Southwest Missouri
Urbana's name carries a settler thread inside Dallas County
SHSMO's place-name file ties Urbana to settlers from Urbana, Illinois, giving Dallas County a town story beyond Buffalo.
Dallas County history is not only Buffalo. The State Historical Society of Missouri’s Dallas County place-name file identifies Urbana as a town in Lincoln Township with a post office since 1867. It says the town was named after Urbana, Illinois, by settlers who came to Dallas County from there.
The same entry notes an older name thread: Urbana was originally called Andersonville after a Dr. Andrews who lived there. That is the kind of local detail that can explain why older references, family papers, or local stories may not use the same name a modern map uses.
For a local reader, the point is simple. Urbana is not just a dot north of Buffalo. It carries its own settlement name story inside the county.
References
Where this fits: this note belongs to Dallas County. See every local note for the county on its page.