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Since You Asked: Rossanley is a hybrid historical tribute Monday Feb 19, 2018 at 11:01 PM Feb 20, 2018 at 12:49 PM I am relatively new to Medford and have been curious about the name "Rossanley." Is it a family name, or is it two names combined? — Bob S., via email Thanks to the Southern Oregon Historical Society, we were able to learn the origin of the Rossanley name, Bob. And your second guess was right on. John England Ross arrived in the valley from Illinois by way of California in October 1852; he had a public career in the county, representing it at the 1866 Territorial Council and serving in the the Oregon Senate. It was a common practice at the time he settled here for the county to name roads after the surname of whoever owned the land bordering it. Thus, the road that originates off the side of Old Military Road in the triangle of land between Jacksonville, Central Point and Medford was named Ross Lane, as it remains today. Ross Lane, you'll notice, hits Hanley Road — more commonly referred to these days as Highway 238, running west-southwest from Medford and looping all the way up through the Applegate Valley until it funnels into south Grants Pass. Hanley Road, created in 1854, was named after Michael Hanley, who worked in Ross's butcher shop. Hanley had a more diverse portfolio of land throughout Southern Oregon, staking claims in Douglas and Klamath counties, as well. He purchased the plot of land north of Jacksonville that eventually resulted in the bordering road also being named for him. The former Hanley family home, often referred to as "The Willows," is a historic site now owned and operated by the SOHS (corrected). The Rossanley name was created out of a need to name a new road that would connect Sage Road to Hanley Road. Herb Wing, the principal of Westside Elementary School (where Madrone Trail Public Charter School now operates as part of the Medford School District) solicited names for the road-in-progress. Rossanley Drive beat out the other top choices by school officials: Westview Drive, New Frontier Lane and Lizard Lane. A sixth-grader, Pam Ritchie, suggested the hybrid name, which was announced at a school assembly March 19, 1968. — Send questions to “Since You Asked,” Mail Tribune Newsroom, P.O. Box 1108, Medford, OR 97501; by fax to 541-776-4376; or by email to [email protected]. We’re sorry, but the volume of questions received prevents us from answering all of them.