Missouri Hall is one of the residence halls on Truman State University’s Campus. It is one of the few Native place names that I was able to find in my area. Most of Kirksville, and Missouri in general, was eventually settled by German immigrants, and the place names reflect this pattern. There is a remarkable number of churches in this area with religion seeming to be one of the biggest influences. Additionally, I believe the University named the residence hall after the state and the fact that Missouri is a native name probably did not factor into their decision. Since Truman is named after the president, it is much more likely that Missouri Hall was named to commemorate Truman’s home state. It might be interesting to do some more research about the naming of the hall, but it probably will not be directly related to any Native American influence.

However, I was able to learn some information about the background behing the name Missouri. The state of Missouri is named after the Missouria Tribe who lived along the Missouri River in the western part of the state. The Smithsonian Institution Bureau of American Ethnology says that the name Missouri translates to “town of the large canoes.” This association with canoes is definitely a starting place through which I can learn more about the Missouria Tribe.