Waverly - Many towns honor Sir Walter

Sir Walter Scott

Sir Walter Scott was a Scotsman born in 1771. Sir Walter is known as the father of the romantic novel. He started his literary career at the age of 25. He is considered to be one of the first true international authors. He became popular throughout Europe, Australia, and the United States. His novel “Waverley” was a sensational success and he followed with a series of other books on this topic. His books were so popular that many towns in the United States are named after his titles or characters. Scott always considered himself as a poet and would publish his novels using the name “Author of Waverley”. However, by 1825, it became common knowledge that Sir Walter was the true author of these works. It was at this time that Sir Walter fell into bankruptcy. His royalties paid all of his debts after his death in 1832.

Bellefontaine Neighbors

In the early 1800's, land ownership to settlers in this area was made from land grants by French, Spanish, and American officials. Fort Bellefontaine was nearby and they were all neighbors. So why not name the new town, Bellefontaine Neighbors?

Ghostly remains of Fort Bellefontaine
The fort was established in 1805. It was the first military post west of the Mississippi. Located near St. Louis, Fort Bellefontaine became a major starting point for many westward expeditions. Zebulon Pike started his famous trek west here. Lewis and Clark ended returned here from their “Corps of Discovery” expedition. Due to the ever changing course of the Mississippi River, the Fort became flooded and fell into disrepair. In 1904, over 30 bodies were excavated at the present day site. Many of these victims were assumed to be former soldiers and family members that lived here in the early 1800’s. Today the site is noted for its ghost stories. Tourists and visitors report that when they take photographs of the area, a mysterious red smoke appear on their pictures. Legend has it that the red smoke appearing on these pictures are from the souls of the soldiers from the past. .

Neptune City Swallowed Up by Another Community!

As the United States grew so did the imagination of our ancestors with the names of their new communities. In 1881, the citizens in this community chose a Greek god for their town’s name. The town is located near the Atlantic Ocean and much of the economy at the time was based upon the ocean traffic. Neptune being the Greek god of the ocean seemed to be a logical choice. During this period, it was not unusual for towns to be named after mythical gods or legends. Other communities used names like Hercules, Venus, Jupiter and even Mars as names. Neptune City grew tremendously in land area. In 1900, the New Jersey legislature annexed much of the city and created a new township. Oddly enough, the town that swallowed up the land from Neptune City was named “Avon by the Sea”! The name “Avon” is a Welsh term meaning “river”.

Tuxedo, New York and the Tuxedo Suit

In 1886, Pierre Lorillard IV built an exclusive country club here. He named it the “Tuxedo Club”. It was a private country club and only exclusive socialites were included in its membership. One of its members was wealthy millionaire, James Potter. Potter was friends with Edward VII of England, the Prince of Wales. The Prince fancied Potter’s wife, Cora, and invited both of them to come visit him in England. Potter was impressed with Edward’s smoking jacket. The Prince replied that it was manufactured by the Henry Poole Company in England and that the company had exclusively designed it for him. Potter liked the Prince’s suit so well that he had a duplicate made. When Potter returned to his hometown to show it off, his wealthy friends at the Tuxedo County Club were ecstatic. It was such a hit that all of the country club members started sporting this new fashion in apparel and the tuxedo became the popular attire for the club’s social events. Later, other wealthy American socialites joined in on the new fashion. However, no one knows for sure how impressed Cora Potter was with the Prince of Wale’s tuxedo. I guess only the Prince and Cora know!

Photo courtesy of Library of Congress

Dubuque, Iowa

Julian Dubuque was a French Canadian fur trapper that moved to this area around 1785. He became great friends with the local Fox Indians who lived here at the time. In 1788, he asked Chief Poesta if he could mine their land. The Chief agreed and Dubuque began operations and started to build his town. He also got permission to mine from Spain who also laid claim to this land. There is evidence he eventually married the Chief’s daughter. Dubuque along with his Fox friends built a thriving mining and trapping business during the next years. Dubuque was determined to preserve his Indian friend’s heritage. Later, the United States Government made him an Indian agent. When Dubuque died in 1810, the Fox Indians built a memorable for him on the bluff overlooking his community. Later, a stone monument replaced the structure and still stands today as a memorial to the city’s founding father.

Chicken, Alaska - Are you kidding me?

Ptarmigans are medium sized game birds found in Alaska and other parts of North America. The name ptarmigan is pronounced as “tar-mi-gan”. They are often called snow chickens and are related to the grouse family of birds. The birds love to live in the upper elevations of mountains. The ptarmigan changes the color of its feathers according to the season. In the summer, they are brown and during the winter their feathers turn pure white. They feed on various types of vegetation including leaves, flowers, seeds, and berries. The town of Ptarmigan, Alaska changed its name to “Chicken” to avoid confusion of the spelling and the pronunciation of Ptarmigan. Later, Alaska claimed the ptarmigan as the state bird. Through time, it is funny how a certain word honoring an animal or place can change into a different meaning to us today.

Photo Courtesy of Library of Congress

Peculiar, Missouri?

Yes, this community does exist! Located just south of Kansas City, the name of this town is surrounded in legend. Some believe a spiritualist having a peculiar vision of this area named the town after his experience. The vision came about when the spiritualist had a dream. The next day he reported his vision to the community leaders and they agreed on his suggestion for the town’s name. Others believe the name came from a frustrated postmaster in town. This particular postmaster kept submitting names to the Post Office. The Post Office kept rejecting his requests due to duplicate names. The Post Office did not like to see duplicate names of communities in the same state. After many rejections, the Post Office suggested that he should “choose a name that is peculiar”. The postmaster of this community was so frustrated that he sent in the name of “Peculiar” for approval. Oddly enough, the Post Office accepted the name and the community became known as “Peculiar”! Whatever explanation you accept, the community still has fun with its name. The sign above is what you will see when you get there.