Page News & Courier

Heritage and Heraldry

What's in a name: Luray and Shenandoah

Article of June 21, 2001

Writer's block can be a terrible thing (especially when attributed to sleep deprivation) and to move things along, I find the Internet to be a valuable source for ideas. Which brings me to the topic this week. In the wake of the arrival of a new baby (ah yes, the reason for sleep deprivation and for my delays in getting back to some who have recently written to me), I thought about the originality in names. With that in mind, I thought of Luray and Shenandoah (nope, the new daughter was not named for either).

Most local folks know the story about the possible origins of the name of our very own Luray, Virginia. Some subscribe to the tale of Mr. Louis (Lou) Ramey and then there are some that believe that Lorraine, France may have been a source. But, what about those towns named after? Were they named for our Page County town? Hard to say for certain with only the Internet as a source.

The answer to that may be more readily available in the respective county histories, if written. I do know that by typing "Luray" in a search engine, you'll probably find that about 98% of the entries that come up have something to do with Luray, Virginia. The other 2% deal typically with the Lurays of other states. One that was interesting showed that Russell County, Kansas' very own Luray claims the fame to being "Halfway between Paradise and the Garden of Eden" . . . and it is . . . geographically between towns with those names.

Other finds on the web relate to Luray, Henderson County, Tennessee; Luray, Clark County, Missouri; and Luray, Hampton County, South Carolina. Then I stumbled upon a site called "placesnamed.com" and discovered Luray, Henry County, Indiana; Luray, Marshall County, Iowa; Luray, Fayette County, Ohio; and Luray, Licking County, Ohio.

Of all of those found, I feel relatively confident in saying that Luray, Virginia has 1) the highest population of them all, and 2) has the highest elevation.

Apart from town names, you may also find something to do with china patterns. Made of soft pastels of pink, pale yellow, pale green and baby blue, LuRay china was popular during the 1940s and was a "reaction against the very intense colors of Fiesta (another pattern) and provided a solid glazed dinnerware alternative to housewives who preferred a quieter palette."

So, what about the name "Shenandoah?" Certainly, you may think, as I did at one time, that the "daughter of the stars" name must be held to sacred form here in our very own Valley. But alas, I found in once traveling that there is a Shenandoah, Georgia and I also know of a Shenandoah, Iowa.

Going back to "placesnamed.com" I also found that the name Shenandoah graces towns in Florida, Louisiana, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Texas! Additionally, there are places (legitimately speaking since the "river runs through it") in West Virginia. But be careful, don't try to pull out an atlas and try to find all of these places. Some still have not quite made it to the big maps.

Return to the Page News & Courier sponsored directory for Heritage & Heraldry articles.