Harney is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

Harney County Harney County is one of the 36 counties in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2020 census, the population was 7,495, making it the sixth-least populous county in Oregon. The county seat is Burns. Established in 1889, the county is named in ho ...

, in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

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 ...

. It lies north of

U.S. Route 20 U.S. Route 20 or U.S. Highway 20 (US 20) is an east–west United States Numbered Highway that stretches from the Pacific Northwest east to New England. The "0" in its route number indicates that US 20 is a major coast-to-coast route. S ...

between

Burns Burns may refer to: * Burn, an injury (plural) People: * Burns (surname), includes list of people and characters Business: * Burns London, a British guitar maker Places: ;In the United States * Burns, Colorado, unincorporated community in Eagle ...

and

Buchanan Buchanan may refer to: People * Buchanan (surname) Places Africa * Buchanan, Liberia, a large coastal town Antarctica * Buchanan Point, Laurie Island Australia * Buchanan, New South Wales * Buchanan, Northern Territory, a locality * Buchanan ...

near the site of historic

Fort Harney Fort Harney was a United States Army outpost in eastern Oregon in the United States. It was named in honor of Brigadier General William S. Harney. Fort Harney was used as a supply depot and administrative headquarters from 1867 to 1880 during ...

. The community, county, and nearby geographic features such as

Harney Lake Harney Lake is a shallow alkali lake basin located in southeast Oregon, United States, approximately south of the city of Burns, Oregon, Burns. The lake lies within the boundary of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge and is the lowest point in ...

are named for

William S. Harney William Selby Harney (August 22, 1800 – May 9, 1889) was a Tennessee-born cavalry officer in the US Army, who became known during the Indian Wars and the Mexican–American War for his brutality and ruthlessness. One of four general officers ...

, a military officer popular in the

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (sometimes Cascadia, or simply abbreviated as PNW) is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though ...

in the mid-19th century. The fort, part of a military establishment that fought with Indians off and on in the 1860s and 1870s, was at a place called variously ''Rattlesnake Camp'', ''Camp Steele'', ''Camp Harney'', and finally ''Fort Harney''. The fort and the land around it were abandoned as military property in 1889. Meanwhile, the civilian community had developed about south of the fort, along Rattlesnake Creek. A post office named ''Camp Harney'' was established at Fort Harney in 1874. William T. Stevens was the first postmaster. The post office name was changed to ''Harney'' in 1885 and relocated to the Harney civilian community. Robert J. Ives was the first postmaster at the new location.

References

Unincorporated communities in Harney County, Oregon Unincorporated communities in Oregon {{HarneyCountyOR-geo-stub