at or near the place in Douglas County on May 18, 1887, with James McKinney first postmaster. Henry Scott became postmaster on November 10, 1887. He was not satisfied with the name of the office and had it changed to Melrose on October 10, 1890. Hogan was the name of a nearby resident.
Melville, Clatsop County. This place is said to have been named for the oldest son of D. J. Ingalls, who resided there. It is on Lewis and Clark River.
Melvin Butte, Deschutes County. This butte is in the foothills of the Cascade Range about ten miles southeast of Sisters. It was named for J. L. Melvin, who took up a timber claim nearby about 1902. Melvin got into a controversy with S. H. Dorrance, which is said to have started because Dorrance put sawdust in Melvin's irrigation ditch. As a result of this altercation Melvin killed Dorrance on the side of the butte now known as Melvin Butte. Melvin was cleared by a jury which considered that he was not to blame for the difficulty.
Memaloose Island, Wasco County. There are a number of geographic features in Oregon bearing the Chinook jargon word for death or dead. They were so named because they were Indian burial places. Several islands in the Columbia River are named Memaloose. The most important is near the south bank of the river between The Dalles and Mosier. On it is buried Vic Trevitt, a prominent pioneer citizen and for many years a resident of The Dalles. His monument is easily seen from the mainland. Memaloose is given by Gibbs as memaloost, who says it is from the Chinook Indian word memalust, meaning to die. Memaloose is the spelling adopted by the USBGN and is in general use.
Meno, Hood River County. This station, west of Hood River, was originally named Menominee, for the place in Michigan. The naming was at the request of J. E. Cameron, who had formerly lived in the Michigan town, and when he established a sawmill in Oregon, he desired to perpetuate the name of his old home. After the mill was abandoned, the railroad company shortened the name of the station because the long form of the name was awkward in telegraphing. For obituary of J. E. Cameron, see Oregon Journal, Sunday, May 22, 1927, section I, page 2. A post office with the name Nicolai was established in this locality on November 13, 1900, with George H. Nicolai first postmaster. The name was changed to Menominee on October 13, 1903. The office was discontinued March 31, 1909.
Mercer, Lane County. This post office was named Mercer because of its proximity to Mercer Lake. It was established in June, 1904. For the origin of the name see Mercer Lake.
Mercer Lake, Lane County. This lake is about five miles north of Florence and was named for a government surveyor, George Mercer. Mercer surveyed the line between township 17 south of ranges 11 and 12 west in 1879, and his name became applied to the lake on that account. The line passed through the lake. The name Mercer Lake is shown on maps prepared in 1883. The compiler is informed that the Indian name for Mercer Lake was Kow-y-ich, meaning the place of the lake.
Merganser, Klamath County. Merganser was the name of a town that lived for a decade then passed into limbo. The place was established about 1870 by J. P. Roberts and Albert Handy to compete with the
