THE QUARTERLY
of the
Oregon Historical Society
Copyright, 1921, by the Oregon Historical Society
The Quarterly disavows responsibility for the positions taken by contributors to its pages
THE ORIGIN OF THE NAME OREGON[1]
By T. C. Elliott.
Recent research establishes the fact that the name Oregon is a corruption or variation by Jonathan Carver of the name Ouragon or Ourigan, which was communicated to him by Major Robert Rogers, the English commandant of the frontier military and trading post at Mackinac,[2] Michigan, during the years (1766-67) of Captain Carver's journey to the upper valley of the Mississippi river and to lake Superior. The evidence in support of this assertion is contained in documents deposited in the Public Records Office at London, England, and now made the basis of this brief discussion. These documents serve to only increase the discredit already attached to the writings of Captain Carver, but the morals of that author do not suffer at all when compared with those of his fellow officer, Major Rogers. Neither of these men seem to have paid any heed to the biblical admonition "be sure your sin will find you out". There were many others with the same moral standards at that period in the world's history.
Connection of the name of Major Robert Rogers with Oregon history is new and entertaining, but a study of the career of that officer is not inspiring. He was born in November,
