This town took its name from the original name of the Big Hole River which flows through town. The river was originally named by Lewis and Clark for one of the “cardinal virtues” of their president, Thomas Jefferson. For some reason, the name didn’t sit well with later settlers and was changed to the Big Hole. The name of the town here stayed the same though. The town had already gone through two name changes. Originally it was Crossings, but was briefly changed when the post office moved to the Noyes Ranch and Mrs. Noyes was appointed postmaster. The name sounded too much like Norris which was a little ways to the east, so the name Wisdom was assigned.