Marmot 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 ...

in Clackamas County, Oregon, United States located in the

Mount Hood Corridor The Mount Hood Corridor is a part of Oregon between Sandy and Government Camp, in Clackamas County. It is named after Mount Hood and has served travelers going in both directions since the days of Native Americans and Oregon Trail migrants. Th ...

. It is within the boundaries of the Villages at Mount Hood, on a ridge known as Devil's Backbone, which lies between the Sandy and Little Sandy rivers, along the historic

Barlow Road The Barlow Road (at inception, Mount Hood Road) is a historic road in what is now the U.S. state of Oregon. It was built in 1846 by Sam Barlow and Philip Foster, with authorization of the Provisional Legislature of Oregon, and served as the la ...

(the final stretch of the

Oregon Trail The Oregon Trail was a east–west, large-wheeled wagon route and emigrant trail in the United States that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon. The eastern part of the Oregon Trail spanned part of what is now the state of Kans ...

.) The community was named by Adolph (or Adolf) Aschoff, a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

immigrant who was for many years a

forester A forester is a person who practises forestry, the science, art, and profession of managing forests. Foresters engage in a broad range of activities including ecological restoration and management of protected areas. Foresters manage forests to ...

and guide in the Mount Hood area. When he settled in the area near the Sandy River in 1883, he found many animal burrows that, according to the local residents, were made by

marmot Marmots are large ground squirrels in the genus ''Marmota'', with 15 species living in Asia, Europe, and North America. These herbivores are active during the summer, when they can often be found in groups, but are not seen during the winter, ...

s. He later discovered that they were actually made by the

mountain beaver The mountain beaver (''Aplodontia rufa'')Other names include mountain boomer, ground bear, giant mole, gehalis, lesser sasquatch, sewellel, suwellel, showhurll, showtl, and showte, as well as a number of Chinookan and other Native American terms ...

, another rodent. When the post office was established in about 1886, Aschoff and two of his friends decided to name it "Marmot" on account of this error. Construction of the

Mount Hood Highway The Mount Hood Highway No. 26 (see Oregon highways and routes) is the Oregon Department of Transportation's designation for a highway from Portland east around the south side of Mount Hood and north via Bennett Pass to Hood River. It is marked ...

in the 1920s diverted traffic away from Marmot, and fewer visitors came to stay at Aschoff's hotel. Aschoff sold the hotel in 1930, and died soon after. Marmot post office was discontinued in 1930. Most of the buildings burned to the ground in 1931, with the exception of Aschoff's museum, the post office, and a store. None of these structures remain today.

References

Portland metropolitan area Unincorporated communities in Clackamas County, Oregon 1886 establishments in Oregon Populated places established in 1886 Unincorporated communities in Oregon {{ClackamasCountyOR-geo-stub

See also

References