TURLOCK, Calif. — Turlock's name is probably the only thing the city doesn't owe to agriculture for its history.
The city, 20 minutes south of Modesto, owes its name to "Bred in the Bone," a serial novel from Harper's Weekly Magazine and two brothers struggling to name the town, according to Scott Atherton, historian for the Turlock Historical Society.
Atherton said the name's origin boils down to Henry Lander reading a book in a magazine, seeing the name "Turlock," and pitching it to his brother as their third naming effort.
Contrary to the story, some might have heard growing up, the town's name doesn't come from a translation of "Turlough," or "Dry Lake."
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