Walnut Grove, MO

Walnut Grove is a small city in Greene County, Missouri, about 20 miles north of Springfield and part of the Springfield metropolitan area. The place was platted in 1859, and the first name was Possum Trot, a local nickname tied to the many possums in the area. The Walnut Grove name came from the stands of wild black walnut trees near the original town site. That is still the best way to picture it: a small southwestern Missouri community with a name that sounds pastoral and an older nickname that is much more playful.

The town's everyday map is built around the school, local businesses, and the roads into Springfield and Bolivar. Walnut Grove R-V School District remains a central local institution, while construction and screen-printing companies provide part of the modern business base. The town also keeps the Possum Trot name alive through its annual Possum Trot Days celebration. The local scoop is that Walnut Grove has two names with two different moods—one from the black walnut groves, one from the possums—and both are still part of how people tell the town's story.