Mount Massive was first surveyed and climbed in 1873 during the Hayden Survey of the American West. Survey member Henry Gannett is credited with the first ascent. Its name comes from its elongated shape: it has five summits, all above , and a summit ridge over long, resulting in more area above than any other mountain in the 48 contiguous states, narrowly edging Mount Rainier in that category. Mount Elbert () is Mount Massive's nearest neighbor among the fourteeners; it lies about south-southeast of the peak.