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German author Karl May (1842–1912) wrote a series of western novels involving a Native American chief named Winnetou ca. 1893. Although immensely popular in his native Germany and in various countries where translated editions of his works were sold, May and his fictional characters are less-well known in the United States. Since the novels predate the construction of Wyntoon by decades, it recently occurred to me that the novels may have influenced the choice of name. Karl May visited the United States only once, in 1908, after his books had made him famous. He never made it to the "Wild West" of which he wrote so much. Like many authors, knowledge of the places in his novels was obtained second hand through research in books and magazines. We may never know for sure, though, if there was a connection in the naming of Wyntoon. — QuicksilverT@16:38, 14 October 2011 (UTC)[reply]
Intriguing! Financial adviser Edward Clark may have known about the German-language book by Karl May but his property really was in the area formerly inhabited by the Wintun people so it is likelier that he named it for the indigenous people than for the fictional character. Or perhaps both—the romantic character's positive attributes adding an air of Red nobility. Binksternet (talk) 17:01, 14 October 2011 (UTC)[reply]
