch Range, Colorado, towards Castle Peak (14,278 ft/4,352 m).
Looking southwest from Mt. Elbert (14,439 ft/4,401 m) across the Sawatch Range, Colorado, towards Castle Peak (14,278 ft/4,352 m). Photo: Cal Ruleman, USGS. Public domain.


Connecticut

Mt. Frissell on south slope: 2,379 feet (725 meters)

Mount Frissell, at 2,454 feet (748 m), is a prominent peak of the Taconic Range that straddles the border of southwest Massachusetts and northwest Connecticut. The south slope of Mount Frisell along the Massachusetts border marks the highest point in Connecticut with an elevation of  2,379 feet (725 meters).

View of Mount Frissell from Bear Mountain.
View of Mount Frissell from Bear Mountain. Photo: Heatkernel, public domain via Mediawiki Commons.

Delaware

Ebright Road 448 137

Ebright Road is home to Delaware’s highest benchmark monument. This horizontal control mark indicates 447.85 feet above sea level. The Delaware Geological Survey, in collaboration with the National Geodetic Survey, determined that this benchmark monument is located near the state’s highest natural elevation.

This makes Delaware the state with the second-lowest high elevation point. Only Florida is lower, with the highest elevation of 345 feet (105 meters) above sea level.

Photo of the sign at Ebright Azimuth.
Ebright Azimuth. Photo: Delaware Public Archives.


District of Columbia

Fort Reno Park: 409 feet (125 meters)

With an elevation of 409 feet (125 meters), Point Reno is the highest point in the District of Columbia.

Fort Reno Park is an urban park in Northwest Washington, D.C.’s Tenleytown neighborhood. The park is named after Fort Reno, one of the few places in the District of Columbia to see combat during the American Civil War.

Most of the park is now owned by the National Park Service. Prior to the park’s establishment in the 1920s, the area had been a largely Black residential area named Reno that was razed despite the efforts of members of the community to save it.

Benchmark style monument marking the highest elevation in Washington D.C.
Benchmark style monument marking the highest elevation in Washington D.C. Photo: NPS, public domain.

Florida

Britton Hill: 345 feet (105 meters)

The average topography of Florida is the lowest of any state. The majority of the state is at or near sea level.

Britton Hill, at 345 feet in elevation, is Florida’s highest point. Britton Hill is in Walton County, close to the Alabama border.

Marker on Britton Hill. Photo: StAugBeachBum, public domain via MediaWiki Commons.
Marker on Britton Hill. Photo: StAugBeachBum, public domain via MediaWiki Commons.


Georgia

Brasstown Bald: 4,784 feet (1,458 meters)

Brasstown Bald is the highest point in Georgia, United States. The mountain is located in the Blue Ridge Mountains in the northeastern part of the state, on the border between Towns and Union counties, south of Hiawassee. Brasstown Bald is part of the Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest.

Aerial shot of a building located on a top of the Brasstown bald mountain during the day.
Aerial view of the Brasstown Bald viewing tower. Brasstown Bald is the highest point in Georgia. Photo: © Abstract Artist/Wirestock Creators/stock.adobe.com.

Brasstown Bald is notable not only for being the highest natural elevation in Georgia but also for the panoramic views it offers of the surrounding landscape, including parts the states of North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee on clear days.

Hawaii

Pu’u Wekiu, Mauna Kea: 13,803 feet (4,207.3 m)

Mauna Kea is the highest point in Hawaii and the world’s second-highest peak on an island after Puncak Jaya on the island of New Guinea.

A dormant volcano, Mauna Kea is about one million years old.

Mauna Kea is the fourth oldest of the five volcanoes that form the island of Hawaii. (Related: Geography Facts About the World’s Largest Active Volcano – Mauna Loa)

Northeast flank of Mauna Kea, Hawai‘i from about 5,200 ft to summit.  Photo: USGS, public domain.
Northeast flank of Mauna Kea, Hawai‘i from about 5,200 ft to summit. Photo: USGS, public domain.

Idaho

Borah Peak: 12,662 feet (3,859 meters)

Mount Borah is not only the highest point in Idaho, it is also the state’s only active glacier. A 6.9 magnitude earthquake on October 28, 1983, the largest historical earthquake in Idaho, resulted in the mountain rising one foot (30 centimeters)

The previous measures of Mount Borah were based on maps, compasses and altimeters according to Tom Carlson, the Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana National Map liaison for the U.S. Geological Survey. Updated LiDAR measurements collected as part of the USGS’ 3D Elevation Program indicate that Mount Borah is actually 12,666 feet, which is four feet higher than current official records.

A sandy mountain with snow dusted top with brush in the foreground.
Borah Peak, Idaho. Photo: USGS, public domain.

“There are many geologists who are very wise, but even they do not understand the forces which produce mountains. And yet it must be admitted, not only that mountains have been made, but that some mountains are still rising” ~ Geologist G. K. Gilbert, 1883

Illinois

Charles Mound: 1,235 feet (377) meters

The highest natural point in Illinois is located on private property. Located on the farmland belonging to  Jean and Wayne Wuebbels, public access is limited to daylight hours on the first full weekends of the months of June, July, August, and September.

Charles Mound is located in the Driftless Area, which stretches over Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. Driftless Area gets its name from the fact that the region was not covered or crushed down by the last continental glaciers.


Indiana

Hoosier Hill: 1,257 feet (383 meters)

The high point of Indiana is located on private land in a forested area surrounded by farmland. A boulder marks the high point. The high point is only about 30 feet higher than the surrounding land.

Iowa

Hawkeye Point: 1,670 feet (509 meters)

Located in Osceola County, Hawkeye Point is the highest point in Iowa. A mosaicked compass rose with a star marking the location on a map of Iowa marks this high point. The land where the Hawkeye Point is located was donated to the local government by the Sterler family who had farmed it for decades.

Kansas

Mount Sunflower: 4,039 feet (1,232 meters)

While the highest point in Kansas is called Mount Sunflower and it is the state’s highest natural peak in terms of elevation, it is nearly indistinguishable from the surrounding High Plains terrain. Elevation in Kansas gradually increases from east to west.

A picture of Mount Sunflower, the highest point in Kansas. Weathered sticks placed upright in a square with an American flag are in the picture. A man looking at the monument can be seen on the right.
Mount Sunflower is the highest elevation in the state of Kansas. Photo: © Carol Yoho, 2004, used with permission.

The high point is on private land but visitors are allowed with a picnic area and a sunflower sculpture garden made from railroad spikes.

Kentucky

Black Mountain: 4,145 feet (1,264 meters)

Also known as Katahrin’s Mountain, Black Mountain is the highest point in Kentucky by more than 500 feet.

The area around Black Mountain has long been a mining area with the mountain under private ownership. In 1999, the Commonwealth of Kentucky reached an agreement with local coal operators that created the Timber Purchase Area and the Timber Conservation Easement Area which eliminated surface mining at the summit and created a 18,000+ acre buffer zone below the summit.

Black Mountain is a important region for the growth of Northern Hardwoods forests and supports animals like Wehrle’s salamander and the Indiana bat (Myotis sodalis).

Louisiana

Driskill Mountain: 535 feet (163 meters)

Also known as Mount Driskill, Driskill Mountain is the highest point in Louisiana. Driskill Mountain was created by unlithified Paleogene sediment being eroded.

Maine

Mount Katahdin: 5,268 feet (1,607 meters)

Maine’s highest point was named by the Penobscot Native Americans. Located in Baxter State Park, Katahdin means “The Greatest Mountain”. The National Park Service designated Mount Katahdin as a National Natural Landmark in 1967.

The Appalachian Trail’s northern endpoint is Mount Katahdin.

View of Mt. Katahdin from Abol Bridge, a popular viewing site for Maine's highest mountain.
View of Mt. Katahdin from Abol Bridge, a popular viewing site for Maine’s highest mountain. Photo: Nick Stasulis, USGS. Public domain.

Maryland

Hoye-Crest 3,360 feet (1,025 meters)

The highest point in Maryland is a summit along Backbone Mountain called Hoye-Crest. Located on private property, access to Hoye-Crest is actually reached through a foot trail that starts in Virginia from a point along U.S. Route 219 just south of Silver Lake, West Virginia.

Sign marking Hoye-Crest.
Sign marking Hoye-Crest. Photo: Maryland Historical Trust

Massachusetts

Mount Greylock: 3,491 feet (1,065 meters)

Massachusett’s highest point is Mount Greylock located in the northwest corner of the state. Visitors to the summit can see as far away as 90 miles on a clear day.

With the donation of 400 acres of property in 1898, Mount Greylock became Massachusetts’ first state reservation. The reservation now spans over 12,500 acres and includes an 11.5-mile stretch of the Appalachian Trail.

The only old-growth red spruce stands known to exist in southern New England are found on the steep northwest slopes of Mt. Greylock, Massachusetts’ highest mountain.

Mount Greylock view from Pittsfield.
Mount Greylock view from Pittsfield. Photo: Continentalwt23 – stock.adobe.com.

Michigan

Mount Arvon 1,979 feet (604 meters)

Part of the Huron Mountains, Mount Arvon is Michigan’s highest point. While Mount Arvon is owned by Weyerhaeuser, public access is allowed. Located in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula in Baraga County, a USGS benchmark marks the location of the summit.

Minnesota

Eagle Mountain 2,301 feet (702 meters)

Made of granite, Minnesota’s highest point is part of a large rock formation called the Duluth Complex. Located in northern Cook County, Eagle Mountain is part of the Misquah Hills and lies within the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) in the Superior National Forest.

Eagle Mountain is only about 15 miles (24 kilometers) away from Lake Superior, which holds the title of Minnesota’s lowest elevation point at 600 feet (183 meters).

Mississippi

Woodall Mountain: 806 feet (246 meters)

Mississippi’s highest point is located in the northeast part of the state in Tishomingo County.

Also known as Yow Mountain or Yow Hill, Woodall Mountain also is referred to as America’s Bloodiest High Point. In 1862 the Battle of Iuka was fought here during the Civil War.

The mountain was renamed in 1878 after Zephaniah Woodall, Sheriff of Tishomingo County.

Missouri

Taum Sauk Mountain: 1,772 feet (540 meters)

Located in the Saint Francois Mountains, Taum Sauk Mountain is the highest point in Missouri. The mountain was named after a Piankeshaw chief named Sauk-Ton-Qua.

A 7,448-acre (30.14 square kilometers) state park around Taum Sauk Mountain was created in 1991.

A view of the Eastern Ozarks from Taum Sauk Mountain, Missouri.
A view of the Eastern Ozarks from Taum Sauk Mountain, Missouri. © sschremp/stock.adobe.com.

Montana

Granite Peak 12,807 feet (3,904 meters)

Granite Peak is the highest point in Montana and the tenth highest point for a state. Granite Peak is located in the Beartooth Mountains, which are part of the larger Rocky Mountains range, near the northern end of Yellowstone National Park.The Beartooth Mountains are known for their rugged terrain and striking high-altitude landscapes, which were shaped by extensive glacial activity during the last Ice Age.

Considered a challenging mountain to climb, considered by some to be second in nature after Denali, the first recorded ascent of Granite Peak was made by Elers Koch, James C. Whitham, and R.T. Ferguson on August 29, 1923.

A watercolor painting showing white blooms in the foreground and a granite peaked mountain in the background.
Bear Grass in Bloom , Glacier National Park. Scenic Marvel of America, Hand-colored Albertypes by T. J. Hileman, 1920, public domain.

Nebraska

Panorama Point: 5,429 feet (1,655 meters)

The highest point in Nebraska is Panorama Point. Panorama Point is a low rise on the High Plains. Panorama Point is located in Kimball County, near the state’s western border. The high point is marked by a registry and a stone marker.

Unlike many state highpoints that are mountain peaks or rugged hills, Panorama Point is notable for being located on a relatively flat plateau. The landscape is characteristic of the High Plains region, featuring expansive views of the surrounding grasslands. This area is part of the larger Great Plains, which stretch across much of the central United States.

One of the distinctive geographies of Panorama Point is its proximity to the borders of Colorado and Wyoming; it’s just a few miles from each state line.

Access to Panorama Point is on private land, High Point Bison Ranch. However, the owners allow public access for a small fee. The approach to the highpoint is via a dirt road, and a marker and a guest register are located at the site for visitors to record their visit.

A view of a black registry and a white stone marks in a low-lying expanse of grass.
Panorama Point, located in southwestern Kimball County, Nebraska. Photo: Ammodramus, public domain.

Nevada

Boundary Peak 13,140 feet (4,007 meters)

Located in Boundary Peak Wilderness, Boundary Peak is the highest point in Nevada and the ninth highest state point. Boundary Peak derives its name from its close proximity to the border between Nevada and California, only half a mile away. It’s worth noting that while Boundary Peak is the highest point in Nevada, it is not the highest peak in the White Mountains; that distinction belongs to White Mountain Peak in California, which is just a few miles away and taller.

The summit provides views of Mono Lake basin to the north, the Sierra Nevada Mountains to the west, the White Mountains Wilderness to the south, while Nevada’s Basin and Range extends to the east. Boundary Peak is located in the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest.

A snow dusted mountain.
Boundary Peak in the White Mountain. Photo: © nyker/stock.adobe.com.

New Hampshire

Mount Washington: 6,288 feet (1,918 meters)

Mount Washington, known as Agiocochook by some Native American tribes, is the highest point in New Hampshire.

On April 12, 1934, Mount Washington experienced the highest ever wind speed recorded for on the surface of the Earth at 231 miles per hour. This record held until 1996. During Tropical Cyclone Olivia, Barrow Island, Australia set a new speed record of 253 miles per hour.

View of the Mount Washington Hotel and Resort in the White Mountains of New Hampshire in the winter. Photo: Carol M. Highsmith, Library of Congress, public domain.
View of the Mount Washington Hotel and Resort in the White Mountains of New Hampshire in the winter. Photo: Carol M. Highsmith, Library of Congress, public domain.

New Jersey

High Point: 1,803 feet (550 meters)

The highest point in New Jersey is High Point, the summit of the Kittatinny Ridge. Kittatinny Ridge is the result of continental collisions crumpling the earth’s crust, mile-high ice sheets grinding the earth’s crust, and centuries of erosion washing soil and rock into valleys.

Located in High Point State Park, New Jersey’s highest point is marked by the High Point Monument, a 220-foot (67-meter) obelisk that was erected as a war memorial in 1930.

Obelisk-shaped veterans monument at High Point in New Jersey.
Obelisk-shaped veterans monument at High Point in New Jersey. Photo: © Linda Harms/stock.adobe.com

New Mexico

Wheeler Peak: 13,161 feet (4,014 meters)

Wheeler Peak is the highest point in New Mexico. Wheeler Peak is located in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, which are the Rocky Mountains’ southernmost subrange.

A plaque is located at Wheeler Peak:

Named in honor of Major George Montague Wheeler (1832–1909) who for ten years led a party of surveyors and naturalists collecting geologic, biologic, planimetric and topographic data in New Mexico and six other southwestern states.

Wheeler Peak Wilderness encompasses almost 20,000 acres of rugged terrain.

Because of its elevation, Wheeler Peak is one of the few spots in New Mexico where you may view a true alpine “mat” rather than the grasses that grow in other high alpine areas. The “mat” produces stunning flowers in a rainbow of colors.

Wheeler Peak, New Mexico. Photo: © Connor/stock.adobe.com.

New York

Mount Marcy: 5,344 feet (1,630 meters)

Mount Marcy is named after 19th century governor William L. Marcy who had an environmental survey done of the area. Mount Marcy is known as Tewawe’éstha (“it pierces”) in Mohawk and Tahawus (“cloud-splitter”) in Algonquin.

View of Mount Marcy from from Lake Placid, New York, 1910.
View of Mount Marcy from from Lake Placid, New York, 1910.

North Carolina

Mount Mitchell: 6,684 feet (2,039 meters)

Mount Mitchell is the highest mountain in mainland eastern North America and the highest point in the Appalachian Mountains. The highest point in North Carolina, Mount Mitchell was called Attakulla by the Cherokee. Mount Mitchell is part of the Black Mountain range, a subrange of the Appalachian Mountains, and is situated within the Pisgah National Forest.

Elisha Mitchell, a science professor and geologist at the University of North Carolina, was the first to measure the peak in 1835. In 1915, Mount Mitchell became North Carolina’s first state park.

A brown sign stating View Mt. Mitchell against  green forested mountain backdrop.
Mount Mitchell is the highest point in North Carolina. Photo: © Carrie/stock.adobe.com.

North Dakota

White Butte: 3,506 feet (1,069 meters)

The highest point in North Dakota, White Butte is a prominent butte in Slope County, in the Badlands of the southwestern part of the state. Situated in Slope County, near the town of Amidon, White Butte is part of the Little Missouri National Grassland.

White Butte is located on private property owned by the Dennis family, who live close by. They have set up a donation receptacle near the parking area, one mile north of the trailhead, to fund the maintenance of the area. A $5 contribution is requested from visitors for this fund.

Ohio

Campbell Hill: 1,549 feet (472 meters)

The highest point in Ohio, Campbell Hill is 2 miles (3.2 km) northeast of downtown Bellefontaine in the city of Bellefontaine. Campbell Hill is a glacial moraine. Historically, Campbell Hill was part of the Bellefontaine Outlier, a group of hills that are remnants of an ancient, eroded mountain range.

Campbell Hill is located on the property of the Ohio Hi-Point Career Center, a vocational school, and was previously part of a U.S. Air Force radar station during the Cold War era. An Ohio Historical Marker marks the spot of the highest point in the state.

Oklahoma

Black Mesa: 4,973 feet (1,517 meters)

Black Mesa, located in northwest Cimarron County, Oklahoma, is the highest point in Oklahoma at 4,973 feet. Black Mesa is a mesa that spans the U.S. states of Colorado, New Mexico, and Oklahoma.

The name Black Mesa comes from a layer of black lava rock that covered the mesa around 30 million years ago. At Black Mesa, the Rocky Mountains meet the shortgrass prairie, creating a unique environment where many species are at the eastern or western limits of their range.

Oregon

Mount Hood: 11,249 feet (3,429 meters) 

The highest point in Oregon, Mount Hood is a stratovolcano in the Cascade Volcanic Arc that is potentially active. The last eruption was in 1781 and Mount Hood has been quiet since the mid 1800s.

Mount Hood experienced a magnitude 3.9 earthquake on June 5, 2021. The earthquake occurred at a depth of 2.7 miles below sea level and was not considered by experts to signal a change in volcanic hazard at Mount Hood.

Mount Hood, provides a striking backdrop to Portland, the state’s largest metropolis.

Mount Hood with the city of Portland, Oregon in the foreground.
Mount Hood with the city of Portland, Oregon in the foreground. Photo: Ed Ruttledge, U.S. Geological Survey. Public domain.

Mount Hood has been assigned different measurements over the last 150 years: 11,249 feet (3,429 m), a 1991 adjustment of a 1986 measurement by the U.S. National Geodetic Survey (NGS), 11,240 feet (3,426 m) from a 1993 scientific expedition, and 11,239 feet (3,425.6 m) from a previous USGS measurement.

Pennsylvania

Mount Davis: 3,213 feet (980 meters)

Pennsylvania’s highest point is located in Forbes State Forest.  Mount Davis was named after John Nelson Davis, an early resident, American Civil War veteran, surveyor, and naturalist notable for his study of the mountain’s flora and fauna.

Rhode Island

Jerimoth Hill: 811 feet (247 meters)

Jermimoth Hill is Rhode Island’s highest point. The location is marked with a federal geodetic survey marker.

Until 2005, Jerimoth Hill was challenging to visit due to a former landowner prohibiting visitors. The land is now owned by the State of Rhode Island.

Jerimoth Hill is reached by walking along a .3-mile (480 m) long path off Hartford Pike.

South Carolina

Sassafras Mountain: 3,554 feet (1,083 meters)

Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Sassafras Mountain is South Carolina’s highest point.

In 2019, an observation tower known as Sassafras Mountain Tower was opened on top of Sassafras Mountain. The tower is positioned 11 feet above the mountain’s highest point.

South Dakota

Black Elk Peak: 7,244 feet (2,208 meters)

Black Elk Peak is the highest point in South Dakota. The peak was renamed from Harney Peak on August 11, 2016 by the U.S. Board on Geographic Names to honor Black Elk, a Lakota Sioux medicine man.

A view of the Black Hills area from space with labels for Mount Rushmore and Black Elk Peak.
The Black Hills area is covered by dark pine trees. This view of Black Elk peak and Mount Rushmore was taken from the International Space Station. Photo: NASA, May 4, 2016, public domain.

Published elevation measurements of the peak have varied between 7,240 and 7,244 over the years since surveyors measured the height of Black Elk Peak in the late 1890s . In 2016, professional surveyors calculated the highest point to be 7,231.32 feet (2,204.11 meters) on the North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD88). That measurement has not been adopted by authorities.

Tennessee

Clingmans Dome: 6,643 feet (2,025 meters)

Clingmans Dome is the highest point in Tennessee and the third tallest mountain east of the Mississippi River, standing at 6,643 feet (2,025 meters). Clingsman Dome is located in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, which straddles the border between Tennessee and North Carolina.

One of the most distinctive features of Clingmans Dome is the observation tower at the summit. This concrete structure, built in 1959, offers 360-degree panoramic views of the surrounding mountains and valleys. On clear days, visibility can extend for over 100 miles, and the vistas include several other major peaks in the Great Smoky Mountains.

The climb to the summit of Clingmans Dome is accessible via a paved, but steep, half-mile walkway. Due to the high elevation, the walk can be more challenging than it initially appears. The area around Clingmans Dome is characterized by a spruce-fir forest.

A stone walkway and observation deck fishing above a forest on a sunny day.
The Observation Tower at Clingmans Dome. Photo: © mzglass96/stock.adobe.com.

Texas

Guadalupe Peak: 8,751 feet (2,667 meters)

Guadalupe Peak, known as the “Top of Texas,” is the highest natural point in the state, with an elevation of 8,751 feet (2,667 meters). It is located in Guadalupe Mountains National Park in West Texas, near the New Mexico border. This peak is part of the Guadalupe Mountains, an ancient limestone reef that dates back to the Permian period. that was once part of a vast inland sea that existed between 251 and 299 million years ago.

A stainless steel pyramid stands at the summit of Guadalupe Peak, erected in 1958 by American Airlines. This monument commemorates the centennial of the Butterfield Overland Mail, a historic stagecoach route near the mountain. The pyramid features three distinct sides: one with the American Airlines logo, another honoring the Pony Express Riders of the Butterfield Stage with a U.S. Postal Service tribute, and a third side showcasing a compass along with the Boy Scouts of America logo.

A stainless steel small pyramid on top of a rocky peak.
A stainless steel pyramid stands at the summit of Guadalupe Peak, the highest point in Texas. Photo: © grahof_photo/stock.adobe.com.

Utah

Kings Peak: 13,528 feet (4,126 meters)

The highest point in Utah, Kings Peak, is located in the Uinta Mountains, a subrange of the Rocky Mountains, and falls within the boundaries of the High Uintas Wilderness of the Ashley and Wasatch-Cache National Forests. The Uinta Mountains are unique among the ranges of the Rocky Mountains in that they run east to west, rather than north to south.

King’s Peak was named after Clarence King, a local surveyor and the first director of the United States Geological Survey.

Snow dusted rocky mountains.
Kings Peak is the highest natural point in Utah. Photo: © Allen/stock.adobe.com.

Vermont

Mount Mansfield: 4,395 feet (1,340 meters)

Mount Mansfield is the highest point in Vermont.

The National Park Service designated the Mount Mansfield Natural Area as a National Natural Landmark in 1980.

The Mount Mansfield Natural Area is home to virgin red spruce-balsam fir forest, substantial alpine tundra, and rare arctic flora not seen anywhere else in the northeast on its top slopes and summit ridge.

Mount Mansfield, Vermont.  Photo: Alan Cressler, USGS, public domain.
Mount Mansfield, Vermont. Photo: Alan Cressler, USGS, public domain.

Virginia

Mount Rogers 5,729 feet (1,747 meters)

Located in the southwest area of the state, Mount Rogers is Virginia’s highest point. Mount Rogers is situated in the southwestern part of the state, within the Mount Rogers National Recreation Area, and is part of the Appalachian Mountains, specifically the Blue Ridge Province.

Mount Rogers is named after Virginia’s first State Geologist and founder of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), William Barton Rogers.

Mount Rogers is the only state highest point known for its population of wild ponies. About 100 wild ponies graze on Mount Rogers and the surrounding areas including Grayson Highlands State Park. In 1974, the Wilburn Ridge Pony Association formed to manage the herd.

The ponies graze on grasses and small shrubs which are not native to the area. The landscape of the highlands, characterized by its balds (open, grassy areas on mountaintops), was becoming overgrown with shrubs and brush, which threatened the unique highland ecosystem. The ponies, through their grazing, help maintain the open balds by preventing the overgrowth of shrubs and trees. The ponies are a hardy breed, well-adapted to the harsh conditions of the high-altitude environment of the Appalachians.

Two sorrel ponies with winter coats stand on a snow dusted ground on a sunny day.
Wild highland ponies of Mount Rogers. Photo: © Eifel Kreutz/stock.adobe.com.

Washington

Mount Rainier: 14,411 feet (4,395)

Mount Rainier is the highest mountain in the Cascade Range and lies about 60 miles (95 kilometers) south-southeast of the city. Due to the regions frequent rainy and cloudy weather, on clear days locals will declare “the mountain is out!” The highest point on Mount Rainier is Columbia Crest.

Astronaut photograph ISS056-E-85160 taken on July 8, 2018 shows a nadir view of Mount Rainier.
Astronaut photograph ISS056-E-85160 taken on July 8, 2018 shows a nadir view of Mount Rainier. Source: NASA.

Mount Rainier, an active stratovolcano, is the most glaciated summit in the contiguous United States, generating five main rivers. Mount Rainier contains 26 glaciers, which hold more snow and ice than the rest of the Cascade volcanoes combined.

Because of its tremendous height, frequent earthquakes, active hydrothermal system, and vast glacier mantle, the USGS considers Mount Rainer to be the most potentially dangerous volcano in the Cascade Range. Mount Rainer has not produced a significant eruption in the last 500 years.

Mount Rainier volcano looms over Puyallup Valley, near Orting, Washington.
Mount Rainier volcano looms over Puyallup Valley, near Orting, Washington. Photo: Ed Ruttledge, U.S. Geological Survey Cascades Volcano Observatory. Public domain.

West Virginia

Spruce Knob: 4,863 feet (1,483 meters)

Spruce Knob is West Virginia’s highest point. There is a stone and steel observation tower that sits on top of the summit of Spruce Mountain, part of the Allegheny Mountains. Spruce Mountain lies within the Spruce Knob-Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area.

Despite the lower elevation (under 5,000 feet), Spruce Mountain’s relic boreal forest gives the summit a more distinctly alpine feel compared to other mountains the the southern Appalachians. 

Wisconsin

Timms Hill:

1,951 feet (595 meters)

Wisconsin’s highest natural point is Timms Hill in Hill, a town in Price County. Timms Hill is part of the Timms Hill County Park, making it accessible to the public for various outdoor activities. An observation tower at the site provides visitors with a 30-mile view of the surrounding area. Visitors can climb the tower to enjoy panoramic views of the surrounding Wisconsin Northwoods.

Timms Hill is part of the Wisconsin Upland, an area characterized by hilly terrain formed by glacial deposits. This region’s landscape is a result of the last glacial period, which sculpted much of Wisconsin’s current topography.

Wyoming

Gannett Peak: 13,804 feet (4,210 meters)

Wyoming’s highest natural point is located in the northern Wind River Mountain Range. Gannett Peak is the highest peak in the Rocky Mountains outside of Colorado. The peak falls on the boundary between Fremont and Sublette counties. Gannett Peak is part of the Bridger-Teton National Forest and lies within the Bridger Wilderness area.

At 896 acres Gannett Glacier is the largest single glacier in the Rocky Mountains. Gannett Peak straddles the North American continental divide which runs through the Wind River Mountain Range.

List of Highest Point for Every U.S. State From Highest to Lowest

RankStateHighest pointCounty or subdivisionElevation (feet)
1AlaskaDenali (Mount McKinley)– –20,320
2CaliforniaMount WhitneyInyo-Tulare14,494*
3ColoradoMount ElbertLake14,433
4WashingtonMount RainierPierce14,411
5WyomingGannett PeakFremont13,804
6HawaiiPu’u Wēkiu, Mauna KeaHawaii13,796
7UtahKings PeakDuchesne13,528
8New MexicoWheeler PeakTaos13,161
9NevadaBoundary PeakEsmeralda13,140
10MontanaGranite PeakPark12,799
11IdahoBorah PeakCuster12,662
12ArizonaHumphreys PeakCoconino12,633
13OregonMount HoodClackamas-Hood River11,239
14TexasGuadalupe PeakCulberson8,749
15South DakotaBlack Elk Peak (Harney Peak)Pennington7,242
16North CarolinaMount MitchellYancey6,684
17TennesseeClingmans DomeSevier6,643
18New HampshireMount WashingtonCoos6,288
19VirginiaMount RogersGrayson-Smyth5,729
20NebraskaPanorama PointKimball5,424
21New YorkMount MarcyEssex5,344
22MaineMount KatahdinPiscataquis5,268
23OklahomaBlack MesaCimarron4,973
24West VirginiaSpruce KnobPendleton4,863
25GeorgiaBrasstown BaldTowns-Union4,784
26VermontMount MansfieldChittenden4,393
27KentuckyBlack MountainHarlan4,145
28KansasMount SunflowerWallace4,039
29South CarolinaSassafras MountainPickens3,560
30North DakotaWhite ButteSlope3,506
31MassachusettsMount GreylockBerkshire3,491
32MarylandHoye CrestGarrett3,360
33PennsylvaniaMount DavisSomerset3,213
34ArkansasMagazine MountainLogan2,753
35AlabamaCheaha MountainCleburne2,407
36ConnecticutMount Frissel on south slope at State lineLitchfield2,380
37MinnesotaEagle MountainCook2,301
38MichiganMount ArvonBaraga1,979
39WisconsinTimms HillPrice1,951
40New JerseyHigh PointSussex1,803+
41MissouriTaum Sauk MountainIron1,772
42IowaHawkeye PointOsceola1,670
43OhioCampbell HillLogan1,550
44IndianaHoosier HillWayne1,257
45IllinoisCharles MoundJo Daviess1,235
46Rhode IslandJerimoth HillProvidence812
47MississippiWoodall MountainTishomingo806
48LouisianaDriskill MountainBienville535
49DelawareOn Ebright Road at Delaware-Pennsylvania State lineNew Castle448*
50District of ColumbiaTenleytown at Reno Reservoir– –410
51FloridaBritton HillWalton345
Source: USGS. *National Geodetic Survey, +State Surveys

What are highpointers?

An interesting side note is that “highpointers” are people that visit every high point in every U.S. state.

References

Blanchard, N. (2023, July 11). Elevation for the tallest mountain in Idaho is actually higher than we thought. Idaho Statesman. https://www.idahostatesman.com/outdoors/article277038083.html

This article was originally written August 19, 2021 and has since been updated.

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About the author
Caitlin Dempsey
Caitlin Dempsey is the editor of Geography Realm and holds a master's degree in Geography from UCLA as well as a Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) from SJSU.