On a recent road trip to West Texas, I went through several small towns/cities with unusual names and was curious about the origin of their names. I jotted down a few of them to research their names and found some of them have interesting facts behind their names.
Notrees -Originated with the building of a gas plant for Shell Oil Company. The town's first postmaster named the town for its shortage of trees.
Tarzan - Named in 1927 after several names submitted to the post office were rejected. Tarzan was a popular comic strip at the time, so the name was possibly submitted as a joke after so many names were rejected.
Big Spring - Named for a big spring in Sulphur Draw - a historical watering hole for herds of buffalo, antelope, and mustangs. Comanche and Shawnee Indians fought over the water source.
Sweetwater - This one was easy. It was named after the sweet water from a local creek!
Roby - Named after D. C. Roby when a dispute arose between two business partners and a town named Fisher regarding whose land the courthouse would be built on. Roby won!
Monahans- With the expansion of railroads across the south plains of Texas, the Texas and Pacific Railroad hired a surveyor named John Thomas Monahan, who dug a well to provide water for the track laying crew. The well produced 250,000 gallons of water per day, which was a huge contribution to the community's success.
Kermit - Boasts it is the only Texas town to be named after one of Theodore Roosevelt's sons, Kermit Roosevelt (no, it was not named after the frog).
Andrews - Named for Richard Andrews, the first man to die in the war for Texas independence in 1835.
Post - Named after C.W. Post, the cereal giant who brought us Grape Nuts and Post Toasties. He bought over 200,000 acres of ranch land in Texas and built a town called Post City where his workers could buy property with a low down payment and low monthly payments.
Snyder - Named after an early merchant/buffalo hunter who operated a trading post in Scurry County.
The next time you're on the road, make note of some of the towns you go through and look them up. You will learn some interesting facts about how they were named and why a community was formed in that area and in some instances, facts about the community's decline.
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