The news=record. [volume] (Enterprise, Wallowa County, Oregon) 1907-1910, 1910-01-26
HOLMAN TELLSOF
WALLOWA COUNTY
PRESIDENT STATE HISTORICAL
SOCIETY HAS ARTICLE IN
PORTLAND JOURNAL.

The Portland Journal has been rum
ming series of articles ON Origin
OF Oregon Counties" by F. v. Hol-
man, president of the OREGON Histori-
cal Society. The following Idescript-
Ion of this county appeared in Fri.
days paper.
WALLOWA COUNTY.
Wallowa county was created Feb
fuaay III, 1887, by the state legis-
laoure. General laws of 1887, pat
l42). 1t comprises part of the cas-.
ern portion of the original Union
county. 1t is the northeastern county
Of Oregon.
The name is that of the beautiful
Waliowa lake and it's outlet. the
Wallowa river.
The part of oregon which compris-
es Wallowa county in early days
was isolated. 1t was far from the
usually travelled route of early
travellers, fur trade. S aid Immigrants $.
1t lies south and southwest of Lewis
Jon, Idaho, near which, to the east,
southeast and south of the Clearwatel
river is Lapwai, THE reservation Oh
the upper Nez Perce tribe.
In October, 1906, and in May, 1906
.lle Lewis ann Clark expedition was
VT the mouth of the Clearwater river
which Lewis and Clark called the
<ooshooskee. Lewiston is situated
Ut the junction of the Clearwatel
With the Snake liver. Wallowa coun
y is a short distance south of Lewis
on. Lewis and Clark's expedition
lid not go into what Is now Wal
owa county.
In the winter @of 1S11-12, Wilson
Price Hunt and his party en- route
overland, to AS oria, attempted t.
lescend the Snake river. They start
I'd to descend the Snake river 10
! canoes, but they were compelled u
abandon their canoes and proceet
lown the bank of the river, some O
he party being ON the east side, tbs
others ON the west side of the Snak'
river. The who'e party nearly perish
I'd from hunger and other hardships
December "a, 1911, the party lef
he Snake river and proceeded west
ward 10 the Columbia river, whicl
hey reached January 21, 1872, at
point not far south of the WALL
Walla river. On the way from tn
Snake river to the Columbia, the e1
pct route of the party lis not descrit
ed nor can 1T definitely be ascertain
ed. but undoubtedly it was througi
what is now Walfowa county, probal
y south of Walowa lake. The onl
river or stream between the Snak
river and the Columbia which is mer
Toned by name, except Walla Wall
river, 1t is said, was called by tn
natives Eu-o-talla, or Umatilla." III
Wings Astoria, vol. 2, page 65).
In 1888 and 1884, Captain Bonn'
willie and his party were in what /
now Wallowa county. He does nc
mention the name Wallowa. = He ldoe
mention the Imnaha river, which h
calls the Immahah, and the Way-le'
way, which is the Nez Perce nam
of the Grande Ronde river.
The eastern and southern part {
Wallowa county were the habitat {
the lower Nez Perce Indians, at th
time of the beginning of the note
war with them, which began Jun
1877, and ended in October Of th
, same year. Their chief was the fan
GUS Indian known as Chief Joseph.
To be certain of the meaning {
origin of the name, I wrote A.
Smith, NOW living at Enterprise,
Wallowa county. For many years J
lived with the Indians in that yicini
and speaks one or more OF the tIHb
languages. He has kindly WRITE
me, saying that he had learned fro
the Umati,la and the Nez Perce !
dams that the Wallowa river w
named by the fact that, many gen
rations ago, the Nez Perce India
placed the first fish trap In that riv
and the salmon failed. from son
cause unknown No them. to go IN
, the tran and, after leaving the tr
set I'm the river until time to go In
their winter quar'ers. they arrived
s'iperst'tious notion that some cha
hal intervered TO prevent the ~
q from going in And SO. when tn
( ~e7t away. they left the trap star
Ing on the river to be destroyed