BUNCOMBE, a county in the N. W. part of Iowa, bordering on Minnesota, has an area of about 800 square miles. It is bounded on the W. by the Sioux river, and intersected by Inyan Reakah river, and also drained by one of its tributaries. Ocheyedan lake, the source of the river of the same name, is situated in the E. part of the county. Buncombe county is not included in the census of 1850. County seat not located. (Baldwin's New and Complete Gazetteer of the United States..., 1854)
Note: Buncombe County, Iowa renamed Lyon County, Iowa in 1862.
LYON COUNTY Is situated in the extreme northwest corner of this State, and lies west of Osceola, and north of Sioux County. It was formerly known by the name of Buncombe, but has lately been changed to its present name in honor of the lamented General Nathaniel Lyon, who fell at the head of the Iowa troops at the desperately fought battle of Wilson's Creek, in Missouri, in the first year of the Rebellion. It is not organized. (Hair's Iowa State Gazetteer..., 1865)