pass is in a spur running southeast from the rim of Crater Lake. It divides Dutton Ridge to the north from Grayback Ridge to the south. Maklaks is a Klamath Indian word meaning literally the encamped, hence a body of Indians encamped, or a community, or tribe. It is also a generic term for Indian. The Forest Service has named a mountain in northwestern Klamath County between Davis and Odell lakes Maklaks Mountain.
Malheur, Malheur County. This post office is in the valley of Willow Creek in the extreme north part of the county. There seems no doubt in the mind of the writer that the post office name came from the same source as the name of Malheur River. See under that heading. The community of Malheur was a center in the gold excitement in the late '60s, and there is a story to the effect that the place was named Malheur (French for evil hour or misfortune) because a tunnel caved in and killed a French miner. The compiler has no evidence that this event did not happen, but thinks it highly improbable that the name of the town originated in such a manner, and places no credence in the story.
Malheur County. Malheur County was created February 17, 1887, and was taken from Baker County as that county was then constituted. Subsequently there were several readjustments in the Malheur County boundary. The county was named Malheur because Malheur River flowed through it. For the origin of the name Malheur, see under Malheur River. The county has a land area of 9870 square miles, according to the Bureau of the Census. It is the second largest county in Oregon. In February, 1931, a bill was introduced in the Oregon legislature to change the name of Malheur County to Sinnott County, in honor of Nicholas J. Sinnott, representative in Congress from the second Oregon district, 1913-28, who died July 20, 1929. The bill passed the house, but died in the senate. Despite the high esteem in which Mr. Sinnott was held, it appeared to be the sentiment of the citizens of the county to leave the name alone.
Malheur Lake, Harney County. Peter Skene Ogden's party discovered this lake in October, 1826. Details of the discovery are given under the heading HARNEY LAKE. Ogden did not name the lake, and referred to it simply as a freshwater lake. He described the ridge or dike that separated the fresh lake from the salt water, to the west, now known as Harney Lake. On July 7, 1859, Captain H. D. Wallen of the Fourth Infantry, while on an expedition from The Dalles to Great Salt Lake, reached the salt water and named it Lake Harney. He found and described the dike between the two lakes. His stock would not drink the alkaline water and stampeded over the dike eastward to what is now Malheur Lake. Wallen thereupon named the fresh water Lake Stampede. That name has not prevailed. Later Malheur Lake was named for Malheur River. For the origin of the name, see under that heading. The compiler does not know who gave the lake its present name, which has been used for many years. Wallen's name Lake Stampede may actually have been applied to a part of Malheur Lake frequently called Mud Lake, which is west of the Narrows. At high stages Malheur Lake flowed over the dike and into Harney Lake, with the result that the latter lake tended to become more alkaline. In 1882 water was so high in Malheur Lake that it cut a wide passage through the dike. See OHQ, volume XXXII, page 129. Malheur Lake is always relatively shallow and sub
