Sabetha is a unique city name not shared by any other city in the world, and it corresponds in meaning to the Hebrew word “Sabbaton,” meaning “Sabbath.” Settlers first came to this area in the mid 1800's, locating mostly in the community of Albany, two miles north of the present townsite, but the railroad’s choice of route led most residents to pack up and move. Several theories have been offered for how Sabetha received its name, and the most popular tells of a westbound traveler, a Greek scholar versed in mythical lore, who hoped to find gold in California and prized his two oxen, Hercules and Pelleas. When he reached this site, Pelleas died on a Sunday, and because the traveler could go no farther, he pitched his tent, dug a well, performed last rites for the ox, and named the place Sabetha in honor of the day; the name endured in history even though the fortune hunter’s own name was lost.