Nishnabotna Township was organized in 1845, taking its name from the Nishnabotna River which flows through it.[4] Historically, Nishnabotna was thought to be a Native American name meaning "a river where boats were built".[5] However, more recent research indicates that the name, which was adopted from the Osage language, means "spouting wellspring."[6]
Geography
Nishnabotna Township covers an area of 28.8 square miles (74.6 km2) and contains one incorporated settlement, Watson. It contains two cemeteries: Addington and Sonora. The Nishnabotna River enters the Missouri River in the northwest corner of the township. There is little physical relief, as the township lies almost entirely on the floodplains of the two rivers. The stream of High Creek runs through this township. Agriculture is the dominant land use.
Transportation
Nishnabotna Township contains one airport, Garst Airport.
In the media
Nishnabotna Township is probably best known outside the immediate region for a reference by the New Yorker cartoonist George Booth, a native of Missouri. In a single-panel cartoon, one threadbare and addled character says to another as they cross a crowded street in New York City: "Mother always says that. Mother always says you have to be a little bit crazy to live in New York. Mother is a little bit crazy, but she doesn't live in New York. Mother lives in Nishnabotna, Missouri."
