Peculiar, MO, was named in 1868 by, of all people, the Postmaster General. When the post office was being established, the people who lived in the area chose three possible names and sent them to the post office, but all three of them were already in use. Frustrated, they wrote to the Postmaster General andContinue reading “Peculiar”
Medicine Hat
Finding out the origins of the name Moose Jaw yesterday I started to wonder about the other prairie city with a funny name, Medicine Hat, Alberta so I looked it up. The name Medicine Hat is an English translation of the Blackfoot word “Saamis.” A saamis is the headdress worn by medicine men, and thereforeContinue reading “Medicine Hat”
Moose Jaw
I’ve driven through Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, several times, and I have even stopped for gas a few times. I always thought that the name Moose Jaw came from the jaw of a moose found there or something along those lines. Boy was I wrong. The name Moose Jaw comes from the Cree moscâstani-sîpiy for “warmContinue reading “Moose Jaw”
Valour
During the first world war three men from who grew up on the same block of Pine Street in Winnipeg, Manitoba, were awarded the Victoria Cross. In their honour Pine Street was renamed Valour Road, (the Victoria Cross is inscribed “for valour”). I saw the heritage minute on TV growing up, and when I movedContinue reading “Valour”
Happy
Happy, Texas, “The town without a frown” is a town of 647 people in Randall and Swisher counties. So, how did it get it’s name? It was named after Happy Draw, a nearby spring-fed stream which was allegedly named by some cowboys who were really happy to find water. A post office opened near HappyContinue reading “Happy”
Mimosa
I mentioned yesterday that I would write about Mimosa, TN, so here’s what I know, then we’ll leave Tennessee alone for a while. Mimosa hasn’t always been called Mimosa. It used to be called Bucksnort. There was a fellow in town named William (“Buck”) Pamplin. We’ll let his grand-niece, Lily May Pamplin, take over theContinue reading “Mimosa”
Bucksnort
Bucksnort, TN, is a small, unincorporated town in Tennessee. It is close to Spot, TN, (actually, we should probably say that Spot is close to Bucksnort, since Bucksnort is larger and better known). So, why is Bucksnort called Bucksnort? According to a legend on the back of a T-shirt that’s apparently sold at the gasContinue reading “Bucksnort”
Spot
I saw somewhere that that there’s a town called Spot in Tennessee and thought it would be fun to write about, but from what I can tell there’s very little to write. There is indeed a place called Spot, TN, in Hickman county. Apparently it’s at 564 feet elevation, and that’s about all I canContinue reading “Spot”
Hell
Hell is not only a biblical place, it is also an unincorporated town in Michigan. There are a couple of stories about how Hell, MI, came to be named hell, the first is that some German travellers got out of their wagon and said So schön hell!, which means “So Beautifully Bright” and the nameContinue reading “Hell”
Joseph
Since profiling Joe, Montana, it’s only appropriate to get to the root of the name Joe: Joseph. As many other names are, Joseph is a biblical name. The original Hebrew is יוֹסֵף, (Yosef), meaning “The Lord will increase” or “The Lord will add.” There were several Josephs in the bible, the first being Joseph, sonContinue reading “Joseph”