On July 2, 1914, Janesville was renamed Lassen. A group of local developers petitioned the United States Postal Service to change the name from Janesville to Lassen. They were successful. It was their goal to rid the region of towns that ended with the suffix of “ville.” They felt the suffix carried a stigma of a small village, or worse yet, brought about the connotation of Hicksville.
Many of residents were not pleased with the new name. In December 1914, over 100 residents signed a petition to restore the post office’s name back to Janesville. The Postmaster General denied it. The area suffered an identity crisis, a place with two names—Janesville and Lassen. In 1918, the Lassen Mail wrote: “Janesville or Lassen, which shall it be? It isn’t a question of which it shall be but which it is. The post office is Lassen and the rest of the town is Janesville and it would require a special act of the California Legislature to make it anything else.” The editor did exaggerate a bit on the procedure. In 1923, the town’s residents petitioned the Postal Service and requested the name of Janesville be restored and this time the request was granted on September 22, 1923.
Hmm–they say “what’s in a name?” Identity. Obviously, the Janesvillians opted for a suffix (ville) that we now find quaint and picturesque. Hicksville, indeed!
Janesville was named after my 5th great grandmother Jane Painter who came with her parents across the Old Oregon Trail from Missouri in the late 1800’s. I did not know this story, but I have always known that Janesville was named after my ancestor. Jane Painter married Jeremiah Bond and raised a family in the area. Many of my people are buried in the Janesville cemetery.
Correction: Jane Painter is the mother to Mary Isabell Painter, daughter of Samuel Harris Painter and Jane Kincaid Painter. Mary Isbell Painter married Jeremiah Bond.
Correction: Jane Painter is 6th generation grandmother from myself; Judy Marie Allen/York.