164. Another nuclear myth dies. Decades ago I was assured by natives of Arco that the name means “Atlantic Richfield Company.” It was a solid legend, but it is simply untrue. In 1901 the place was known as “Root Hog,” and it was at the crossing of two stagecoach paths. It was next to what would become Craters of the Moon National Monument, a place so devoid of life it was once thought to resemble the lunar surface. In 1903 the Postmaster General changed the name to Arco, honoring a German named Georg von Arco, the lead engineer of Telefunken, who happened to be visiting Washington, D.C., at the time. Telefunken was a company created at the urging of Kaiser Wilhelm II for building wireless telegraphy systems. Atlantic Richfield did not exist as a company until 1911, when it was split off Standard Oil. The ARCO headquarters was in downtown Los Angeles.