A series

How the valley’s towns got their names

Every town in the valley has a story about its name, and most of the stories are only half the record. In this series we go back to the plats, the acts, the post-office lists and the county histories for each one: the oldest spellings, the legends against the record, and what nobody wrote down. Press a town on the map to read its story.

• KalamazooA footrace, a cherry tree, a missing letter L, and the oldest spellings on paper.
• CassopolisA governor’s name, a Greek word, a race through the rain, and the A that became an O.
• DowagiacA creek’s name, a railroad town, a paper town called Venice, and two meanings.
• NilesPog-wa-tigue, a Baltimore editor, a plat recorded in Lenawee County, and three flags, one of them for a day or less.
• EdwardsburgBeardsley’s Prairie, a storekeeper, a major, and a disputed Edwards.
• Paw PawA river, a tree, an English word, and a township called Lafayette.
• VandaliaA post office, a Quaker mill, a missionary’s wife, and a name nobody explained.

Which town should be next? Tell us, and send any record of a name’s origin you know of.