Never, never forget that we're dealing with a man who loved punning and
playing with words:  In some documents he calls his family "Carpenter" and
then Tom becomes "Sawyer" (while his girlfriend is "Thatcher").  In
Huckleberry Finn the two feuding families no longer recall what started the
violence, but their names tell us it was probably the old story of farmers
(Grangerfords) vs. sheepmen (Shepherdsons).

Now, if you recall, Clemens in his more nostalgic and upbeat moments
referred to both Hannibal (I'm pretty sure) and his uncle's farm as "a
heavenly place for a boy."  Doesn't it seem fairly likely that a heavenly
place might well become the Burg of St. Peter?

Mark