Intriguing place names abound in Kansas. This handy place name gazatteer is both a valuable reference and a source of good fun.

This manuscript by Dr. John Rydjord tells how towns, rivers and settlements in Kansas received their names. This original corrected manuscript includes a listing of towns in Kansas, the names of their founders, and an extensive bibliography.

When it came to labeling cities, towns, counties, crossroads, mining camps, rivers, forests, peaks, and passes, Colorado place namers looked to an array of sources for ideas. Many simply memorialized themselves and their families—Florence, Howard, Lulu City, Dacono (Daisy, Cora, and Nora combined)—or more well-known honorees—Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, Kit Carson, Montezuma, Ouray. Some paid homage to explorers, war heroes, politicians, railroad executives, plants, animals, or landforms. Still others went for the more unusual or creative—Boreas Pass bears the name of the Greek god of the North Wind; Egnar is range backwards; Kim was inspired by the Rudyard Kipling novel; Artesia was renamed Dinosaur in 1965 to capitalize on tourist traffic headed to nearby Dinosaur National Monument; Almont was named for a horse, Gulnare a cow. In 1001 Colorado Place Names, Maxine Benson scrutinizes the most popular, interesting , and unique place names in the state. She discusses how the chosen names originated and what changes they have undergone. Included are Colorado's 63 counties, 716 past and present settlements, and 56 "fourteeners" (peaks more than 14,000 feet in elevation) along with other places known for their historical, geographical, geological, or onomastic significance. Benson also provides pronunciation of unusual names, county locations, post office dates, population figures, and anecdotes galore. The result is a mosaic of information of Colorado history, ethnicity, families, events, politics, settlement patterns, and local lore. Combining previous place-name research and new findings, Benson takes us on a colorful, entertaining, and educational journey through cities and towns, across the plains, and over the mountains.

From Notrees to Pine Island, from Scotland to Moscow, from Dickens to Tennyson, from Spur to Lariat, from Buck Naked to Bald Prairie—Texans are unsurpassed for the imaginative names they give their towns and cities. Fred Tarpley has chosen 1001 of the most unusual and interesting of the 75,000 place names that dot the Texas map. The names of Texas communities and places can be traced to a number of basic sources, including people; landscapes; the Bible; literature and mythology; misunderstandings and errors; backward spellings and blends; and anecdotes and events. Each entry in 1001 Texas Place Names gives the official spelling of the name, phonetic pronunciation where necessary, dates of post office operation, and a short narrative about the origin of the name and the history of the place. Each of Texas's 254 counties is represented by at least two entries.