legislature passed an act directing the citizens of the county to declare their choice between "the present location .... and Upper Umatilla, somewhere between the mouths of Wild Horse and Birch Creeks." The election favored the new location, and it was accordingly made county seat and named Pendleton, for George H. Pendleton, Democratic nominee for vice-president. Umatilla tried to rescue the seat by legal means, on the grounds of vagueness of the act of the legislature, but was not successful. For additional information, see under PENDLETON. See also Fred Lockley's article in Sunday Journal, June 3, 1945.
UMATILLA RIVER, Umatilla County. Umatilla is the Indian name for a river, given as Youmalolam, in Lewis and Clark journals; variously spelled in early books of Oregon. Alexander Ross gives You-matella and Úmatallow; Townsend gives Utalla and Ewmitilly; Irving gives Eu-o-talla; Fremont gives Umatilah; Parker gives Umatella; Wilkes and Nesmith give Umatilla. The compiler knows of no reliable interpretation of the Indian name. For references to the name and to the locality, see OGN, 1928 edition, page 363-64. The Umatilla Indians are a group of tribes formerly living on the Umatilla River and on adjacent banks of the Columbia River. Umatilla, as a tribe name, is of late application. These Indians were not originally Umatillas. The name came to be applied after the extermination of many of the Cayuses and Walla Wallas.
UMBRELLA FALLS, Hood River County. This descriptive name was suggested to the USBGN by Oregon residents, and adopted May 6, 1925. The falls are on one of the sources of East Fork Hood River about a mile and a half above the Mount Hood Loop Highway, southeast of Mount Hood.
UMPQUA, Douglas County. Umpqua is an historic name in the state. It was used by the Indians to refer to the locality of the Umpqua River and came to be applied to Umpqua River. For a discussion of the name see under UMPQUA RIVER. There have been several places known as Fort Umpqua. John Work visited the Umpqua River in 1834 and Fort Umpqua, which was later established by the Hudson's Bay Company near the present site of Elkton, did not then exist. Work mentions "umpqua old fort" which appears to have been established in 1832 near Calapooya Creek. See under ELKTON for additional information. In the summer of 1850 a party of prospectors, originally planning to visit the Klamath River, explored the Umpqua River and established Umpqua City on August 5, 1850. It was on the east side of the river, near its mouth. West Umpqua was the name selected for the community planned for the other side. Sec OHQ, volume XVII, page 355. There was some development at both places, but the towns had petered out by 1867. See Scott's History of the Oregon Country, volume III, pages 42 and 46. Umpqua City post office was established on September 26, 1851, with Amos E. Rogers postmaster. Samuel S. Mann became postmaster on February 24, 1852. This office may have been on the east side of the river when first established but in 1860 the post office and community of Umpqua City were on the west side of the river about two miles north of the mouth. A military post was then at the same place. See under Fort
UMPQUA. The present Umpqua post office is on Umpqua River near the mouth of Calapooya Creek and a long way from the places mentioned above. The post office now known as Umpqua was originally called Umpqua Ferry and was first established March 16, 1877, with John C.
