Surnames found most frequently in the 1979 O'Brien County History are: ALBERT, ANDERSON, BAKER, BRANDT, BRIGGS, BRINKERT, BROWN, BRYANT, BURNS, BYERS, CALLENIUS, CHAPIN, CHRISMAN, CLARK, COOPER, DAHNKE, DAU, DAVIS, DENNY, DEVRIES, DOUMA, DRAKE, DUMMETT, EBEL, ELGERSMA, FAHLENKAMP, FINTEL, FOLEY, FRITZSCHE, FROHWEIN, GETTING, GIBBS, GILLESPIE, GONNERMAN, GRADY, GREEN, GRIFFIN, HAACK, HADDEN, HAKEMAN, HANSEN, HARMS, HARRIS, HENNINGS, HICKS, HILL, HOFLAND, HOLLES, JALAS, JOHANNSEN, JOHNSON, JONES, JORDAN, KAISER, KLINK, KROESE, LEMKUIL, LINDER, LOWERY, MCCARTY, MARTIN, MEYER, MILLER, NAGEL, NEGUS, NELSON, NORTON, O'DONNELL, OTTO, PAULING, PETERS, PETERSEN, PETERSON, POWERS, PUHRMAN, RAYMOND, REINKE, RIEDMANN, ROHWER, ROZEBOOM, SAUPE, SCHNEIDER, SCHWEBACH, SCOTT, SEVERANCE, SHEA, SHINKLE, SICKELKA, SMITH, STAMER, STEELE, STEINBECK, STEUCK, STOLLMANN, STORM, STRUVE, SULLIVAN, SWEENEY, TAYLOR, THORMAN, TJOSSEM, TRIPLETT, VANBEEK, VANMEETERN, WAGGONER, WAGNER, WESTPHAL, WILLIAMS, WILSON, WITTROCK, WOLF, WOLTERSDORF, and WRIGHT.

Thomas Jefferson created a system for surveying this country that is based on a grid system. Surveyors know this as the township system. A section is the common unit and is one mile square, or 640 acres. A Township is made of six sections by six sections (36 sections in all). Usually, one of the sections in a township was reserved for a public school. The Townships are referenced back to a meridian. There are about 12 meridians in this country. The east-west line throught the meridian is called the "baseline". For example, I live in Section 6, Township 2 south, Range 68 west of the 6th Prinicple Meridian (PM). In other words, I live in the second township south of the east-west baseline for the 6th principle meridian. The baseline for the 6th PM is the 40th degree parallel and runs through the southern end of Boulder, Colorado. Incidently, there are streets in many cities, particularly in the west, called "Baseline Road". A USGS Topo map will indicate where the township and secton lines are. If anyone is interested in where the term the "back 40" (as in "I am going to mow the back forty this morning") comes from........ A section can be broken down into quarter sections and quarter quarter sections. A quarter section would be 160 acres, and a quarter-quarter section would be 40 acres. Most rural county roads are constructed on the section lines, one mile apart. In O'Brien County, almost all the country roads are on section lines. A lot of farms were originally sold by the section and later broken down and sold as quarter-quarter or one half of a quarter section lots. Thus, a small farmer would typically have 40 acres along the road, and then another 40 acres away from the road. Thus, the "back forty" would refer to the 40 acre lot away from the road or away from the house. Since most rural roads are on the section lines, when these areas are later developed into urban areas, the rural section roads typically become the main roads. If you look at a street map of a modern suburb, you will notice that the striaight, grid, roads dividing seas of cul-de-sacs and curved streets are about a mile apart and I would be willing to bet they are on the section lines. However, most older urban areas were located for some other feature, like deep ports, confluence of rivers, train-trail nodes, etc. and do not necessarily follow the section lines. In O'Brien county, the sections within a township are numbered 1 through 36 starting in the northeast corner and ending in the southeast corner. Thus section number 6 is in the northwest corner, then dropping down one row and moving east for numbers 7 through 12 with section 12 being directly below section 1 and section 13 is then just below section 12, etc. The 1897 history has many references to the section which early settlers located. Thus if you ancestors were listed as settling on "section 12 of Dale townwhip", you could locate exactly where they lived. 

When I was answering a recent lookup request about a resident of Primghar, I realized that there may be lots of people who don't know where the name of that town - and other O'Brien place names - came from. Here's what I have learned, from Perkins' 1897 History of O'Brien County: (And I apologize for the length - I wrote more than I thought I would!) Nancy ~~~~~~~

O'Brien - "In 1850, the Iowa State Legislature appointed a committee, for the purpose of giving names to fifty of its counties. This committee in its various selections, desirous of honoring the patriots of Ireland, named some of its counties after these, among which is Emmett county, after Robert Emmett, and Mitchell county, after John Mitchell. O'Brien county was named after William Smith O'Brien, who was born in 1803 and died in 1864. He was the contemporary, and the coadjutor of Daniel O'Connell. He was a man of marked ability, and eminent and loyal, in his devotion to his native country. The name of the county has a classical sound, and in connection with its origin, and the brave spirit of its namesake, is well bestowed.

Calumet: "The town of Calumet was laid out by the Illinois Central Railroad company in the year of 1887, on section 22, in Liberty township." [ed. note: I presume that the Illinois Central chose the name; it is a common place name in Illinois (Calumet City, Calumet Harbor, Calumet Park, Lake Calumet) and also found in Michigan and Wisconsin.]

Archer: "The town of Archer was named after John H. Archer, who owned the land upon which the town site was started. Mr. Archer is an extensive farmer still living near the town. The town started in 1888.

Gaza: "The town of Gaza is located on section 28 in Highland township. It is on the line of the Illinois Central Railroad, and was started soon after this road was built across the county from Cherokee. The town was named by some ardent lover of sacred history, who reached out upon the shores of the Mediterranean sea, and selected the name of a hamlet in Judea.

Paullina: "The town of Paullina is located on the northeast quarter of section 9, in Union township, and has an addition on the adjoining section north. It was named after the Paullina brothers, who owned the quarter section on which the town is laid out, and were also owners of other land adjacent to the town site. This town started ahead of the railroad, in 1882, in anticipation of its coming, and when the first locomotive whistled within the limits of the townsite, there were already business houses.

Sutherland: "The town of Sutherland is on the Chicago and Northwestern railroad, and is located on section 7 in Waterman township. It was named after the Duke of Sutherland, who was, about the time the town site was located, sort of a guest of the officials of the railroad company, and who were sufficiently in love with his royal highness, to name their town site after him.

Hartley: "Hartley is situated on the northeast quarter of section 32, in Hartley township, and was named after one of the railroad surveyors.

Primghar: "Primghar is laid out on the southeast quarter of section 36 in Summit township, and its additions reach out into adjoining sections. . .The name Primghar was coined from the first letter of the surname of several parties interested in the early starting of the town. The names will be seen from the following which was published at the time: Pumphrey, the treasurer, drives the first nail, Roberts, the donor, is quick on the trail, Inman dips slyly the first letter in, McCormack adds M which makes the full Prim, Green, thinking of groceries, gives them the G, Hayes drops them an H without asking a fee, Albright the joker with his jokes all at par, Rerick brings up the rear and crowns all Primghar."

Sheldon: "Sheldon started when the Sioux City and St. Paul railway (now the C.,St.P & O) reached the town site. . .The town was laid out by the land department of (the railway) and was named after Israel Sheldon who was one of the stockholders, and who was a resident of New York City.

Sanborn: "The site was owned by Messrs. Lawler and Stocum, and was laid out into lots. They first laid out about 60 acres, and at that time, the town of Sanborn began its existance. Then, the intention was to name the place Edenville, after that lovely spot which sacred history designates as the home of the first pair, and where 'Mother Eve' ate the forbidden fruit. But Edenville was not a satisfactory name to Mr. Stocum, he did not care to shoulder the ever present recollection of that fatal and disobedient occurrence in the name of the town, which would be a constant reminder, so that another was sought and the present name fixed upon. It was named after Geo. W. Sanborn, then superintendent of the western portion of the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul railroad, who was a man of thorough business qualities, a good railroad man, and in every respect a gentleman. The name itself is of good sound, and now has extensive familiarity, and will go out in reputation as the town itself grows in size and importance."

[Wow! What would they have done for town names if it weren't for the railroads?!] And while I'm on the subject, here are the township names, with my own speculation about their origins: Baker- possibly named for early (1868) settler Gus Baker. Caledonia - Ancient name for Scotland; maybe reflects the ancestry of early settlers. Carroll - probably for Patrick Carroll, "an honest, well-disposed and substantial man (who) came to O'Brien county in. . . 1870 from Illinois." Center - no map handy: is this the center of the county? Dale - is there a valley here? Floyd - named for the Floyd river. Franklin - possibly in honor of Benjamin Franklin? A very early settler here was J.H.Wolf, a printer from Pennsylvania. Grant - ? this was Union territory; was this named for U.S.Grant? Hartley - railroad surveyor - see above. Highland - more Scottish influence? Liberty - a popular, patriotic name. Lincoln - another one! Omega - last letter of the Greek alphabet; maybe this was the final destination? Summit - ? Is there a high point here? Union - Another patriotic name. Waterman - named for Hannibal H. Waterman, O'Brien county's first settler.