Good ol’ Buttermilk, Kansas. I have seen this name on maps for years but still haven’t been there. My mom’s good friend drove through on her way to Oklahoma once and made sure to mention it to me for the unusual name.
Located in southern Comanche County, Buttermilk is about 1o miles south of Coldwater on Hwy 1. According to Wikipedia, nearby is the site of the Big Gyp Cave Pictograph, which is on the National Register of Historic Places. Apparently Buttermilk never had a post office, although Avilla, a small community in the same vicinity, did for a little over 10 years in the late 1800s. There was a baseball team, at least in the 1950s, according to a photo I found online.
I don’t know how it got its name, whether the church is still there or if any signs are left, but because of the odd name I’m sure it will remain on maps for years to come.
Note: this content was originally posted on my old Blogger site “The Nystagmus Zone, Volume 3.”
Fear Not Traveling 
Just found this while I was searching for Buttermilk, KS. I grew up there! Yes there still is a church called Antioch Community Church. My parents and brother still live there on our family farm. Those were good days!
LikeLike
A freind pointed out this site to me and yes – Buttermilk is alive and well! My husband is the pastor of Antioch Community Church and we live right next to the church building. We love the people here and have a vibrant growning church. It is exciting to see God do big things in small places – our investment here is in the lives of people and teaching God’s word. Joshua 4:24, Ezekiel 11:12a, Is 43:10
LikeLike
I see I misspelled growing 🙂 how funny! – I guess we may have grown in numbers but I meant growing!
LikeLike
I noticed on Google Maps the other day that the Buttermilk church can be seen using the “street view” feature. I don’t know how long ago the photos were taken, but it’s a pretty cool feature and not available everywhere yet. For what it’s worth, I thought I’d update my earlier post. Thanks for reading and keeping the name alive.
LikeLike
Ah, beautiful downtown buttermilk! Home to the only stretch of kansas highway 1, all 11 miles of it. Used to be a port of entry years ago. Quite a bit prior to this there was an old blacksmith who bartered his work for buttermilk, and thus the name. The prominent building is Antioch community church, a grat little place that is the spiritual and social center of our community. A great slice of rural small town America. Visitors welcome. Dale
LikeLike