Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly volume 18.djvu/113



Idaho— Meaning and Origin 89

mountains. It was named Shoshone for the largest tribe of Indians in this section of the country, and in 1861, when the population in the mines demanded it, another county was formed including all lands lying south and west of the Qear- water and named Nez Perce for the next largest tribe of Idaho Indians. The rest of the Idaho territory was formed, in 1862, into the largest county ever created within the state, embracing all lands lying south of Nez Perce and east of Snake river and called Idaho coimty in recognition of this word. In 1863, Boise coimty was created, so that Idaho had four coun- ties in existence, formed by the Washington legislature, when the territory was organized.

Hon. John Hailey, Idaho's state historian, in his "History of Idaho," says, "The organic act passed by Congress and approved by the President March 3, 1863, creating and organ- izing a territorial government for the people residing within and those who might come hereafter, in certain limits and boundary lines of territorial lands, gave to that territory the name Idaho. Various reasons are given for the origin of the name Idaho. By some it is claimed that it is an Indian name. One story is that some miners had camped within sight of what is now Mount Idaho. In the morning they were awakened by the Indians calling 'I-da-ho' and pointing to the rising sun just coming over the mountain, hence the term *The Rising Sun/ Another is that the name was taken from a steamboat built by the late Col. J. S. Ruckel to run on the Columbia river in the early days. This boat was named The Idaho. W. A. Gouider, one of the oldest living (now dead) pioneers of Idaho, saw this steamer on the Columbia in i860 and noticing the name asked the meaning and was informed that it was an Indian word, *E-dah-hoe,' and stood for 'The Gem of the Mountains.' Frederick Campbell, one of the pioneers of the Pike's Peak excitement, says that the word Idaho is an Ara- paho Indian word and that in Colorado a spring was named Idaho before the word was known in the Northwest, and that it was even suggested for the name of Colorado."