Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1907-10-12
Two Cities OF One Name.

| Two Cities OF One Name.
Tie thriving city of Portland, Oregon
has now a population of close to 100000
people and is growing rapidly, like all
the seaport towns of the Pacific coast
' Ii is fully twice as large as our own
city of Portland here in Maine for
which it was named nearly half a CEN
tury ago, and it is getting little I'M
easy over the fact that its name is al
most always coupled with the name of
the state so that it may be dis
! tinguished from the older and more
| widely known city of Portland, 5000
| miles away. The newspapers are dis
cussing a possible change OF name and
willamette, Calapooia, Tualatin and
Multomah are some of the names sug-
gested by those who think the Oregon
metropolis shCu be rechristened with
a name that will stand alone. While
the names suggested do not seem
specially attractive they have doubt
less local SuSStStloLS anu are Gel
less commonplace than the present
name However, the odds are heavy
that the present name will not be done
away with. When a large and pros
porous city has borne a name for a
generation or more it is no easy thing
to discard it in favor of new designa-
| ton. Sometimes a city loses its name
through being annexed to a larger city
but very rarely indeed does city
change its name as suggested in Port
lands case.
The eazetcers show that there are 20
Portlands in the country, though of
course the other IS are not widely
, known Possibly the others in Colo
radc. Iowa. Kansas and other inland
states were, like the Oregon city, given
their names by pioneers who went
westward from Maine. Certainly their
| location car hardly justify the port"
part of the name. 1t is a matter Of
history that the men who founded Ore
CONS chief city We're divided in opinion
, whether to name the place Portland or
Boston and the decision was finally de-
terlnned by the tossing of a coin.
Perhaps the Maine and Oregon Port
lands are the most conspicuous in
stance of two American cities with one
name, though there are several others
that readily come to mind. OF course
there are Augusta, Maine. and Au-
gusta. Georgia, and although the
Southern city is much the larger it is
probable that the Maine city is better
known throughout the country, partly
from the fact that it is a state capital
and partly because New Englanders
and the descendants of New England
ers are more numerous throughout the
Western and Pacific states than are
those OF Southern blood. Then there
is the case of the Wilmingtons in Della
ware and North Carolina and in the
case of both the name of the state is
usually added to distinguish them from
each other. OF course 1t is highly de-
sirable that such repetitiCnS should be
avoid d but this is large country and
the tendency to name a new place for
an older one as Was done in the case of
Portland. Oregon. is hard to resist. AS
long as the Oregon city was not given
q different name at the start it will
probably bear its present name to the
end of the chapter. Certainly it is a
name TO be proud of and it should try
to become so great and famous that it
will not be overshadowed by the fame
of the beautiful Maine city whose name
it bears.