Rodney Mountain is a mountain

Mountain

Image:Himalaya_annotated.jpg|thumb|right|The Himalayan mountain range with Mount Everestrect 58 14 160 49 Chomo Lonzorect 200 28 335 52 Makalurect 378 24 566 45 Mount Everestrect 188 581 920 656 Tibetan Plateaurect 250 406 340 427 Rong River...

 in Pushmataha County, Oklahoma

Pushmataha County, Oklahoma

-Administrative History:* Ca. 1000-1500: Caddoan Mississippian civilization at Spiro Mounds* 1492-1718: Spain* 1718-1763: France* 1763-1800: Spain* 1800-1803: France* 1803–present: United States...

, located approximately five miles northwest of Antlers, Oklahoma

Antlers, Oklahoma

Antlers is a city in Pushmataha County, Oklahoma. The population was 2,552 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Pushmataha County.-Geography:Antlers is located at...

. It is a part of the Kiamichi Mountains

Kiamichi Mountains

The Kiamichi Mountains are a mountain range in southeastern Oklahoma. A subrange within the larger Ouachita Mountains that extend from Oklahoma to western Arkansas, the Kiamichi Mountains sit within Le Flore, Pushmataha, and McCurtain counties near the towns of Poteau and Albion...

, a subrange of the Ouachita Mountains

Ouachita Mountains

The Ouachita Mountains are a mountain range in west central Arkansas and southeastern Oklahoma. The range's subterranean roots may extend as far as central Texas, or beyond it to the current location of the Marathon Uplift. Along with the Ozark Mountains, the Ouachita Mountains form the U.S...

, and forms its southwest-most extremity. Its summit is 767 feet above sea level

Sea level

Mean sea level is a measure of the average height of the ocean's surface ; used as a standard in reckoning land elevation...

. It is found at GPS coordinates (latitude

Latitude

In geography, the latitude of a location on the Earth is the angular distance of that location south or north of the Equator. The latitude is an angle, and is usually measured in degrees . The equator has a latitude of 0°, the North pole has a latitude of 90° north , and the South pole has a...

 and longitude

Longitude

Longitude is a geographic coordinate that specifies the east-west position of a point on the Earth's surface. It is an angular measurement, usually expressed in degrees, minutes and seconds, and denoted by the Greek letter lambda ....

) 34.2984336 and -95.6410833.

The commonly accepted definition of mountain calls for a mountain’s summit to top 1,000 feet in elevation. In that sense Rodney Mountain qualifies as a hill

Hill

A hill is a landform that extends above the surrounding terrain. Hills often have a distinct summit, although in areas with scarp/dip topography a hill may refer to a particular section of flat terrain without a massive summit A hill is a landform that extends above the surrounding terrain. Hills...

. Certain of its physical characteristics, however—its rugged nature and often-steep slopes—suggest its name is not a misnomer.

Rodney Mountain is named for Rodney Moyer, an early resident of the area, whose family patriarch, Roy A. Moyer, lent his name to Moyers, Oklahoma

Moyers, Oklahoma

- History :A permanent settlement has existed at the site of modern Moyers since at least the 1880s.During the 1880s the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway, more popularly known as the “Frisco”, built a line from north to south through the Choctaw Nation, connecting Fort Smith, Arkansas with Paris,...

, the community

Community

The term community has two distinct meanings:*a group of interacting people, possibly living in close proximity, and often refers to a group that shares some common values, and is attributed with social cohesion within a shared geographical location, generally in social units larger than a household...

 north of Rodney Mountain. Rodney Moyer is thought to have left the area prior to Oklahoma's statehood to participate in Alaska's Klondike gold rush

Klondike Gold Rush

The Klondike Gold Rush, also called the Yukon Gold Rush, the Alaska Gold Rush and the Last Great Gold Rush, was an attempt by an estimated 100,000 people to travel to the Klondike region the Yukon in north-western Canada between 1897 and 1899 in the hope of successfully prospecting for gold...

. He did not return, and his place and date of death are unknown.

For several years a United States Post Office was in operation in the area to serve those living nearby. It was called Rodney, Oklahoma

Rodney, Oklahoma

Rodney is a former community in Pushmataha County, Oklahoma, five miles north of Antlers, Oklahoma.A United States Post Office was established at Rodney, Indian Territory on June 30, 1890 and closed on July 5, 1899. The community was named for Rodney Moyer, early-day resident. It was located at...

.
Oklahoma State Highway 2, built in the 1950s

1950s

The 1950s or The Fifties was the decade that began on January 1, 1950 and ended on December 31, 1959. The decade was the sixth decade of the 20th century...

, now traverses the mountain and makes local transportation a simple matter. Until it opened, however, the mountain was the bane of good roads. The Antlers-to-Moyers road, particularly the segment at the mountain’s base near Ten Mile Creek, was particularly problematic. Boulders and other rocks littered its slopes and the roadway.

The Kiamichi River

Kiamichi River

The Kiamichi River is a river in southeastern Oklahoma. A tributary of the Red River, its headwaters rise on Pine Mountain in the Ouachita Mountains near the Arkansas border...

flows adjacent to the mountain, and Rodney Crossing, a low-water ford in the area, was for decades a locally important transportation link.