cates that the form Grants Pass was already in use. Wm. M. Colvig of Medford says E. B. Dimmick probably named the pass itself. Versions of the story ascribing the name to a visit of General "Grant appear erroneous, because there is no evidence that General Grant was ever in that part of Oregon. He was stationed at Fort Vancouver from September, 1852, to September, 1853. The death of Colonel Bliss, of the adjutantgeneral's department, on August 5, 1853, caused the promotion of Grant to the rank of captain of a company then stationed at Humboldt Bay, California. Grant made the journey from Fort Vancouver to Humboldt Bay by sea to San Francisco, and thence north to the place of his destination. He went to Fort Vancouver in 1852 by sea, from San Francisco. Stories to the effect that General Grant "passed" in a card game at Grants Pass may be dismissed as pure fiction. For additional information about the naming of Grants Pass see editorial page Oregon Journal, August 30, 1927. For editorial about Grant's experiences in the Pacific Northwest, see the Oregonian, March 7, 1943.
GRASS VALLEY, Sherman County. Pioneer settlers, without ever changing countenance, tell newcomers that in early days the rye-grass was so tall in this part of Oregon that it was well over a man's head. They even state that this was so when the man was on horseback. This accounts for the name. Grass Valley was incorporated as a result of a popular vote held September 10, 1900.
GRASS VALLEY CANYON, Sherman County. Grass Valley Canyon heads in Grass Valley, hence the name. The canyon wanders northward through Sherman County, and finally joins the canyon of John Day River. This name is one of that class that is cumbersome, due to the fact that the name of one feature is used to describe another. Salmon River Glacier is another example, Grass Valley Canyon is an old name, however, and will probably persist.
GRAVE CREEK, Jackson and Josephine counties. This stream rises in the northwest corner of Jackson County and flows into Josephine County. It receives Wolf Creek near Leland. In 1846 a girl named Martha Leland Crowley, died on what is now Grave Creek, and her burial there gave rise to the name. James W. Nesmith, in a letter published in the Oregonian, November 23, 1883, wrote that in the late summer of 1848 he started for California with a party of gold seekers, and they found Miss Crowley's grave had been desecrated by Indians. They reinterred the remains, and called the stream Grave Creek. In January, 1854, the legislature passed an act changing the name of Grave Creek to Leland Creek, in honor of Miss Crowley, but the public did not accept the new name and it remains Grave Creek. Statements that Miss Crowley's name was Josephine and that the county may have been named for her cannot be substantiated by the compiler. See also under
LELAND. Martha Leland Crowley was the daughter of Thomas and Catherine Linville Crowley, who came to Oregon from Missouri in 1846. Thomas Crowley and Martha Leland Crowley died in Oregon but before the family reached the Willamette Valley. Thomas Crowley's daugher Matilda and a son Calvin also died on the trip out from Missouri, as well as Calvin's wife and child. In 1848 Mrs. Thomas Crowley was married to James M. Fulkerson in Polk County. See Grants Pass Courier, January 23, 24, 26, 1934.
GRAVELFORD, Coos County. Gravelford is a place on North Fork
