Pioneer Heritage

Crook? Baker? Multnomah? You’ve heard the names of Oregon’s 36 counties, but have you heard who they’re named for? Some are for tribes, others are for war heroes, but each county has a different story behind its name.

--Jamie Hale | jhale@oregonian.com

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Terry Richard/The Oregonian

Baker

The eastern Oregon county was named for Colonel Edward D. Baker, a U.S. senator from Oregon and close friend of President Abraham Lincoln. He was also the only member of Congress to die in the Civil War, killed at Ball's Bluff, Virginia.

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Jamie Francis/The Oregonian

Benton

Oregon's Benton County is one of seven in the U.S. to be named for Senator Thomas Hart Benton of Missouri, a longtime advocate of the development of the Oregon Territory.

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Clackamas

Named for the resident Clackamas tribe, Clackamas County was one of the four original counties in Oregon and home to the first state capital, Oregon City.

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John M. Vincent/The Oregonian

Clatsop

The northwesternmost county in Oregon, Clatsop County was named for the Clatsop tribe, one of many Chinook tribes living along the Pacific Coast. Lewis and Clark also named their fort near Astoria for the Clatsop.

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Columbia County is named for the Columbia River, which makes up its northern border. The river was named for the Columbia Rediviva, which under the command of Capt. Robert Gray, was one of the first ships to enter the river from the Pacific Ocean.

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Both Coos County and Coos Bay, found within its boundaries, were named for the local Coos tribe. The name Coos translates to "lake" or "place of pines."

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AP Photo/Andrew Selsky

Crook

The central Oregon county was named for Major General George Crook of the U.S. Army. During his years of service in Oregon and California, Crook became well known for his prowess in hunting and wilderness skills, learning from local tribes.

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Curry

Split from Coos County in 1855, Curry County was named for Governor George L. Curry, the last governor of the Oregon Territory, from 1854 to 1859. When Congress passed the Oregon Statehood Bill in 1859, Curry's position was abolished.

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

Deschutes

French-Canadian fur trappers working for the Hudson's Bay Company called the Central Oregon river Riviere des Chutes, meaning "river of the falls." The name morphed into Deschutes River, the namesake of the county.

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Douglas

President Lincoln might not have been happy with Douglas County, named after U.S. Senator Stephen A. Douglas, his main opponent in the presidential election of 1860. Sen. Douglas was an ardent congressional advocate of Oregon statehood.

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Jamie Francis/The Oregonian

Gilliam

The north-central county was named for Colonel Cornelius Gilliam, a pioneer of the Oregon Trail who led the volunteer forces in the Cayuse Indian War in 1847. He was accidentally shot and killed in 1848 on a trip back to Oregon City.

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Terry Richard

Grant

The eastern Oregon county was named for Ulysses S. Grant, the commanding general of the U.S. Army at the time of Grant County's creation in 1864. He was elected the 18th President of the United States five years later.

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

Harney

When Harney County was carved out of Grant County in 1889, it was named after Major General William S. Harney, commander of the U.S. Army's Department of Oregon. Harney was instrumental in opening up parts of Eastern Oregon for settlement, but was also known for the brutal murder of a female slave and as "the woman killer" among Sioux.

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Courtesy of Peter Marbach

Hood River

Hood River County was named for the city of Hood River, named for the actual Hood River (a tributary of the Columbia River), which was named for Mount Hood, named for Lord Samuel Hood – a British naval officer admired by Lt. William Broughton, who named the peak while sailing with Capt. George Vancouver.

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Courtesy of Jenny Graham/Oregon Shakespeare Festival

Jackson

The southern Oregon county was named for President Andrew Jackson, the seventh president of the United States. It's one of six U.S. counties that carry his name.

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Jefferson

Created nearly a century after President Thomas Jefferson's death, Jefferson County was actually named for Mount Jefferson, which was named for the president by Lewis and Clark on their westward expedition.

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Josephine

The only county in Oregon named after a woman, Josephine County was named for Virginia "Josephine" Rollins, the first white woman to live in the area. Rollins is also the namesake of nearby Josephine Creek.

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AP Photo/The Herald and News, Steven Silton, File

Klamath

White settlement came to the area in 1846, and the county was created only 36 years later. It was named for the Klamath Tribes, which had been in the area for 10,000 years.

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Eschewing historical context or reverence to American officials, the southern Oregon county is simply named for the many lakes within its boundaries.

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Officials named Lane County after General Joseph Lane, a rugged frontiersman named the first governor of Oregon Territory in 1849. After Oregon's statehood, Lane became a U.S. Senator.

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

Lincoln

Some 30 years after Douglas County took its name from his political opponent, President Abraham Lincoln got an Oregon county of his own on the rugged north-central coastline. It's one of 17 U.S. counties named for Lincoln.

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While never an Oregonian, U.S. Senator Lewis F. Linn of Missouri was honored as the namesake of Linn County after authoring the Donation Land Act of 1850, which provided free land to settlers in the west.

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Courtesy of the Bureau of Land Management

Malheur

Malheur County is an unfortunate place – literally. It was named for the Malheur River, which in turn got its name from French fur trappers who called it "Riviere au Malheur" or "unfortunate river" after their furs and property were stolen at an encampment there.

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MIchael Lloyd/The Oregonian

Marion

Originally called Champooick in 1843, the county was renamed in 1849 in honor of General Francis Marion, a military officer who served in the American Revolutionary War, considered one of the fathers of modern guerilla warfare.

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Motoya Nakamura/The Oregonian

Morrow

The central-eastern county on the Columbia River was named for Jackson Lee Morrow, a merchant from La Grande and an early resident of the area. Morrow was later elected to the Oregon Legislature, where he pushed for a bill to create the county.

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Multnomah

Lewis and Clark first noted the name Multnomah, the tribal village on Sauvie Island, in 1805. Their interpretation is derived from the tribal word "nematlnomaq," which likely means "downriver."

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Molly J. Smith/The Oregonian

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The Willamette Valley county was named for then-President James K. Polk, one of 16 across the U.S. named for him. The county seat was renamed Dallas after Vice President George M. Dallas.

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Jamie Francis/The Oregonian

Sherman

Settled by stockmen in the 1870s, Sherman County was later named for General William Tecumseh Sherman, Commanding General of the U.S. Army from 1869 to 1883. Earlier in his career, Sherman was responsible for protecting the Oregon Trail.

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Terry Richard/The Oregonian

Tillamook

The coastal county was named for the Tillamook tribe in the area. "Tillamook" is a Chinook word that means "people of Nekelim" or Nehalem.

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Umatilla County was formed in the regional gold rush of 1862, named for the Umatilla Tribe, which today is part of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation.

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Union

The Civil War colored much of Oregon's etymology, but nowhere is it as stark as Union County, named for the town of Union, which its founders dubbed in 1862 as a way to support the Union – of which Oregon was a part.

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Wallowa

The area that is Wallowa County today was once claimed by the Chief Joseph band of the Nez Perce tribe. They used a piece of fishing equipment called "wallowa" – a tripod of poles used to hold up the nets.

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Wasco

Established in 1854, the north-central Oregon county was named for the Wasco tribe. The word "Wasco" means "cup" or "small bowl of horn," referring to a cup-shaped rock near the tribe's main village.

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Washington

One of the original four counties of the Provisional Government in Oregon and first called Twality, Washington County was renamed in 1849 in honor of President George Washington, one of 31 in the U.S.

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Wheeler

The central Oregon county was named for Henry H. Wheeler, a pioneer who operated the first mail stage line from The Dalles to Canyon City.

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Yamhill

Another of the four original counties of the Provisional Government of Oregon, Yamhill County was named for the Yamhelas, members of the Kalapuya Tribe who lived along the Yamhill River.

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

Go see them!

In addition to the history, there are plenty of good reasons to visit each of Oregon's 36 counties. Check out oregonlive.com/travel for regular stories, photos and guides to seeing Oregon and the Pacific Northwest.

--Jamie Hale | @HaleJamesB