What's in a name? "Buffalo Mountain" (hotel, schools)

[rccrain]

Anyone know the origin of the name buffalo mountain?

All that I can think of is maybe the shape of it resembles a buffalo hump.

[Rangerred]

What I've always heard is that a well-worn buffalo trail followed along the base of the mountain. Basically what is now S. Roan St., Buffalo Rd., and Cherokee Rd. This later evolved into a Native American trail, wagon road, then automobile road. The proximity of the mountain to this trail resulted in the name.

[tdatl]

Originally Posted by rccrain

All that I can think of is maybe the shape of it resembles a buffalo hump.

Not sure about a buffalo hump, but there certainly has been some humping going on there, at least in years past. Many years ago, one of my co-workers was one of many gay men busted there. The JC Press published their photos, names, and addresses on the front page.

The Press enjoys humiliating gay men like that, unless those busted are prominent businessmen or have their names on medical schools. Then they'll sue for the info but won't publish it or they'll simply ignore it.

[rccrain]

Use a public park for those purposes and you deserve whatever notoriety/humiliation you get.

Get a hotel room - you can do whatever you want and no one should bother you.

[rccrain]

Originally Posted by Rangerred

What I've always heard is that a well-worn buffalo trail followed along the base of the mountain. Basically what is now S. Roan St., Buffalo Rd., and Cherokee Rd. This later evolved into a Native American trail, wagon road, then automobile road. The proximity of the mountain to this trail resulted in the name.

Well that's very interesting and highly plausible. I knew there were buffalo in these areas, I just discounted the link because buffalo usually don't climb mountains, but a nearby trail, that certainly makes sense. I bet there's a tie in to the Milligan area. (Milligan Buffalo, Buffalo Creek, etc)

[tdatl]

Originally Posted by rccrain

Use a public park for those purposes and you deserve whatever notoriety/humiliation you get.

Get a hotel room - you can do whatever you want and no one should bother you.

agreed. I object to the difference in the way the paper treated arrests; that "What the People Don't Know WILL Hurt Them" masthead is bunk. Those who got busted for it and were nobodies got their pictures and names plastered on the front page. Yet, those who were prominent never had the Press publish their names or anything at all about them. There was a huge ETSU bathroom scandal when I lived in JC. Since most of those busted were prominent, they never even got charged. One student did. And when the Press sued for the release of the ETSU police records, they won and that was that -- they didn't publish the names.

Winter 1986-87 by Student Press Law Center

Same with the guy whose name was removed from the medical school. His named was removed from the medical school for a reason, but you'd never know that by reading the JC paper. If he's a guy working the rack at Jiffy Lube and gets busted, though -- front page.

[fafnir]

rccrain is correct. According to what I could find out, there was a herd of somewhere between 8 to 10 thousand buffalo that used the trail and grazed in the area "Buffalo Valley".