The ’49ers did their part. They called the camp and the surrounding community “Cave Valley,” in honor of the limestone caverns they found in the area. Only the fact that there already was a Cave Valley in California when the post office was established caused a change of name to “Cool.” “Alabaster” and “Coral Valley” were available, but the postmaster favored the historic but bland “Cool.”

“Cool” was chosen to honor Aaron Cool, a New England cleric who came overland to California during the Gold Rush with a band of prospectors for whom he held Sunday services alongside a wagon for the travelers. He did his part during the journey: Besides ministering to the sick and praying for the dead, he did not hesitate to exchange his Bible for a six-gun when Indians attacked.

Why Is It Called Cool?
Cool is located in the lower western Sierra Nevada foothills, and it is therefore quite hot about six months of the year, so the name hardly reflects the town’s temperature. Also like Rescue, Cool got its name when it acquired a post office in 1885. The postmaster’s job is the result of political patronage, and public officials have never been accused of imagination or creativity in selecting town names.

The renaming of these two communities should stand as an object lesson that postmasters and their buddies should never be permitted to select names for California historic towns. That should have been left to the Spanish and the pioneers, although the Spanish counterpart, “Frio,” might not have been much better. “San Frio,” would have been nice, but there’s no “St. Cool” in the Spanish hagiography.