 Its name is derived from the Choctaw language, and means "red rock".An alternative explanation (see Sam Davis Elliott's "Soldier of Tennessee" and sources cited therein) of the name is that Peter Decherd, who donated the land for the railroad right-of-way (and was therefore given the right to name two stations along the line), named one station Decherd, after himself, and the other as Tulkahoma (later changed to Tullahoma).Tullahoma was the name of Decherd's favorite horse, which had been named for a Choctaw chief captured by Decherd's grandfather.