Oregon Geographic Names (1952)/E
Eagle Creek, Clackamas County. Eagle Creek is the name of a post office as well as of a stream. There are many streams of the same name in the state. A. C. Cogswell, postmaster at Eagle Creek in 1925, wrote the compiler that the place was called Eagle Creek as early as 1844, and that the name originated with Indians because there were so many eagles along the stream.
Eagle Point, Jackson County. Just east of the town of Eagle Point is a prominent rocky cliff, surmounted by pine trees, and in pioneer days this was a favorite nesting place for eagles. It was called Eagle Point. It is said that John Mathews suggested the name of this point for the post office, which was established about 1872, with Andrew McNeil first postmaster.
Eagleton, Baker County. Eagleton post office was in the extreme north part of the county a little to the northeast of Sanger. It was on one of the forks of Eagle Creek and took its name on that account. When established the office was in Union County, but a change of boundaries brought it into Baker County. Eagleton post office was established April 22, 1896, with Frank McGee first postmaster. It was closed in February, 1902. The compiler was told that the place was established in connection with mining activity.
Earl, Lane County, Earl post office was established April 26, 1898, with Arthur J. Johnson first postmaster, and was named for Earl R. Johnson, the small son of the postmaster. It is reported that several names were sent in and postal authorities selected Earl from the lot. The office was then in Douglas County, on the headwaters of Sweet Creek southeast of Point Terrace. About 1913 the Douglas - Lane county boundary line was changed and the office was then in Lane County. It was discontinued June 15, 1925. In March 1947, Earl R. Johnson, then living on Crow Stage Route, wrote the compiler in part as follows: "At that time all the mail was carried on horseback over steep mountain trails, and though the mail came only once a week, mail day was really an event to the people in that out of the way station. The route led from Point Terrace at the mouth of Sweet Creek on the Siuslaw River up the creek to Earl, a distance of nine miles. I helped circulate the petition which led to the change of the county boundary. About the time Earl post office was established, an office was also established at Ord, which was about seven miles east over the mountains on the headwaters of Smith River. Horace Fisk was the first postmaster at Ord."
Early, Sherman County. Early post office was established in the northeast part of Sherman County on January 9, 1902, with Herbert K. Porter first of three postmasters. Members of the Wall family later ran the office, which was discontinued August 30, 1919. On September 10, 1946, Giles French wrote the compiler as follows: "Early was a post office on the north line of township two north just west of John Day River. At Early there was a flour mill where early-day farmers obtained their bread-stuff, and I am told the name was given the place because garden sass became edible early when grown there. The elevation is low and the sun shines brightly in the John Day Valley when it is cold and windy on the hills above. The Walls built a dam a short way above the mill and James Fox now grows alfalfa there. It would be a quiet and peaceful spot in which to retire from the cares of the world, the telephones, the Russians, bureaucracy, radio, UNRRA, the whips and scorns of time, the unworthy spurns that patient merit takes."
East Lake, Deschutes County. This is a landlocked lake about two miles in diameter, occupying what was probably once part of the crater of a volcanic peak known to geologists as Mount Newberry. It is in the Paulina Mountains southeast of Bend. It is in the eastern part of the crater, opposite Paulina Lake, and is called East Lake on that account.
East Morrison Street, Multnomah County. In the summer of 1909 the Southern Pacific Company opened a new station to serve the east part of Portland and the official name was East Morrison Street. In the days of more frequent local train service, this station did a good business and the regular patrons were augmented by travelers who found they could not make the time to the Union Station but could catch their trains at East Morrison Street by judicious use of taxicabs or family automobiles. Station attendants and train crews saw the finish of many a close race. The East Morrison Street station was demolished in the winter of 1945-46. For news story and pictures of the event, see the Sunday Oregonian, January 13, 1946. The reference to the East Side station is incorrect. The railroad name-board read East Morrison Street, and at one time the lettering was gilt on a black background. The station served little or no passenger business in recent years. The original Oregon & California Rail Road station established about 1879 was on what was known as L Street in East Portland, later East Washington Street. The building was generally called the L-Street station but the official name was East Portland. Later there was another station near the mouth of Sullivan Gulch which was called the East Side station, but still later East Portland, serving two railroads. See under East Portland, After the station name East Portland was moved from East Washington Street to the new East Portland station near the mouth of Sullivan Gulch, it was necessary to adopt a new name for the old station. The railroad company decided on the style East Washington Street and that name was used up to the time that the new East Morrison Street establishment was put in service.
East Portland, Multnomah County. East Portland existed as a separate community from pioneer days until June 1, 1891, when an election was held on the proposal to consolidate the three communities Portland, East Portland and Albina. The proposal carried and the program became effective July 5, 1891. James B. Stephens was the founder of East Portland. In 1845 Stephens bought for $200 property previously owned by a French-Canadian, one Porier. Stephens laid out a town in 1850-51 and filed the East Portland plat in 1865. The selection of the name seemed to have been natural, but not imaginative, and in this respect followed the pattern of much other Oregon nomenclature. For the early history of Stephens and East Portland by Leslie M, Scott, see OHQ, volume XXXI, page 351. East Portland post office was established May 15, 1866, with Milton Hosford first postmaster. The office continued in service until March 4, 1892, when it was consolidated with Portland. John M. Lewis was then postmaster of East Portland. When the Oregon & California Rail Road began to operate about 1870, it had a station called East Portland. This station was near the foot of what was then L Street, now known as Southeast Washington Street. This station was popularly known as the L-Street station, although East Portland was its official name. This was not the same station as East Morrison Street, a later structure that served many years and was demolished in the winter of 1945-46. The railroad had a terminus farther north near the mouth
of Sullivan Gulch, which was called the East Side Station. Later the Southern Pacific and the Union Pacific had a station near this point called East Portland, but it was a separate operating point from either the original East Portland or East Morrison Street.
EASTSIDE, Coos County. This is a descriptive name, because the community is on the east side of Coos Bay. This place was at one time the terminal of the old Coos Bay Military Wagon Road. It was originally called East Marshfield, but about 1908 the name was changed to the present style. Echo, Umatilla County. This place was named for Echo Koontz, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. J. H. Koontz. The community was started about 1880, and the Koontz family was among the first to settle there. Echo is near the site of Fort Henrietta, so called for Mrs. Henrietta Haller, wife of Major Granville 0. Haller, U. S. A., who commanded troops in early Indian campaigns. When the post office at Echo was established, Major Lee Moorehouse, of Pendleton, tried to have the name Henrietta adopted, but as Koontz was interested in the town, his daughter's name was selected. James H. Koontz was born in Ohio in 1830 and came to Oregon in 1862, settling at Umatilla in 1863. Echo Koontz was born at Umatilla Landing, and later was Mrs. Charles H. Miller. Koontz died in 1912. For additional information about the locality of Echo, once known as Brasfeld Ferry, see story by Fred Lockley in Oregon Journal, August 30, 1931. In 1861-62 Thomas A. Brasfield ran a stage station called The Crossing along with the ferry and kept the travel.
ECKLEY, Curry County. Eckley is a place at the east edge of the county near North Fork Sixes River on the old mountain road from Myrtle Point southwest to Port Orford. The post office has had three different names. A post office called New Castle was established in this locality on December 19, 1879, with Mrs. Charlotte Guerin first postmaster. The name was changed to Tell Tale on May 21, 1883 and to Eckley on June 29, 1883. This office was in operation until December 15, 1916, when it was closed out to Myrtle Point. A study of the Guerin family history as printed in Dodge's Pioneer History of Coos and Curry Counties, indicated that Mrs. Guerin's daughter-in-law, Mrs. George H. Guerin, was a native of Wingate, a place near Newcastle-on-Tyne in the north of England. It seems more than probable to the compiler that the name New Castle for the Curry County post office was suggested by Mrs. George Guerin, or by somebody in the family in her compliment. That there was a difference in the spelling is not a great objection to this theory. So much for New Castle. The name Eckley for this post office came from Mrs. Guerin's grandson, Eckley Guerin, son of Mr. and Mrs. George H. Guerin. Eckley Guerin was born in August, 1882, and the name Eckley was applied to the post office June 29, 1883.
ECKMAN SLOUGH, Lincoln County. Eckman Slough and Eckman Creek are south of Alsea Bay. The postmaster at Waldport wrote the compiler in 1927 that these two streams were named many years ago for a Scandinavian settler who lived nearby.
ECOLA POINT, Clatsop County. The name Ecola has had an interesting peregrination since it was first applied to what is now known as Elk Creek by Captain William Clark on January 8, 1806. He called the stream Ecola, or Whale Creek, but both of these names fell into disuse.
Some time prior to 1900 J. Couch Flanders, of Portland, was attracted by the name and he applied it to a group of cottages owned by the Couch family on the south flank of Tillamook Head about two miles north of Elk Creek. The name was attractive, and people living near the mouth of Elk Creek asked for a post office to be named Ecola, which was established November 25, 1910. To avoid confusion R. L. Glisan and L. Allen Lewis then changed the name of the Couch family cottages to Ecola Point, because of the prominent projection nearby. Ecola Point is between Chapman Point and the main promontory of Tillamook Head. The name Ecola is no longer used for the post office, which is now Cannon Beach. See under that name and also Elk CREEK, George Gibbs, in his Dictionary of the Chinook Jargon gives the word ehkoli, a whale, and indicates that it came from the Chinook Indian word ekoli, with the accent on the first letter. The modern spelling with the accent on the middle syllable is, however, firmly established.
EDDYVILLE, Lincoln County. This post office seems to have had more than the usual number of moves. It was first called Little Elk because it was near the mouth of Little Elk Creek. About 1888 Israel F. Eddy, the postmaster, moved the office about a mile west and had the name changed to Eddyville. Some four years later the office was brought back to its original location and the name changed to Little Elk. About 1893 it was moved again to Eddys place and was continued under the name of Eddyville until 1900 when it was moved back to the mouth of Little Elk Creek, but this time the name was not changed and the office still goes by the name of Eddyville.
EDEN, Coos County. Eden was the name used for a post office in the extreme southeast part of Coos County, in the very rough, mountainous country on West Fork Cow Creek. Eden post office was established July 21, 1914, with Edward A. Zimmerman first of three postmasters. The office was discontinued January 14, 1922, with mail to Dothan on Cow Creek. The compiler has been told that transportation to this post office was very primitive and he puts great faith in the report. The name for the post office was doubtless suggested by that of Eden Ridge to the southwest. Eden Ridge has been so called for many years. The ridge and the post office apparently were named by people fond of isolation and pioneer living.
EDEN, Wallowa County. Wallowa County has had more than its share of post offices with names showing that its settlers seemed to be pleased with the prospects. Among these names have been: Paradise, Promise, Joy, Arcadia, Utopia, Eureka and Enterprise. There was also a post office called Lovely but that was the family name of the postmaster. A post office with the name Eden was established October 2, 1907, with B. E. Puller, postmaster. Apparently the office never operated because the appointment was rescinded on April 29, 1908. It was planned to put the office at the Puller ranch on the breaks of the Grande Ronde River a few miles southwest of Troy. The locality is generally known as Eden Ridge.
EDEN PARK, Hood River County. Eden Park, on the northwest slope of Mount Hood, was named in the summer of 1922 by a camping party led by C. Edward Graves, then of Hood River, but living in Arcata, California, in 1943. At the same time the party applied
- the names Cathedral Ridge, Vista Ridge and Wiyeast Basin. These names were all adopted by the USBGN.
EDENBOWER, Douglas County. Edenbower is a locality about two miles north of Roseburg. It was named as long ago as 1888 by a family that moved from the rigorous climate of Winnipeg, Manitoba, to the Umpqua Valley. This family was impressed by the warm sunshine of that part of Douglas County and coined the name Edenbower. In April, 1948, Mrs. John Ferguson wrote from Days Creek, Oregon, that Mr. and Mrs. Donald Ferguson and three children came to Roseburg from Winnipeg in 1888 and after living in town a short while bought a ten-acre tract, and proceeded to make it their home. Mrs. Ferguson was so much impressed by the climate and the surroundings that she wrote a poem in November, 1888, extolling the locality and referring to it as Edenbower. It was not long after this, perhaps in 1890, that a school was organized and Mr. Ferguson suggested that it be called Edenbower. The name was adopted. Edenbower community did not have a post office until August 1, 1908. John Botcher was the first postmaster. This office was discontinued January 31, 1919. The area is served now by a rural route. Mrs. Ferguson's poem "Winter-A Contrast" will be found in the Roseburg News-Review for May 21, 1948. It appears in the column by Charles V. Stanton and along with it are some other items about Edenbower. Eight DOLLAR MOUNTAIN, Josephine County. Eight Dollar Mountain, elevation 3992 feet, is one of the prominent features in the Illinois Valley. There are several stories as to how it got its name, the most probable being that it came about as a result of the discovery nearby of a gold nugget worth $8.00. Another version is that a man wore out a pair of shoes worth $8.00 walking around its base. Its sides are excessively rough and inasmuch as the distance is about 12 miles it is quite possible that the latter story may be true. The battle of Eight Dollar Mountain, a skirmish in the Rogue River Indian War, was fought in this locality March 25, 1856. See Victor's Early Indian Wars of Oregon, pages 391-92.
EIGHTMILE, Morrow County. The post office at Eightmile took its name from Eightmile Canyon, which was so named because its mouth was about eight miles up Willow Creek from the Columbia River. The name was first used by pioneer stockmen.
EIGHTMILE CREEK, Wasco County. This stream was so called because the pioneer wagon road from The Dalles into central Oregon crossed it about eight miles from town. Eightmile Creek and Fivemile Creek join, and the combined stream, called Eightmile Creek, flows into Fifteenmile Creek. For information about the names of this group of streams see under FIFTEENMILE CREEK,
EKINS, Yamhill County. The first post office to serve the locality now known as Dundee was named Ekins for the postmaster, Claudius Ekins, who was appointed June 7, 1881. The name of this office was changed to Dundee on July 25, 1882. For the further history of this office see under
DUNDEE. Ekins post office was established about the time that the narrow gage railroad was being extended from Dayton northeast through what is now Dundee to Fulquartz Landing on the Willamette River. See Scott's History of the Oregon Country, volume IV, page 305 et seq.
EKOMs, Curry County. The order establishing Ēkoms post office was
dated June 20, 1899. George W. Billings was to be the first postmaster. However, for some reason, the office never went into service and the order was rescinded September 15, 1902. In April, 1948, Mr. Billings wrote that the name Ekoms was made by spelling Smoke backward. The office was to be in the Rogue River area, and the method of getting a name may have been suggested by the method used to make the name Ragic for a post office further down stream. Ragic, or Cigar spelled backward, was the name of a post office on Rogue River near the mouth of Lobster Creek.
ELAM, Benton County. Elam is the post office name for a small community known as Harris, near Philomath. Postal authorities would not accept the name Harris for the post office because of similarity to Harrisburg in Linn County. Accordingly the office was named for Mrs. Gladys Elam, the first postmaster. See under HARRIS.
ELBOW LAKE, Douglas County. This little lake is about a mile east of the Pacific Ocean, just west of Tahkenitch Lake. It is known as Elbow Lake on account of its shape. See USGS map of Siltcoos Lake quadrangle.
ELDER CREEK, Josephine County. Elder Creek is about two miles east of Waldo. It was named for John Elder, a pioneer rancher.
ELDRIEDGE BAR, Marion County. Eldriedge Bar is on the Willamette River about three miles downstream from Wheatland. It got its name from Freeman E. Eldriedge, a pioneer settler on French Prairie. Eldriedge School, north of Waconda, was named for the same man. He was born in Pennsylvania in 1826 and came to Oregon by way of California in 1846-47. For a time during the 1850s Eldriedge rented his farm near the Willamette River and operated a grist mill at Parkersville about ten miles eastward. He was instrumental in having the Parkersville post office established and was the first postmaster.
ELDORADO, Malheur County. Eldorado, as a geographic name, is taken from the Spanish expression el dorado, meaning the gilded, and by analogy a golden or otherwise valuable object. It also means a legendary land abounding in gold. Its principal use in the West is in the Sierra Nevada of California, where it is applied to the county in which gold was discovered in 1848. The name has been used in many localities and may be found spelled El Dorado and also ElDorado. Modern usage tends toward Eldorado. The place called Eldorado in Shasta Gulch in what is now the extreme north part of Malheur County was a few miles northwest of the community of Malheur. It was named in the days of the eastern Oregon gold rush of the '60s, doubtless by some of the many Californians who took part in the excitement. Miners began to work the placers of Eldorado as early as 1865, and about 1868 a town was started. A writer in the Oregonian of about that time says that the embryo town rejoiced in the name El Dorado City and was indifferently supplied with everything but whisky. The place thrived for a few years, but when Eldorado ditch began to bring in the waters from upper Burnt River many miles away, it missed the town of Eldorado, which was abandoned in consequence. Early in the '70s many of the movable structures were taken to a new locality called Malheur City. El Dorado post office was established September 1, 1869, with Samuel B. Reeves first postmaster. The office was finally closed in November, 1879. Building Eldorado ditch was one of Oregon's remarkable construction enterprises. William ice estabird. He woperated driedge .
. H. Packwood was a moving spirit in the business. The ditch gathered the waters of a number of tributaries on the south side of Burnt River and conveyed them eastward to a pass in the ridge south of Burnt River called Shasta Gap. It went through this pass toward Shasta Gulch and the Willow Creek drainage, where it was extensively used in mining. The ditch was originally about 135 miles long. In recent years it has been used for irrigation.
ELEPHANT MOUNTAIN, Douglas County. This is in the northeast part of the county northwest of Diamond Lake, and has an elevation of 5950 feet. The name was applied by V. V. Harpham and O. C. Houser, of the Forest Service, in 1908, because the mountain when viewed from the west is suggestive both in shape and size, of the animal whose name it bears.
ELGAROSE, Douglas County. Elgarose, a post office in the southeast part of township 26 south, range 7 west, a couple of miles northwest of Melrose, was named by the first postmaster, John E. Carlson, for Elgarose or Elgaras, in Sweden. The Reverend Mr. Carlson was born in the place in Sweden, and thought to perpetuate its name in Douglas County when the opportunity presented itself. Elgarose post office was established January 28, 1916, with Carlson postmaster. The office was closed November 27, 1924, and the business turned over to Melrose. Elgin, Union County. In early days the locality of Elgin was called Fishtrap, because of the presence of Indian fishing gear. Elgin post office was established on September 28, 1885, with W. B. Hamilton postmaster. A news story in the Elgin Recorder for February 18, 1932, is authority for the statement that when the application for a post office was being prepared, Hamilton heard his niece and nephew, Lottie and Charlie Hamilton, singing about the wreck of the steamer Lady Elgin, and he was so impressed by the name that he suggested the title Elgin for the post office. The news item in the Recorder is based on a statement from C. W. Hamilton, then 88 years old and living on Lower Cove market road. Presumably he was the nephew, Charlie Hamilton. The compiler has been unable to learn that the community was named for Elgin, Illinois. The wreck of the Lady Elgin was one of the worst lacustrine disasters in the history of the United States. This steamer was loaded with a group called the Union Guard, composed of Third Ward boys of Milwaukee, who formed an excursion to attend a mass meeting in the presidential campaign of 1860, The Union Guard went to Chicago to hear their favorite, Stephen A. Douglas, on September 7. The excursion and the political rally were highly successful, and the happy crowd started back for Milwaukee, Irish lads and lassies dancing as the boat ploughed through a Lake Michigan fog. About midnight the Lady Elgin was hit by a lumber schooner, the Augusta, which proceeded on her way after being assured that the Lady Elgin was not seriously damaged. This was a mistake, because the steamer sank in a short time, with a loss of nearly 300 lives. This disaster was the subject of a lugubrious ballad that was popular for a couple of decades, and the community of Elgin, Oregon, appears to have been named for the melancholy song, "Lost on the Lady Elgin."
ELIOT GLACIER, Hood River County. Eliot Glacier is one of the larger glaciers on Mount Hood and occupies the northeast part of the mountain north of Cooper Spur. It is the source of Eliot Branch, and
its lower end is not far from Cloud Cap Inn. It was named for Dr. Thomas Lamb Eliot, for many years one of Portland's most revered citizens. Dr. Eliot was born in St. Louis, Missouri, on October 13, 1841, and graduated with the first class from Washington University in St. Louis, of which his father was chancellor. He came to Portland December 24, 1867, and took over the pastorate of the Unitarian Church. For a short biography of Dr. Eliot see the Oregonian, October 13, 1925, page 5. Dr. Eliot was at one time greatly interested in mountaineering and the glacier on Mount Hood was named for him on that account. He died in Portland April 26, 1936. In 1925 the Mazamas research committee made a number of investigations as to the rate of flow of Eliot Glacier. These observations were carried on at an elevation of approximately 7800 feet, and notes were taken for 14 weeks. The investigations indicated that the stakes which were set in the glacier traveled about four feet a week. The maximum movement was near the center of the glacier and the movement near the side walls was somewhat less, and during part of the season the sides of the glacier moved eight inches a week. Additional observations at an elevation of 7200 feet indicated a movement of about two feet a week for the central part of the glacier. See Mazama for December, 1925. Mazama, monthly edition, for August, 1926, gives additional information about the flow of this glacier. The greatest record for a year of any of the marks was made by one on the upper line, which moved 183.7 feet.
ELK BUTTE, Lake County. Elk Butte is near the southwest corner of section 12, township 27, range 22 east, a little to the southwest of Wagontire Mountain. This is in an area where elk have not frequently been found because of the lack of water. In May, 1947, Archie McGowan of Burns informed the writer that Elk Butte was named in the early '90s by members of the Hutton, Egli and other local families who discovered the track of a lone elk which took them to what they called Elk Butte. They were positive they were on the trail of a stray elk, which was very unusual for the desert country of Lake County.
ELK CITY, Lincoln County. Elk City is at the junction of Elk Creek and Yaquina River, and was named for the creek. It is said to have been the first settlement in what is now Lincoln County. Postal records show that Newton post office was established in July, 1868, with E. A. Abbey first postmaster. Marshall Simpson became postmaster in November, 1869. He was out of the office for a few years, but held the position again on November 23, 1888, when the name was changed from Newton to Elk City. It is said that he instigated the change. Statements to the effect that Elk City was named by pioneer settlers about 1865 do not agree with the records unless the locality and the post office went by different names. This has happened at a number of places in Oregon.
ELK CREEK, Benton and Lincoln counties. Jerry E. Henkle, Benton County pioneer, is authority for the statement that Elk Creek was named in 1856 by a party of explorers who went westward into the Coast Range looking for grazing land. The name was given because a fine bull elk was shot near one of the camps on the stream. Elk Creek rises on the west slope of Marys Peak and flows westward into Yaquina River.
ELK CREEK, Clatsop County. Captain William Clark was the first white man of record to visit the vicinity of Elk Creek, which he did on Wednesday, January 8, 1806. He called the stream Ecola, or Whale Creek. Since pioneer days the stream has been called Elk Creek. The village near its mouth at the north end of Cannon Beach was first called Elk Creek, then Ecola, but for many years its postal name has been Cannon Beach. See under Ecola and Cannon Beach for additional information. Thwaites on page 324 of volume III of his Original Journals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, is confused about Whale Creek and mistakes it for Nehalem River, the more important stream to the south. He has done the same with other features visited by Captain Clark during the first days in January, and identifies them with points too far south. See under Tillamook Head.
Elk Creek, Douglas County. Elk Creek joins Umpqua River near the town of Elkton. The stream has borne the name of Elk Creek since the period of the fur traders. The writer does not know when the stream was first named, but John Work mentions it as Elk River in his diary on June 7, 1834. See OHQ, September, 1923. Elk appear to have been plentiful in the Willamette Valley and in the Umpqua country, and there are many features named for them in those parts of the state.
Elk Creek, Douglas County. Judging by the number of geographic names in Oregon commemorating elk, that animal must have been both plentiful and popular in the days of the fur traders and the pioneers. Elk furnished more than their share of early-day provisions. A recent count by the State Engineer shows about thirty Elk creeks in the state. An important stream named Elk Creek flows into South Umpqua River at Tiller, in the southeast part of the county. It was named in pioneer times. There was an Elk Creek post office near the mouth of the stream, established December 18, 1877, with S. C. Cramer first postmaster. This office operated with the name Elk Creek until August 22, 1884, when the name was changed to Perdue, in compliment to John Perdue, Sr., then postmaster. Perdue took office June 11, 1884. About this time the office was moved west and down South Umpqua River about six miles below the mouth of Elk Creek, and the new locality became known as Perdue. It is not clear from available records just when this move was made. Tiller post office was established near the mouth of Elk Creek October 15, 1902, with Alfred B. Marquam first postmaster, and was still in operation in 1945. Tiller was named for Aaron Tiller, a local settler. The locality has become of importance in the news because of its place on the Tiller-Trail highway.
Elk Flat, Union County. Elk Flat is east of Elgin. It is an extension, to the south, from Cricket Flat. In January, 1947, Geo. T. Cochran of La Grande wrote the compiler: "Elk Flat joins Cricket Flat on the south. There is probably no dividing line between the two areas. In pioneer days there were many elk that grazed along the south part of Cricket Flat, and from that fact the locality became known as Elk Flat. I can remember going there many times with my father to get our winter's meat in the form of elk." Elk Flat post office was established April 17, 1878, with Joseph M. Tucker first postmaster. The office was discontinued November 11, 1886. Tucker took up his homestead and built a house and blacksmith shop in section 17, township 1 north, range 40 east. According to Mr. Cochran he later found that his improvements had been installed on the wrong land. This was such an irritation that he gave up the post office and returned to his old home in Iowa. How ever, he came back to Oregon later. The Elk Flat post office was continued at various locations, and during the time James S. Brayton had it (1881-1886), it was at the Brayton place on Owenby Hill in section 10 of the township mentioned above, about five or six miles northeast of Elgin.
Elk Horn, Polk County. Elk Horn was one of the pioneer post offices of the county and as with many others it was not always in the same place. Without a doubt it was named for some incident connected with an elk's horn. Probably a pair was nailed over the door of the Buell home. Elk Horn post office was established November 16, 1869, with Cyrus Buell postmaster. Buell was a prominent settler on Mill Creek and was interested in the grist mill that gave the stream its name. For about five years the post office was at the Buell place about two miles south or upstream from the highway bridge and present location of the community called Buell. On May 18, 1874, Thomas R. Blair was appointed postmaster of Elk Horn and during his incumbency the office was about two miles north or down Mill Creek from what is now Buell. The office was closed October 4, 1882, but the locality, which is a little over four miles southwest of Sheridan by road, is still called Elk Horn.
Elk Lake, Deschutes County. Elk Lake is a fine body of water southwest of Bend, and Elk Lake post office is nearby. The lake was named in 1906 by Forest Ranger Roy Harvey of Eugene. The post office was established because the lake was and is extensively used for recreation purposes.
Elk Mountain, Deschutes and Lane counties. This prominent peak of the Cascade Range is south of South Sister and west of Elk Lake. The mountain and Elk Lake were named about 1906 by Roy Harvey. A band of elk came across the summit of the range every year from the west and spent most of the summer on the side of a butte, which Harvey called Elk Mountain. This is said to be the only place where elk range on the east slopes of the Cascade Range. Elk Point, Washington County. This is a prominent hill about 960 feet high, just west of the community of Sylvan. The Pointer family settled near this hill in pioneer days, and called it Elk Point because the animals browsed on the sides of the point in question. In later years this feature has been called Pointers Point, but this was not its original name and on June 3, 1925, the USGBN officially adopted the name Elk Point.
Elk River, Curry County. This is a well-known stream that flows into the Pacific Ocean between Cape Blanco and Port Orford. It has been known as Elk River since territorial days and was probably named during the gold rush to the beach placers in southwest Oregon. There were many elk in those parts. The style Elk River is used in an article by William V. Wells in Harper's Magazine, October, 1856, page 591, describing experiences in southwest Oregon in October, 1855.
Elkhead, Douglas County. The community and post office were named because they were near the head or source of Elk Creek in the western slopes of the Calapooya Mountains. A post office with the name Elk Head was established here on May 28, 1877, with R. J. Hendricks postmaster. Some years later the name was changed to Elkhead, and the office was discontinued March 31, 1926. The best available maps show the name in one word. Elkhead was sometimes called Shoestring.
ELKHORN, Marion County. This is a community on Little North Santiam River a few miles northeast of Mill City. While the origin of the name is obvious, the writer does not know the circumstances in which it was applied. The Geological Survey map of the Mill City quadrangle shows Elkhorn and Elkhorn School to be several miles apart in the valley. Elkhorn post office was established in March, 1892, with William D. Morehouse postmaster. The office was finally closed in June, 1917. Its principal business doubtless had to do with mining activity along the upper reaches of Little North Santiam River. There was an earlier post office in this neighborhood called Ivie, established in June, 1890, with Martha J. Heath postmaster. The name of this office was changed to Elkhorn in March, 1892, but the writer does not know if the offices were at the same place.
ELKHORN SPRING, Wallowa County. This spring is in township 5 north, range 42 east. It was named by William Adams and Hector McDonald because of a pair of elk horns that lay nearby for a number of years.
ELKTON, Douglas County. Elkton was laid out and named in August, 1850. See OHQ, volume XVII, page 356. However, it did not have a post office until September 26, 1851. David B. Wells was first postmaster. Elkton received its name because it was at the junction of Elk Creek and the Umpqua River. At one time the Hudson's Bay Company maintained an establishment known as Fort Umpqua very close to the present site of Elkton. For further information see Leslie M. Scott's article on John Work in OHQ, September, 1923. John Work visited the Umpqua River in 1834 and Fort Umpqua, which was on the south side of the Umpqua River at the mouth of Elk Creek, apparently did not exist at the time of Work's visit. He mentions "umpqua old fort" which appears to have been established in 1832 near Calapooya Creek. There was of course, later on, Fort Umpqua, near the mouth of the river, which had nothing to do with the Hudson's Bay Company forts. Ella, Morrow County. Ella post office was established April 24, 1882, with Frank Oviatt first postmaster. The office was discontinued on September 30, 1910. The place is about seven miles east of Cecil. Four miles south of Ella is Ella Butte. Roy Scott of Cecil wrote the compiler in 1927 that at the time the matter of establishing a post office was considered, a meeting was held in a blacksmith shop owned by Oviatt. It was decided that the office should be established in Oviatt's house, as that seemed to be the best location, but a name could not be agreed upon. Oviatt's little daughter, Ella, was playing around the blacksmith shop and having hurt herself, began to cry. One of the men told her that they would name the office for her if she would stop crying, which she did. Ella Butte was formerly known as Well Spring Butte. Well Spring was a prominent point on the immigrant road about five miles east of the location of Ella post office. The spring is mentioned in many emigrant journals.
ELLENDALE, Polk County. This pioneer community was about two miles west of Dallas, on Rickreall Creek. In 1845 James A. O'Neal built the first grist mill in Polk County, a few hundred feet west of what was later Ellendale. About 1849 O'Neal sold the mill to James W. Nesmith and Henry Owen, who operated it until 1854, and then sold it to Hudson & Company. The post office O'Neals Mills was established January
8, 1850, with O'Neal postmaster. The name was changed to Nesmiths on August 21, 1850, with J. W. Nesmith postmaster. The office was discontinued October 22, 1852. Due to the length of time necessary to communicate with Washington, D. C., O'Neal's appointment may have been made after he had sold the mill. Reuben P. Boise came to Oregon in 1850, and took up a donation land claim at Nesmiths Mills in 1852. He named the place Ellendale for his wife, Ellen Lyon, a native of Massachusetts, who sailed from New York to San Francisco in the record time of 89 days on the Flying Cloud. The original Nesmith house at Ellendale is still owned by the Boise family. The mill fiume took water from the creek on the south side and crossed to the north side near the present county bridge. One of Oregon's pioneer woolen mills was started in Ellendale in 1860. See Lomax, Pioneer Woolen Mills in Oregon.
ELLIOTT, Coos County. Elliott post office was on the property of James K. Polk Elliott near Catching Creek a few miles southwest of Myrtle Point. Elliott post office was established September 24, 1883, and was discontinued September 11, 1897. J. K. P. Elliott was the only postmaster. He was a prominent pioneer of the county.
ELLIOTT PRAIRIE, Clackamas County. This prairie lies east of Pudding River and Butte Creek. It was named for William Elliott, who came to Oregon in 1846. He was born in Indiana in 1815 and served in the Florida War in 1836. He married Nancy Sconce in 1838. He died at Park Place February 27, 1905. His wife died in 1888. Elliott served in the Cayuse and Yakima wars.
ELLIOTT STATE FOREST, Coos and Douglas counties. Elliott State Forest, consisting of 71,105 acres, was established through an exchange of state school grant lands which were widely scattered throughout the national forests for a solid block of federal forest lands, formerly known as the Millicoma Tract. The first move to establish a state forest by this means was made in 1913 by Governor Oswald West and State Forester F. A. Elliott. The exchange was not completed until 1929. Elliott died in 1930 and the forest was named to commemorate his work. This forest lay in the path of the historic Coos Bay fire of 1868, which left the land denuded for years. A study made in 1923 showed that only about half the area was stocked. Twelve years later a survey showed that more than 90 percent was stocked with western conifers, while most of the rest of the tract was producing maple, alder, myrtle, madrona, and cascara.
ELMIRA, Lane County. Amos F. Ellmaker, in 1925, informed the writer that Elmira was named by his brother, Byron Ellmaker, for Elmira, California, a place that he greatly admired. About 1884 Byron Ellmaker bought a location for a wood and iron smithy near the present site of Elmira, which was then called Duckworth. Ellmaker did not like this name, and persuaded postal authorities to change it to Elmira.
ELMONICA, Washington County. So named for Eleanor and Monica Stoy, daughters of Sam B. Stoy, who lived there in 1909. Stoy was an insurance man of Portland at the time and coined the name from the names of his two daughters.
ELOwah Falls, Multnomah County. These falls on McCord Creek were named by a committee representing the Mazamas and other organizations in 1915. The name is obviously Indian, but the writer has not been able to determine its meaning.
ELRUS, Lane County. This station, on the Coos Bay branch of the
Southern Pacific Company, was named for Elmer Russell, owner of a lumber mill nearby.
ELSIE, Clatsop County. Elsie was named for Elsie Foster, a relative of the first postmaster, George Gragg, about 1892. The compiler is informed that an effort was made to name the office Clover, but the name was not accepted.
ELWOOD, Clackamas County. Elwood is a locality between Colton and Springwater southeast of Highland Butte, probably named for Elwood Sylvanus, son of a Presbyterian minister of the neighborhood. The Rev. Mr. Sylvanus bestirred himself about getting a post office in the early '90s, and the office was established with the name Ellwood on April 28, 1892, with Eunice T. Sylvanus postmaster. There seems to have been an error in the procedure, because the name of the office was changed to Elwood on September 12, 1892. The office was closed June 30, 1914. Ely, Clackamas County. Ely, also called Elyville, is a suburb on the Cascade Highway in the extreme south part of Oregon City. The locality is sometimes called Mountain View, probably because it is near the cemetery of that name. The place was named in honor of Fred and George Ely, who settled there in early days. They were well-known public spirited citizens. George Ely later went to Inglewood, California. Ely post office was in operation from early 1891 until late 1894, with George C. Ely postmaster. The office was in operation again from July, 1895, to December, 1904.
EMBODY, Lake County. In March, 1947, Mrs. Delbert Cloud, New Pine Creek, Oregon, wrote the compiler that Embody was named for Charles Embody, who at one time operated a sawmill there. Embody was about sixteen miles northwest of the town of Silver Lake, on the old Military Road. Mrs. Cloud's father, S. L. Porter, took up a homestead in the locality in 1903 and proved up on it in 1908. He operated a small mill, which he sold to Charles Embody of Portland. Embody post office was established August 3, 1908, with Stephen S. Lowing first and only postmaster. The office was discontinued February 15, 1910, with mail to Silver Lake.
EMBREE SLOUGH, Harney County. Earl H. Conser of Burns, who knew the facts of such matters, wrote the compiler as follows: "Embree Slough, near Burns, was named for one 'Doc' Embree, through whose land the slough followed an irregular course. He had several initials, but I am unable to find anyone who knows them exactly. He was a doctor of sorts." This was probably Thomas Van Buren Embree, son of Cary Embree. Cary Embree was a pioneer of 1844 and a resident of Polk County. Emery, Jefferson County. The Post Route map of 1900 shows Emery at a point seventeen miles by road northeast of Sisters and a little to the west of Squaw Creek. In July, 1946, Sterling J. May, acting postmaster at Sisters informed the compiler that the office was at the Trahan homestead, and that it was named for Emery Trahan. The office operated from September, 1899, to July, 1901, with Antoine G. Trahan postmaster. The Trahan place was about three miles southwest of Geneva, in sections 8 and 17 of township 13 south, range 11 east.
EMIGRANT BUTTE, Klamath and Lane counties. Emigrant Butte lies west of Summit Lake, in the southeast corner of Lane County, at the
summit of the Cascade Range. It has an elevation of 6535 feet. It was named because of the emigrants that traveled over the emigrant route nearby.
EMIGRANT BUTTES, Umatilla County. These buttes are west of Stanfield, and have an elevation of 759 feet. They are close to the route of the Oregon Trail, and were named for the emigrants.
EMIGRANT CREEK, Jackson County. Emigrant Creek is southeast of Ashland and is supposed to be so named because emigrants who crossed the Cascade Range over the southern route came down this stream into Rogue River Valley.
EMIGRANT HILL, Umatilla County. Emigrant Hill is a very prominent ridge of the Blue Mountains, southeast of Pendleton. The Oregon Trail traverses this hill as it proceeds westward, then descends to the northwest to Umatilla River. Emigrant Hill is sometimes referred to as Cabbage Hill, but Cabbage Hill is a spur south from the main hill, and the Oregon Trail does not touch Cabbage Hill. Geography of this locality may be found on the USGS map of the Pendleton quadrangle. Emigrant Hill was of couse named in pioneer days because the emigrant trains traveled over it.
EMIGRANT SPRINGS, Sherman County. Giles L. French of Moro was good enough to dig up some facts about this place in December, 1945. Emigrant Springs are of good size and situated in section 27, township 2 north, range 18 east, in the northeast corner of Sherman County. The Oregon Trail passed through the area about a half mile south of these springs, but many wagons pulled down the canyon and camped at the springs where the water was good. Some emigrants camped there several days to refresh their stock. A post office called Emigrant was established in this vicinity on January 20, 1887, with William J. Peddiсord first postmaster. The name was changed to Emigrant Springs on June 29, 1889, and the office was closed June 12, 1895. The record indicates that the office was at or near the springs after the name was changed, but before that it may have been at the springs or in fact on the Oregon Trail. It should be added that the office was on the Wasco County list when first established.
EMMA, Tillamook County. Emma post office was in service for about six years at a point on Neskowin Creek about five miles southeast of the present community Neskowin. The office was named for Emma Chitwood, a local resident, and the name Emma Trail was applied to a route of travel from what is now Otis over the mountain to Emma, where settlers on lower Salmon River got their mail until they had their own post office at Otis in April, 1900. Emma post office was established December 16, 1896, with John D. Chitwood first postmaster. The office was closed February 26, 1903, and the business was turned over to Neskowin.
EMPIRE, Coos County. Empire City, as it was first known, was founded in 1853 by men from Jacksonville, called the Coos Bay Company, headed by Peter B. Marple. For a list of members of this company, see Scott's History of the Oregon Country, volume III, page 161. The name Empire City was suggested by the expectation that the town would be the center of a large region. Discovery of gold in northern California and southwestern Oregon led to the formation of the project, and stock in the company was offered for sale in the Oregonian, January 7, 1854. Empire City was formerly county seat of Coos County. A custom
house was established at Empire City in 1853 for the southern collection district of Oregon, with David Bushing collector. Empire City post office was established in April, 1858. It operated with that name until October, 1894, when the title was changed to Empire.
ENCHANTED Prairie, Coos County. This little prairie of about a hundred acres is an open spot alongside the Coos Bay-Roseburg Highway approximately four miles east of Bridge and about 25 miles east of Myrtle Point. In the summer of 1943 Mrs. Alice B. Maloney of Berkeley, California, wrote the compiler that the place had a special significance for the Indians, who buried their dead there in a sort of cavern. John Yoakam investigated it as a boy and local Indians threatened him with violence. Enchanted Prairie post office was established January 9, 1871, with Rufus P. King first postmaster. The name of the office was changed to Angora August 3, 1883. Angora post office, which was apparently named by a goat fancier, was closed May 3, 1894.
ENCINA, Baker County. Encina is Spanish for evergreen oak. J. C. Mayo, of Stayton, wrote that he named this station. During the time of railroad construction the siding was called Oak Cut, but this name was cumbersome, and Mayo, who had lived in Mexico, changed it to the form now used.
ENDERSBY, Wasco County. This place was named for W. E. Endersby, a local settler. Endersby School is about three miles north-northwest of Dufur and the spelling is that used in 1946 by the county school authorities. It is also reported to be correct by members of the family. A post office called Endersly was in operation in this vicinity from April, 1892, to October, 1906, with George W. Fligg postmaster. All postal records available to the writer spell the name Endersly. No explanation has been found for the discrepancy in spelling.
ENDICOTT CREEK, Coos County. Endicott Creek is a tributary of Middle Fork Coquille River. This stream was named for J. J. Endicott, a pioneer settler near its mouth.
ENGLISH, Wasco County. English post office got its name from the fact that it was situated on the English farm near Company Hollow about eight miles southeast of The Dalles. The office was established July 2, 1896, with Christopher C. English postmaster and was in operation until August 12, 1898. Judge Fred W. Wilson wrote the compiler in February, 1946, as follows: "The roads were bad then, and the farmers in that vicinity did not want to travel through the mud for their mail. When the roads were made better the need no longer existed. There were a very few farmers served by the office."
ENGLISH MOUNTAIN, Lane County. This mountain lies southeast of McKenzie Bridge. It was named during World War I in honor of the English people. French Mountain lies just to the west and was named at the same time.
ENOLA Hill, Clackamas County. Enola Hill lies just north of Zigzag River and west of Devil Canyon. The name Enola was made by spelling Alone backward. It was applied by a homesteader who had a home that was quite isolated.
ENRIGHT, Tillamook County. Enright is a station on the Southern Pacific Company branch line to Tillamook. It is in the east part of the county near Salmonberry River and is about midway between Timber and Wheeler. Enright has had a post office, but the writer does not know
the data about it. Enright is said to have been named for Mrs. E. E. Lytle. Before her marriage she was Miss May Enright and was well known in Oregon railroad circles. E. E. Lytle was a prominent railroad builder and was instrumental in extending railroad service to Shaniko, in north central Oregon, and from Hillsboro west to Tillamook. Lake Lytle, on one of the Tillamook beaches, bears his name..
ENTERPRISE, Wallowa County. Ben Weather, postmaster of Enterprise in 1925, informed the writer that the community was named in 1887. A meeting was held in a tent owned by a mercantile company and several names were suggested, including Bennett Flat, Wallowa City, Franklin and Fairfield. Finally R. F. Stubblefield suggested Enterprise, and that name was selected by a majority vote. The post office was established November 9, 1887, with Catherine Akin first postmaster. Eola, Polk County. The village of Eola was formerly known as Cincinnati, and so appears when the post office was established on June 5, 1851. It is said to have been named by A. C. R. Shaw because of the fancied resemblance of the site to that of Cincinnati, Ohio. The place was incorporated with the name of Eola by the territorial legislature on January 17, 1856. Miss A. J. Scott, later Mrs. A. S. Duniway, taught school in Cincinnati in 1853, and during pioneer days an effort was made to establish the state capital there. The name Eola comes from Aeolus, god of the winds in Greek mythology. There seems to be good authority for the belief that the name Eola was suggested by a local musical enthusiast named Lindsay Robbins, who disliked the name Cincinnati, and offered the new name because he was fond of the Aeolian harp. However, Geo. H. Himes thought that Shaw suggested Eola as well as the original name, so there you are.
Eola Hills, Polk and Yamhill counties. These hills, which have an extreme altitude of 1170 feet, extend from Eola on the south to a point near Amity on the north, a distance of about 15 miles. They constitute one of the important groups of isolated hills in the Willamette Valley. They have had various names, including Bethel Hills and Yamhill Mountains, but Eola Hills seems firmly established, except for the northern extension, which is separated from the main ridge by the pass east of Amity. This northern extension is known as Amity Hills. Eola Hills got their name from the village at their southern end. Bethel Academy, Bethel Institute and Bethel College were prominent pioneer establishments situated in Eola Hills. See under BETHEL.
ERMA BELL LAKES, Lane County. These two mountain lakes are just west of the summit of the Cascade Range and about five miles north of Waldo Lake. They are shown on the USGS map of the Waldo Lake quadrangle. They were named for Miss Erma Bell, for a number of years employed as a computer in the Portland office of the U. S. Forest Service. She died April 27, 1918, as a result of an automobile accident near Troutdale, and it was thought proper to perpetuate her memory by naming these lakes for her.
ERROL, Clackamas County. Errol station received its name from Joseph A. Strowbridge, Jr. His father came to this country from England many years ago on a four-masted vessel named Errol. The post office at Errol station was installed about January 1, 1922.
ERSKINE, Sherman County. This place is between Moro and Grass Valley, and has also been known as Millra, Erskineville and Erskine
Springs. About 1882 C. A. Williams opened a store there and Erskineville post office was established December 19, 1882, with Abiel Erskine postmaster. When the railroad was built through, the shorter name Erskine was used for the station. Erskineville post office was closed April 20, 1907, but the locality still goes by the name Erskine.
ERWIN, Baker County. The place called Erwin was named for a well known stockman, John Erwin, who was born in New York state in 1839 and settled in Oregon in 1868. He served in the Civil War and was wounded. He developed a stock ranch in Lower Powder Valley northeast of Baker. His biography is in the History of Baker, Malheur and Harney Counties, page 304. Erwin post office was established July 13, 1892, with Mrs. Elizabeth A. Pierce first postmaster. The office was closed as of November 15, 1910. Gill's map of Oregon, 1911, shows Erwin in section 17, township 8 south, range 42 east, a little northwest of Keating. The name of Erwin post office was not changed to Keating as is sometimes reported.
ESTACADA, Clackamas County, Estacada is a Spanish word and means staked out, or marked with stakes, and the principal use of the name in the United States is in northwestern Texas where the form Llano Estacado is employed to describe a tract of land that would be called in English Staked Plain. The Spanish name refers to the trunks of an upright desert plant that remain standing like stakes or poles over an area of many hundred square miles. The name was used in Oregon because it had a pleasing sound, with no thought of its original significance. In the summer of 1927 a number of letters were written to the Oregonian asserting that Estacada was named for a girl whose name was first given as Esther Keady or Esther Cady, and by later correspondents as Esther Williams. These letters were printed on the editorial page of the Oregonian for July 16, 25 and 27. Other letters denying this version and supporting the Llano Estacado version were printed on July 18, 23, and 29. W. P. Keady was a right of way agent for the railroad company that built into that section of Clackamas County, and on April 7, 1909, he wrote from Spokane, Washington, to L. E. Belfils, Estacada, and gave his story of the application of the name. The letter is too long to quote in full, but the substance is that on December 27, 1903, a meeting was held at the office of the Oregon Water Power Townsite Company, First and Alder streets, Portland. Townsite and railroad company officials suggested various names, as follows: G. W. Morrow suggested Rochester; W. H. Hurlburt suggested Lowell; W. P. Keady suggested Lynn and George J. Kelly suggested Estacado. Kelly's suggested name, Estacado, was drawn from a hat, and adopted for the townsite, but through an error in drafting, was filed as Estacada. One of Keady's sons was named Lynn, which was probably the reason for the suggestion of the name Lynn mentioned above. George J. Kelly, in a letter on the editorial page of the Oregonian, July 23, 1927, gives his version of the matter, which is substantially the same as Keady's, except that he says he was responsible for the change from Estacado to Estacada. He was chief clerk in the office, and selected the name at random from a map of the United States which showed Llano Estacado, in Texas. The compiler of these notes spent several weeks in Estacada shortly after the town was established and was informed by a number of persons at the time that the Llano Estacado of Texas was the origin of the name.
ESTRUP, Lane County. Estrup post office was established on the Lane County list as of March 31, 1898, with Peter E. Peterson postmaster. This office was west of Junction City, probably not far from the place that was later called Horton. According to information which is believed to be reliable Peterson named the post office with a Danish name, but the compiler has been unable to learn the exact significance of the word Estrup. According to J. J. Winn, an old timer in Lane County, the name Estrup may have been derived from the name of a Danish queen, but reference books do not mention such a sovereign, Estrup is or was a family name in Denmark but the compiler can find no record of its being a given name. Jacob B. S. Estrup was a prominent member of the Danish government at various times in the latter half of the nineteenth century. It is reported that there is a village called Estrup in SchleswigHolstein and in 1905 there was an Estruplund parish in Denmark. It seems obvious that the name of the Lane County post office had its origin in Denmark. According to post office records Samuel M. Horton was appointed postmaster of Estrup post office on September 27, 1901. The office was discontinued April 4, 1902. Mr. Winn says that Horton never actually served as postmaster.
ETELKA, Coos County. Etelka post office, which was established September 23, 1891, was named for a famous Hungarian opera singer, Etelka Gerster, 1855-1920. Mlle. Gerster, whose married name was Gardini, had a distinguished career both on the continent and in the British Isles. She also sang in America. For additional information see Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians, volume II. Etelka post office remained in service until March 30, 1909, with Julia A. Carman the only postmaster. It was about ten miles south of Myrtle Point, near South Fork Coquille River. In July, 1948, Mrs. Mary E. Coke of San Diego wrote the compiler that she was a daughter of Mrs. Carman and that she selected the name Etelka from a magazine or catalogue. She was then a young girl. The compiler has been told that in recent years Etelka has been referred to as Etalka but that certainly was not the name of the post office.
ETNA, Jackson County. Etna was an early-day post office and located on upper Rogue River, and for a time at least the office was about four miles below the present site of Trail. Doubtless it moved around, but it was always close to Rogue River. The post office was established July 5, 1882, with William P. Knighten first of five postmasters, and was discontinued June 26, 1896, when Louis J. Marck was postmaster. In the summer of 1946 the compiler had some correspondence about this office with D. W. Pence of Eagle Point. It was Mr. Pence's recollection that Etna post office was named for the niece of one of the postmasters, possibly of Mr. Marck. Mr. Pence was of the opinion that Marck was the first postmaster, but this is not in accord with government records. The compiler thinks that the girl was probably the niece of one of the earlier postmasters, probably of the first, William P. Knighten.
ETNA, Polk County. Etna was a post office at the Riggs place a few miles north of Rickreall, but the reason for the name seems to have eluded historical records. The office was established September 4, 1856, with Thomas J. Riggs first and only postmaster. It was discontinued May 8, 1868. Rickreall post office was out of service from 1857 to 1866, so there was need of another office in the locality. Despite help from various Polk County people, including Cecil L. Riggs of Dallas, the com piler has been unable to get the reason for the name Etna. There does not seem to have been any member of the Riggs family named Etna. Cecil Riggs wrote in January, 1947, that he had always thought the office was named for the mountain on the east coast of Sicily, but perhaps without any definite reason. Mount Etna had a violent eruption in 1852, which may have been news in the Willamette Valley soon enough to produce a post office name in 1856. This is no more than a theory.
EUCHRE BUTTE, Lake County. This is a prominent mountain north of Lake Abert. It is said to have been so named because of an historic card game played nearby by cowboys in pioneer days.
EUCHRE CREEK, Curry County. This stream apparently takes its name from the Tututni Indian band Yukichetunne. The name indicates "people at the mouth of the river." The Handbook of American Indians, among others, gives the following forms of the name: Euchees, Eucher, Euchre, Eu-qua-chee, Uchres and Yoquichacs. George Davidson, in the Coast Pilot, 1889, page 373, refers to the stream as Ukah Creek for the U-kahtan-nae Indians. Miners applied the style Euchre Creek in the early '50s, apparently influenced by the name of the popular card game. Davidson says that the stream was also called Savage Creek, but that name is not explained and has not persisted.
EUCHRE MOUNTAIN, Lincoln County. Accurate information about the name of Euchre Mountain seems hard to obtain, but it is generally believed that the word Euchre was used by pioneer surveyors as an approximation of the Indian name of the mountain. The correct pronunciation and meaning of the Indian name are not now available. The
USGS gives the height of Euchre Mountain as 2446 feet.
EUGENE, Lane County. Eugene F. Skinner took his land claim at Eugene at the foot of Skinner Butte in 1846, and built his cabin, and in 1847 moved his family into it. His wife, Mary Cook Skinner, was the first white woman to dwell in Lane County. Skinner came to Oregon in 1846, and first settled at Dallas. He was born September 13, 1809, in Essex County, New York; died at Eugene December 15, 1864. His wife was born February 7, 1816; died June 4, 1881. Eugene City in 1855 is described by Thomas J. Dryer in the Oregonian, June 23, 1855. The first steamboat to ascend the Willamette River to Eugene was the James Clinton, March 3, 1857, (ibid., March 21, 1857). The Indian name of Skinner Butte was Ya-po-ah (ibid., April 23, 1897, page 3), or Ya-po-oh (ibid., November 17, 1890). For notes on Eugene in 1885, ibid., January 31, 1885. This post office was established with the name Skinner's on January 8, 1850, with Eugene F. Skinner postmaster. The name was changed to Eugene City on September 3, 1853, and to Eugene on May 29, 1889.
EUGENE GLACIER, Lane County. Eugene Glacier is on the north slope of South Sister, between Skinner and Lost Creek glaciers. It was named for the city of Eugene in 1924 by Professor Edwin T. Hodge of the University of Oregon.
EULA, Lane County. Eula post office was named for Eula Blakely, daughter of Joe Blakely, an early resident. The post office was established about the time the railroad was built, with the name Blakelyville, but the railroad company adopted a shorter name, Eula. To avoid confusion, postal officials changed the name of the office to Eula, and both station and office operated with this name until about 1925 when
the railroad changed the station name to Armet because Eula was too much like Eola, Polk County. Armet was selected arbitrarily by the company. It is the name of a form of head armor used in the middle ages. Properly the word is accentuated on the first syllable, but not so at Armet.
EUREKA, Wallowa County. Eureka post office was established in August, 1903, and operated until July, 1906. Thos. E. Alyea was the first postmaster. The office was near the southwest bank of Snake River in township 4 north, range 48 east, and was established to serve the Eureka mines which were being developed in the vicinity. There was mining activity at various points between the Imnaha River and the stream called Eureka Creek which flows into Snake River about three quarters of a mile farther down stream. The office and presumably the creek were named for the Eureka mines. The writer does not know the exact location of the office, possibly it was on the river between the two tributaries. Eureka is a Greek expression meaning "I have found it," and the word is frequently applied to mines and other enterprises where there are high hopes of success. There is a bar in Snake River just below the mouth of the Imnaha, and this is known as Eureka Bar. In 1945 it was reported that mining activity in the locality appeared to have ceased many years before. Eustis, Wallowa County. This post office was named for Harry R. Eustis, a nearby homesteader. It was situated in section 15, township 3 north, range 41 east. The office was established February 29, 1904, with Charles H. Campbell first postmaster and it was in operation until May, 1907, at a point about ten miles north of Minam.
EVANS, Wallowa County. R. L. Forsythe of Enterprise wrote the compiler in 1927 as follows: "When the branch line railroad was built from Elgin to Joseph in about the year 1909, the railroad people agreed to run the railroad through Lostine if that city would pay a bonus of $1500, the cost of the additional construction by reason of a cut that would have to be made through a small hill east of Lostine. One man, Mr. James Haun, prominent citizen of Lostine, was strongly in favor of paying the sum but a majority was against him and the proposition was lost. As a result the railroad missed Lostine by about one mile and a depot was established a mile away and named Lostine by the railroad company. Mr. Haun had said that he would leave the town if it failed to land the railroad. This he did by moving two good residence buildings out of Lostine and onto land that he owned near the depot. He, together with John McDonald and S. W. Miles, laid out a new townsite at this point, and the name of Evans was selected (in honor of Mrs. Sam Wade). The settlement soon grew to include ten or twelve houses, a couple of store buildings, three wheat warehouses, a church and school house, as well as a few other smaller buildings. Later a post office was established at the new townsite with the name of Evans. The last few years has shown a decline in the place, one store building having recently been torn down and hauled away and a number of the residences and buildings stand vacant. Locally the place has always been known as Jim Town, Jim being Mr. Haun's first name. There is, of course, a post office at the original town of Lostine and also one at Evans. The railroad has never recognized the name of Evans and it is still called Lostine on its map even though the station is actually at Evans." Evans CREEK, Jackson County. Evans Creek was named for a pio neer settler on Rogue River, who operated a ferry about three miles west of Evans Creek, and was also first postmaster for the office of Gold River. This office was near the site of the ferry. Davis Evans was generally known as Coyote Evans, but why, the compiler does not know. Gold River post office was established April 18, 1855. The territorial legislature changed the name of Rogue River to Gold River in 1854, and reversed itself in 1855. The post office name Gold River was doubtless the result of this action. The battle of Evans Creek, an important encounter in the Rogue River Indian War, was fought on the headwaters of this stream August 24, 1853. EvArts, Umatilla County. Evarts post office in the south part of the county was named for one Squire Evarts, at one time a lawyer in Pendleton, later a storekeeper at Evarts and probably also justice of the peace. The compiler has been unable to learn if the name Squire was Evarts' given name, or an honorary title. The post office at Evarts was established November 11, 1885, with William Roberts first postmaster. The office was closed to Ridge November 11, 1886. It is reported that Evarts had probably moved away from the locality before the post office was established. Sam E. Darr of Adams has written the compiler that Evarts' establishment consisted of a store, hotel and feed stable all under one roof, on the old mail route from Nye to Alba. It was on the west side of the road, on a ridge, and about four miles north of the old post office Ridge on the same mail route. Mr. Darr says that Evarts also owned the store at Ridge. The site of Evarts post office is now on the PendletonJohn Day Highway about five miles south of the junction with the highway to Heppner.
EVERGREEN, Harney County. Evergreen post office was established on June 30, 1882, with Miss Mary E. Bedell first postmaster. The ofhce was finally closed January 21, 1887, and the business turned over to the Riley office. The history of the office is contained in the Grant County records, because Harney County had not yet been organized, but the office was in what is now Harney County. Old maps show Evergreen on Silver Creek a little below Camp Currey. Evergreen was about 300 yards down Silver Creek from the Military road crossing, on the A. O. Bedell land, later the Cecil ranch. There was a small green meadow at this point, and the Bedell children named the office on that account.
EXPRESS Ranch, Baker County. The post office called Express Ranch was very prominent in Baker County during the days of the mining excitement. The office was established April 21, 1865, with C. W. Durkee first postmaster. It was situated at or near the place later called Durkee and was named because it was a stopping place for stage coaches or expresses as they were frequently called. The name of this office was changed to Weatherby on July 2, 1879, and it was apparently moved at that time to the Weatherby place about ten miles to the southeast, down Burnt River. Andrew J. Weatherby was postmaster at the time the name was changed. The Weatherby office continued in operation until February, 1920. The removal of the post office to Weatherby left the Express Ranch without a post office, and a new office named Express was established November 26, 1884, with Joseph McKay postmaster. The name of this office was changed, probably on February 26, 1902, to Durkee, in compliment to the early settler of the locality. This change was doubtless made because the name Express was unsuited to an office situated on a railroad. Such a name would cause confusion in express shipments.