Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1914-02-21

a wager Where would we turn to
/ find there an authority 10 whom we
could apply for statement that would
be .inaI?
In washington there is a group of
fifteen men representing all the de-
partments OF the government which
have 10 deal with geography, whose
word in this respect is considered law.
They constitute what is officially
| known as the United States geogra-
phic board, in reality the court of last
resort for disputed geographic names.
What they say of the names OF places
| In the United States, the spelling of
those names, the use OF hyphens and
other marks is final and we must use
them as the board dictates il we wish
| to be considered correct.
Thus IL we wish to decide the wager
concerning Pittsburgh's terminal let
4 ter we turn to the boards official re-
port and read that the city of Pitts
| burgh was chartered in 1876, its name
| being spelled without the III; that
the N. appears to have been added
by the post Office department, and it
was NuIOu6tA tlldl dNltOn lddt lOCdi
usage appears to have become diyid-
ed. Some newspapers print it Pitts
burg, while some use Pittsburgh, but
| the board, after weighing all the de-
tails. has decided that the city,s name
shall terminate with an Oh. ]"
The board was established in Sep
| TENDER. 1890, because it was desirable
that uniform usage in regard to geo.
graphical nomenclature and orthogra-
ply obtain throughout the executive
departments Of the government, and
particularly upon the maps and charts
issued by the various departments
and bureaus. All unsettled questions
concerning geographical names which
arose in the departments were to be
referred to the board and the deci-
sions rendered by it were to be re-
gakded as standards.
The board had its powers increased
later on by President Roosevelt, who
added the duties of determining,
changing and fixing the names Of
places in tha United States and insu-
lar possessions. and thereafter all
such names were referred to the board
before publication.
When the board was first created
BY President Harrison its member
ship numbered ten. Later IL was in
creased "a fiffeen The tarrns :, o r. sa a.
vice have ALWAYS been indefsn;fa The
members heing aalactad -, . =, ,.a,s
resent every 6anartmant ~ tba aoT.
ernment which nublisl,es tha Names mar ~
niaces IN fhe limited states
In order to adninister ire Affairs
the board elects ifs own chairman and
secretary. together with an evecutiye
committee of five members nr Hen
nv Gannett of the geological survey
at uresent directs fhe business ~ tho
board. assisted nv Charles 8 Shane
OF the census bureau.
The nresanf off;cia, oroan;,a,;o,,
came into eYistence heea,,se CT :. ' ,ros
seen 10 NE = much 1aeded boay pr;os
r. n. formation tbare ,sras -, ,,,, 81
cial orpaniyation - IN ,,,a,,,ha.. IN,
renresenfa eacb darsrtr,ant e ns @ tho
gnvarnnsnt mhat 49, s.'e $500 w
cerning tba oaao,..,,h;ss, 800. ,s. ~
nIacas In tho TTnitad cta.os 80 -
rond;t;on ~ obaos tb.t hrn,,,. - as
6,,5e chaos baca,,sa tba, fo,,,f 49,
aral Nance and seva,.ai d;sa.e.,.
wavs Of sna,,;ng S;snr +a 49, haaa, ssas
eacb dena-t,,e,,t ,,o, 1870 ~. aeSazsso
tho aufbori 1-,,s os The others = me- nrs
ecrib;ng ,,.,.tia,,,., &C.,, ,,e sssa,,;.,s
In fact ths-e .ras NJ estsb Gn.si
anthoritv a., aos,a,.,,,o -, s,,.i;aa
lions ra,,,a o,,t ,,,;fh s,,a,i;rs. 1919 - ~.
eral wavs for tba sare rleea a.
If the oreatest irstancas - th;s In
L the name IF ,ha Village of S,n n,i,s
avn n W;sconsin Tbara arc IN d;s.
ferent ways ~ sneiling The nan, nc
which aIsc nroi,,ea t he sa,,aa n,or,,, r'
r;atio,, +, ~ sovar,, 5000. I,bi;aa
lions Il & seen in e1 si : , aissarsnt ,yaSs
sgbiIo tba nos+ offics de,so,.t,,a,,t ,,s - :,
a,,othar opa-haIf tba nonnIatinn a.
otser 5,fsar;na a,sn f, rp1, .hat ,s "a
Nv tbo otbar half and the -e;,,oeS
Comes n With stiII anotbar stvia e''1
t. state -. 81 county is - he na as,
fha iacislatiya bodv of that state ' be-
stows tbosa nsnoss While For mnn;.
cina,ities The state oivas the name
used n tba charter Rnt the hoard
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