Montana History:  Place Names (C-D)

         

 

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  Select brief notes about place names throughout the state, with an emphasis on towns.

A-B, C-D, E-G (more coming)

Photo above on Left:  The community of Landusky is named for
Powell "Pike" Landusky, reputed to be one of the toughest rough-and-tumble fighters of the west, who was killed by Kid Curry in 1894.

Place Names of Towns and Landmarks (C-D)
County location in parenthesis; place names are towns unless indicated otherwise. Condensed from the 1957 Montana Almanac.

Cable (Deer Lodge) - named for the Atlantic Cable mine, discovered in 1866
Calvin (Jefferson) - named for Amos Calvin, old time resident
Camas (Sanders) - named for the Indian term for a small onion which grows wild in the state
Canton (Broadwater) - named for Canton, New York, in St Lawrence county, hometown of an early settler
Canyon Creek (Lewis & Clark) - named for canyon creek which flows through the valley to the Missouri
Carbon (Carbon) - county named for the presence of coal deposits in the county
Careless Creek (Wheatland) - creek named by Wilham Berkin in 1865, following a careless incident
Carleton (Missoula) - named for Mrs. Robert Carleton, an early settler in the vicinity
Carter (Carter) - county named for former United States Senator Thomas H. Carter
Cascade (Cascade) - County named because it contains the Great Falls of the Missouri River
Chance (Carbon) -named for Nathan Chance, a stockman & early settler
Charlo (Lake) - named for Charlot, a chief of the Flathead Indians
Chester (Liberty) - county seat; named by a railroad telegrapher after his home town, Chester, Penn.
Chief Mountain (Glacier) - named for John Rowand, chief factor of the Hudson Bay Co., at Fort Edmonton
Chinook (Blaine) - county seat; named for the chinook winds which blow over the area; previously Dawes
Chouteau (Chouteau) - county & town spelled [Chouteau]: for the Chouteau family of the Mo. River Fur Co.
Cinnabar (Park) - named for a mountain exposing a vertical reef formation of an intense red color
Circle (McCone) - town & county seat named after the brand used by an early day outfit
Clancy (Jefferson) - named for Clancy Creek, named for an old timer, known as "Judge" Clancy
Clark Fork - two rivers: Clark Fork of the Columbia and of the Yellowstone, both named for Capt. Wm Clark Clyde Park (Park) - named for either early area-raised Clydesdale horses, or early rancher Clyde DuRand
Cohagen (Garfield) - named for a Mr. Cohagen, a resident of the vicinity
Colstrip (Rosebud) - a composite name, Coal Strip; home of the largest single coal mine in Montana
Columbia Falls (Flathead) - origin of name disputed
Columbus (Stillwater) - city & county seat, named for Christopher Columbus or after Columbus, Minnesota
Comanche (Stillwater) - stream (first) & town; named after a horse that survived the Little Big Horn battle
Comertown (Sheridan) - named for W.W. Comer, a local resident
Conrad (Pondera) - named in honor of Mr. W. G. Conrad, businessman who owned much of the area
Cooke City (Park) - named for Hay Cooke Jr., who was interested in mining claims in the district
Coombs (Stillwater) - named after a family of that name who were farmers living in this vicinity.
Corwin Springs (Park) - station near Yellowstone National Park, named for hotel owner Dr. Corwin
Coulson (Yellowstone) - old town named for the Coulson firm of steamboat builders, near today's Billings
Covallis (Ravalli) - named from & settled by people from Corvallis, Oregon
Craig (Cascade) - named for Mr. Warren Craig, a pioneer resident of the place
Crandall Creek (Carbon) - creek named for of that name who was killed near there by Indians in 1876
Crane (Gallatin) - town later changed name to Cardinal
Crane (Richland) - named after the owner of Crane's ranch at this place, as shown on a map dated 1881
Craver (Stillwater) - named for J.C. Craver, superintendent for Northern Pacific Railroad
Cruse (Lewis & Clark) - named after Thomas Cruse of Helena, banker & discoverer of Drum Lummon mine
Culbertson (Roosevelt) - named in honor of Alexander Culbertson, chief factor of the American Fur Co.
Curry (Dawson) - named after Howard Curry mechanical superintendent of the Northern Pacific Railroad
Cushman (Golden Valley) - named for Mr. Cushman, a local ranch owner, old settler, cowboy & conductor
Custer (Treasure) - named for Lieut. Col. G. A. Custer, afterwards killed by Indians in 1876
Cut Bank (Glacier) - town & river named from deep gorge near the city made by Cut Bank Creek
Cyanide (Lewis & Clark) - named for the cyanide treatment of ore; a large plant operated there
Cyr (Mineral) - station named for A. Cyr & E. Cyr who provided the right of way for Northern Pacific railway
Dalley (Park) - station on Livingston-Gardiner-YNP line of the NP Railroad, after Ebenezer & Samuel Dalley
Daniels (Daniels) - named after Mansfield A. Daniels, a pioneer, rancher & storekeeper
Danmor (Jefferson) - station on the NP Railroad named for Dan Morrison, discover of Lewis & Clark Cavern
Danvers (Fergus) - station on the Milwaukee RR east of Great Falls; named after an old town in Mass.
Darby (Ravalli) - named in honor of the first postmaster, James R. Darby
Darby (Ravalli) - named after James Darby, a pioneer farmer near there
D'Aste (Lake) - station on Dixon to Polson branch line of the NP RR, named for a Jesuit Indian missionary
Dawson (Dawson) - county named for Maj. Andrew Dawson of the American Fur company.
Dawson (Silver Bow) - station west of Butte
De Borgia (Mineral) - town & church named for St. Regis de Borgia River, named by father De Smet in 1841
De Smet (Missoula) - station named after Jesuit Indian missionary father Pierre Jean De Smet
Dearborn (Lewis & Clark) - river named by Lewis & Clark, 1805, in honor of Sec. of State Henry Dearborn
Deer Lodge (Powell) - county seat in Deer Lodge valley, Called by Indians "Lodge of the White-Tailed Deer"
Deer Park (Gallatin) - Indian tradition said that deer came here in large numbers during the winter months
Deever (Park) - station near Gardiner named after Mr. Deevers, owner of a stockyard at this point
Dehart (Sweet Grass) - station west of Big Timber, named after H.A. Dehart of Big Timber, former rancher
Dempsey (Powell) - station named from Dempsey Creek, named from pioneer rancher Robert Dempsey
Denton (Fergus) - named after Dent brothers, stockmen who owned the land on which the town was built
Dewey (Beaverhead) - named for D.S. Dewey, an early-day rancher in the vicinity
Dillon (Beaverhead) - named fro Sidney Dillon, president of the Union Pacific Railroad
Dodson (Phillips) - named for an old-timer, who had a store and saloon prior to the building of the railroad
Donald (Madison) - post office named for Donald A. McIntosh, railroad contractor
Donlan (Sanders) - station named after Ed Donlan, lumberman & state senator from Missoula
Dooley (Sheridan) - named for W.D. Dooley, a local merchant
Doolittle Creek (Beaverhead) - named for an early settler (Anaconda Standard, February 20, 1916)
Dowd (Roosevelt) - named for a man of that name
Dowlin (Rosebud) - station on the Colstrip branch line, named after Charles Dowlin, a state senator
Dracut (Cascade) - station on Great Falls-Agawam line of the Milwaukee RR; Named for Dracut, Mass.
Drummond (Granite) - named after a trapper who in the territory; formerly known as Drummond Camp
Duffy (Lewis & Clark) - named for John Duffy, an old-time settler in the vicinity
Dupuyer (Teton) - named from Dupuyer Creek, named after French "depouilles" ("back fat of a buffalo")
Durant (Silver Bow) - station named by Anaconda employee M.S. Dean, in honor of a friend named Durant
Dwyer (Roosevelt) - named in honor for Jack Dwyer, a resident of the vicinity
 

 

Montana History Net is produced by Bruce Gourley.  Photographs, except Clark signature, copyright Bruce Gourley.