THE 
Yol. VII JULY, 1896 No. 7 
THE WORK OF THE UNITED STATES BOARD ON 
GEOGRAPHIC NAMES 
By Henry Gannett, 
Chairman of the Board and Chiif Geographer of t]>e U. S. Geological Survey 
and of the Tenth and Eleventh Censuses 
This board was originally constituted, in the early part of 
1890, as a voluntaiy association of officers of various depart- 
ments of the government for the purpose of securing uniformit}" 
in the official spelling of geographic names. It was the result, 
in the main, of the efforts of Dr T. C. Mendenhall, then Super- 
intendent of the U. S. Coast and Geodetic Surve}g who was 
chosen its first chairman. It was given standing and authority 
by an executive order of September 4, 1890, which reads as 
follows : 
“A.s it is desirable tliat uniform usa^e in regard to geogra])hic nomen- 
clature and orthography oldain throughout the e.xecntive de])artments 
of the government, and i)articnlarly upon the maps and charts i.ssned l)y 
the various de[)artments and bureaus, I hereby constitute a Loard on 
Geographic Names and designate the following persons, who have here- 
tof(we cooperated for a similar purpose under the authority of the several 
departments, l>ureaus, and institutions with which thej' are connected, 
as members of said board. ... To this board shall be referred all 
unsettled (piestious c(jncerning geographic names which arise in the de- 
partments, and the decisions of the board are to be accepted by these 
<lei)artments as the standard authority in such matters.” . . . 
The board now consists of representatives of the following 
departments ami bureaus: State, M'ar, and Navy departments, 
Light-House Board, Coast and Geodetic Survey, Geological Sur- 
vey, General Land Office, Rost Odice De[)artinent, and Smith- 
sonian Institution. 
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