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LETTERS
To the Editor:
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I read with interest the "Guild's Lake Industrial District" in the Spring 2006 quarterly. The authors' note on page 105 regarding the form of the name must be clarified. |
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The United States Board on Geographic Names, established in 1890, is specifically charged with the review and standardization of the names of all natural geographic features in the United States. Any natural feature name used in a federal publication, map, text, or internet must agree with the approved form as listed in the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS), the national electronic database maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey. While the Board's rules apply only to federal publications, state and local authorities also conform with only rare exceptions. |
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The Board has a firm rule against the possessive apostrophe waived only five times. The best known is Martha's Vineyard and the most recent is Clark's Mountain on Tillamook Head, so named because of the references in the Lewis & Clark journals. |
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The possessive "s" without the apostrophe is discouraged on new names but often occurs in early, well known names. People often use Guilds Lake but I have never heard Smiths or Bybees applied to adjacent lakes. It may be a matter of euphony. Both Guild and Gale as in Gales Creek sound a little strained without the "s". |
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In any event, most biographical names were applied as means of location before the advent of detailed maps. Of course, there are also commemorative names given to specifically honor individuals. |
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Names are dynamic and may change with usage. Guild Lake is gone and is listed in the GNIS as Guild Lake (historical). Administrative names given by the agency which owns or operates the facility are not under the U.S. Board's purview. The city or other responsible authority can use any name or form but controversial ones are often referred to the Oregon Geographic Names Board for comment. |
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| LEWIS L. MCARTHUR
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| Portland |
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