Donnybrook is a historic

unincorporated Unincorporated may refer to: * Unincorporated area, land not governed by a local municipality * Unincorporated entity, a type of organization * Unincorporated territories of the United States, territories under U.S. jurisdiction, to which Congress ...

community in Jefferson County,

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

, United States. Donnybrook is located about 20 miles south of

Antelope The term antelope is used to refer to many species of even-toed ruminant that are indigenous to various regions in Africa and Eurasia. Antelope comprise a wastebasket taxon defined as any of numerous Old World grazing and browsing hoofed mammals ...

, and 10 miles east of Ashwood. The area was first known as "Axehandle", and later as "Kilts".

History

Axehandle was located at . It was about a quarter mile south of Donnybrook. The locale of Axehandle was named for Axehandle Spring, which was given its name in the late 19th century by some wood haulers from Antelope who found a broken

axe An axe ( sometimes ax in American English; see spelling differences) is an implement that has been used for millennia to shape, split and cut wood, to harvest timber, as a weapon, and as a ceremonial or heraldic symbol. The axe has ma ...

handle near a watering hole while working to bring wood from the Blue Mountains. The "Axehandle" moniker came to comprise the area of several ranches. Donnybrook is located at . The name was coined by Joe Brannon for a brawl (" donnybrook", named for the

Donnybrook Fair Donnybrook Fair was a fair that was held in Donnybrook, Dublin, from the 13th century until the 1850s. It has given its name to an Irish jig, a chain of food stores, a broadsheet ballad, and is a slang term for a brawl or riot. History In the ...

, which took place in

Donnybrook, Dublin Donnybrook () is a district of Dublin, Ireland. It is situated on the southside of the city, in the Dublin 4 postal district, and is home to the Irish public service broadcaster Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ). It was once part of the Pemb ...

, Ireland) among some Irish sheepherders during the homestead era. At one time Donnybrook had a school. Jesse Kilts homesteaded in the area, and when a post office was established on September 15, 1914, it was named for Mr. Kilts, whose wife, Ruth, was the first postmaster. Kilts post office closed on June 29, 1940. According to ''

Oregon Geographic Names ''Oregon Geographic Names'' is a compilation of the origin and meaning of place names in the U.S. state of Oregon, published by the Oregon Historical Society. The book was originally published in 1928. It was compiled and edited by Lewis A. McArth ...

'', Kilts was considered a newcomer in the area, and longtime residents have always called the locale "Donnybrook" instead of "Kilts". Modern atlases show the locale as "Donnybrook". The location of Kilts post office moved many times, as was common in the pioneer era. According to author

Ralph Friedman Ralph Friedman (June 3, 1916 – June 3, 1995) was an American author best known for his books about Oregon. Ralph Friedman was born and raised in Chicago. He hitchhiked to Oregon in 1933 at the age of 16. He wrote 10 books, and contributed to ...

, as of 1993 only one of the private homes in which the post office was located was still standing, all the rest having been burned or torn down. Kilts, which is the only one of the three locations not marked as a "historical"

populated place Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction using a ...

by the

USGS The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, a ...

, is shown as currently being located at , about 4 miles east of Donnybrook.

References

External links

Images of Donnybrook
from Flickr
Ruins of Donnybrook School
!--commercial website, best I could find, feel free to replace. Valfontis 02-10-2015--> {{authority control Unincorporated communities in Jefferson County, Oregon 1914 establishments in Oregon Unincorporated communities in Oregon