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1 |  | Buffalo's Name Origin: Theories Summarized and Ranked |
2 | A view of the Lake & Fort Erie from Buffalo Creek, 1810. This is the first-known picture ever made of what is now Buffalo. |  |
3 | Buffalo Creek | The one thing that all name theorists agree on is that Buffalo the city takes its name from Buffalo Creek, now called the Buffalo River. The debate revolves around how the creek got its name. Buffalo Creek was known by that name before the Revolutionary War. The name first appears on a map drawn ca. 1762 by Lt. George Demler, who was stationed at Fort Niagara. By 1764, the name was known to Captain John Montresor, who describes pursuing a party of Allegheny Indians to Buffalo Creek in his journal, June 22, 1764. |
4 | Seven theories | We identified seven theories about how Buffalo, NY got its name. We present each one here on its own page, with evidence in favor and opposed, and sources. We then added our own plausibility ranking. Links to each theory are across the top of the page. |
5 | Credits | By Cynthia Van Ness and a terrific library volunteer who wishes to remain nameless. ©The Buffalo History Museum, 2021 |
6 | Edits | If we find new theories, sources, or evidence, we will add them to this document. |
7 | View as a PDF | This document is also online as a PDF that you can page through |
8 | Short, sharable link | https://tinyurl.com/TBHM-BuffaloName |
9 | A bibliography | Here are some works that present various Buffalo name origin theories |
10 | Contact us | library@buffalohistory.org |
11 | Last updated | May 21, 2022 |