What is "Owyhee"?

Owyhee is the old spelling of Hawaii. It is pronounced "Oh why hee", and if you say it out loud, you'll see that it sounds quite similar to our modern pronunciation of Hawaii.

What's the connection between Hawaii and Idaho? Back in the early 1800s, the sea route from the eastern US to the West Coast passed around the tip of South America and through the Pacific. The Hawaiian Islands were a convenient place to stop and replenish fresh water and food stores. While docked there, the traders would often hire Hawaiian natives to work as trappers. For a narrative of such a journey, see Washington Irving's "Astoria."

Astoria started out as a fur-trading post, funded by John Jacob Astor, at the mouth of the Columbia River in 1811. In those days, Canada was a British colony, and extended, at least, down to the Columbia River. Also in those days, the Columbia was not quite the river we think of today. What we now call the Snake River was a leading candidate for the main channel of the Columbia. The British, particularly the Hudson Bay Company, built their trading posts along the northern side of today's Columbia and Snake River, anticipating that to be final boundary between the U.S. and Canada. Examples include Fort Vancouver and Fort Boise. It may also be the reason that Fort Astoria, being a U.S. venture, was built on the southern banks of the Columbia.

Fort Astoria didn't last long -- the War of 1812 intervened -- but the large area draining into the Columbia River remained of significant interest to those in the fur trade.

"In 1818 the North West Fur Company sent an expedition under the leadership of Donald McKenzie to see what he could do about the Columbia's inland trade. Upon reaching the head of what appeared to be a large river, McKenzie sent three Hawaiian Islanders down it to investigate the area for beaver and the possibilities of navigation. The Hawaiians never returned and were presumed lost or killed by Indians, probably the latter. The river was called the 'Sandwich Island River' and from this came the name 'Owyhee,' as those natives referred to their homeland." (1)

Today, the Owyhee Mountains are a beautiful, interesting area where states of Idaho, Oregon, and Nevada meet, containing high-desert terrain as well as forested mountains. It remains one of the least populated areas in the contiguous United States.

From my shop in Nampa, I can see the Owyhee Mountains to the south, and I often take short trips there to just poke around and enjoy the solitude. When naming my shop, I wanted to have something that referred to this area, as well as reflecting my interest in history.

(1) "Owyhee Trails, the West's Forgotten Corner" by Mike Hanley with Ellis Lucia, Caxton Printers, Caldwell, Idaho, 1988